Charlotte Smith's peanut brittle.
I'm jealous of my friend, Charlotte.
She makes the absolute best peanut brittle. The best.
And she doesn't need a cookbook or even a candy thermometer to make it.
When I make candy, I am by the book, double-checking each line before adding the next ingredient. And I wouldn't dream of making candy without a thermometer. I check it, check it and check it again, waiting until it says the magic number for soft-ball or hard-crack stage.
Charlotte is so generous. She takes two days off work every year to make candy for her friends and family. This year she made her famous peanut brittle and fudge.
When I told her that a lot of people use short-cuts to make fudge anymore, she just shook her head. No shortcuts in her kitchen.
So without a candy thermometer, how does she know when the peanut brittle is done?
"I can tell by the sound and the smell," she said.
And, she warns, when cookbooks tell you to cook something until golden brown, be careful.
"There's a real fine line between brown and BROWN," she said.
These are the tips you won't find in a book, just from a well-seasoned, instinctual cook.... the best kind of cook.
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