The ultimate vegan gingerbread granola brittle (+ a giveaway!)
Before I start gushing about this incredible brittle, I need to tell you how much your support of our ebooks, Edible Gifts and Tiny Treats, means to me. For the first time ever, Lisa and I offered a special 2-for-1 deal on our two books in hopes that we could not only help you with gift ideas for the holidays but also get in a few more sales before making our annual donation to Elephant Nature Park and the Toronto Vegetarian Association—both of which are given one-third of our ebook proceeds. We’re thrilled that your additional purchases have culminated in a pretty decent donation to these charities. It wouldn’t happen without your support. So, thank you!
Okay, now on to this brittle, which I think I titled appropriately as the ultimate vegan brittle. Because it is. Hello, sweet, crunchy, gingerbread-spiced goodness.
I think it’s so amazing because instead of using traditional ingredients like white sugar, corn syrup and butter, this recipe makes use of organic coconut sugar and a little brown rice syrup to create the sweet, crunchy candy, and then it’s topped with a spiced gingerbread granola. If you’ve never made brittle before, there’s no need to fear as it is actually quite simple to make! The first time I tried my hand at it, I was surprised by how nicely it came out, and it took less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
Despite its simplicity, I’ve got to share a couple of tips to ensure your success in brittle-making:
- Make sure you have an accurate candy or cooking thermometer. If you don’t own one, they should be easy to find at most grocery and bulk food stores (I got mine at a bulk store for less than $10).
- This is an instance where mise en place is important—measure out all of your ingredients beforehand, as you have to work quickly once the sugar reaches temperature.
- And once last thing: don’t fret about ruining your candy-coated saucepan. Once you’ve poured the mixture onto the cookie sheet, immediately soak the used saucepan in hot water. If the candy has already hardened in the saucepan, simply fill it with water and bring it to a boil. The caramel should melt away.
I fell in love with Nature’s Path Love Crunch gingerbread granola when I first tried it last year, and it made the perfect topping for this recipe. If you prefer to make your own granola, try Dreena’s gingerbread granola (it’s amazing) or try other flavours like pumpkin spice or maple pecan.
This would make a fantastic holiday gift if layered in mason jars or wrapped in little cellophane bags tied with ribbon. That is, if you can stop yourself from eating it all first.
PrintGingerbread granola brittle
Yield: Makes 24 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 cups coconut sugar
- 1/3 cup brown rice syrup
- 1/3 cup water
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1.5 cups Nature's Path Love Crunch Gingerbread granola (or homemade granola)
Directions:
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large saucepan (preferably a heavy-bottomed pan) set over medium-low heat, stir together the coconut sugar, brown rice syrup and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is melted.
- Increase heat to medium and bring to a boil.
- Continue boiling, without stirring, until a candy thermometer reaches about 300°F (hard crack stage), occasionally brushing the side of the pan with a silicone pastry brush dipped in cold water. It should take about 10 minutes to reach a deep amber colour but keep an eye on it as it cooks. If you do not cook it long enough, it will not reach the brittle stage; if you cook it for too long, it may burn. If you’re uncertain, do a quick test: use a small spoon to scoop out some of the mixture from the pan and drop the mixture into a cup of ice water. It should form hard brittle threads that break when bent. If they are still soft and bendable, continue cooking.
- Once it reaches temperature, remove pan from heat and immediately stir in baking soda and salt. Stir until foamy.
- Immediately pour the mixture into a thin layer on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with the granola. Allow to cool completely before breaking into pieces.
Adapted from Nature's Path.
Product giveaway:
Just so you can try it out yourself, my wonderful friends at Nature’s Path have offered to send an awesome assortment of their vegan products to one ADC reader! You can find other vegan-friendly recipes using these products on the Nature’s Path website.
The giveaway is open to residents of US and Canada. To enter, simply use the Rafflecopter widget below and I’ll announce a random winner on Monday, December 22, 2014. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
And, just in case you’re not in the candy-making mood, here are some more of my favourite holiday recipes that might pique your interest: