Almond, Vanilla and Coffee Brittle

Of all the baking I did before Christmas that I talked about in this post, this was the winner! It is a honeycomb candy with chunks of almonds flavoured with ground coffee and vanilla. I did half with and half without the coffee as I wasn't sure of the combo but the coffee really worked. I broke it into pieces and gave a large jarful to each of the preschool teachers.

I forgot to a photo of mine, so this is the photo from Taste.com.au - mine came out looking the same!

Almond, Vanilla and Coffee Brittle

1 1/2 C caster sugar

1/2 C glucose syrup

2 C blanched almonds (or you could use cashews or peanuts)

1/2 C almond kernels

2 tbsp coffee beans, crushed (see tip) or 1 - 2 tsp ground coffee beans

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Grease a 20cm x 30cm lamington pan.

Place sugar, syrup, 1/4 C cold water and a pinch of salt in a saucepan. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Use a wet pastry brush to brush sugar crystals from the side of the pan. Increase heat to high. Bring to the boil. Cook, without stirring, for 7 minutes. Add blanched almonds. Cook for approximately 10 minutes, swirling pan occasionally, or until sugar turns golden. Careful in this stage that the almonds at the bottom don't burn. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, combine almond kernels, coffee beans, vanilla and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl. Carefully add to sugar mixture. The mixture will fizz due to the bicarb. Stir gently to combine.

Pour mixture evenly over base of pan. Set aside for 2 hours or until cooled completely. Break into pieces. Store in an airtight container.