Looking for a brittle recipe without corn syrup? This maple walnut brittle is made with pure maple syrup, combined with beautiful, toasted walnuts and a sprinkling of salt.
If you’re looking for a delicious brittle recipe that’s made without corn syrup, this one’s for you! This one is made with pure maple syrup, combined with white sugar, butter and beautiful walnuts. The bitter walnuts pair beautifully with the sweet brittle and maple flavour. To add a salty note to the mix, top with some flaky salt!
This brittle keeps well for snacking, or package it up for a lovely hostess or holiday gift.
Jump to:
- Ingredients and Substitutions
- Recipe Tips
- Storing Brittle
- Get the Recipe: Salted Maple Walnut Brittle
- More Sweet Recipes to Love!
Ingredients and Substitutions
Maple Syrup – you will need to use pure maple syrup for this one. You’ll only need 1/4 cup. Pure maple syrup is available in a number of grades and colours. The darker the syrup, the richer the maple flavour!
Walnuts – you can start with walnut pieces (rather than the pricier whole walnuts), as we don’t want large pieces in our brittle. Chop the walnut pieces further, if you like, depending on how chunky you want your brittle.
Flaky Salt – the salt on top is optional, but it really is wonderful for adding a salty note to the brittle. Plus it looks really pretty, too. Look for a flaky, finishing salt, such as Maldon’s or Fleur de Sel.
Additional ingredients you will need – Butter (use a good quality butter, if you can), white granulated sugar, water.
Recipe Tips
Like all brittles, this one needs to be cooked to the “hard crack” stage, which is 300° F. on a candy thermometer. You’ll really want to have a thermometer for this one. There are methods for gauging this point by dropping a bit into cold water, but I think it’s still a bit of guessing game there. To my way of thinking, the small dollar investment in a candy thermometer is money well spent!
Storing Brittle
Store cooled brittle in an airtight container for several weeks. Don’t refrigerate the brittle, as the brittle will soften when chilled.
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Get the Recipe: Salted Maple Walnut Brittle
Looking for a brittle recipe without corn syrup? This maple walnut brittle is made with pure maple syrup, combined with beautiful, toasted walnuts and a sprinkling of salt.
4.88 stars from 8 ratings
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Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Cook Time: 20 minutes mins
Total Time: 30 minutes mins
Yield: 24 serving
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup real maple syrup
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup salted butter, cut into chunks
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 cups walnut pieces, toasted
- Coarse salt such as Maldon or Fleur de sel, (optional)
Equipment
Candy Thermometer highly recommended
Instructions
Toast the walnuts: Add walnuts to a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until walnuts are fragrant and beginning to brown. Immediately remove from the skillet to a plate to cool. Set aside.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
For the brittle: In heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat, stir together the maple syrup, white sugar, butter, and water until melted and creamy. Once mixture comes to a boil, do not stir any more (you can gently swirl the pan, if you feel it needs it). Attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan and continue to gently boil until candy thermometer reaches 300°F or "hard crack" stage. Immediately stir in walnuts until well coated.
(*Do be careful when working with this very hot sugar mixture. Even the smallest splash on your skin can blister it. Definitely not an activity for kids or even having them any where close by to the boiling mixture). Very carefully pour the hot brittle mixture onto the prepared baking sheet and spread out to a thin layer with a wooden spoon. Sprinkle top with a bit of coarse salt, such as Maldon or Fleur de Sel, if desired.
Allow to cool completely. Break into large pieces and store in an airtight container.
Notes
Be sure to read the notes above this Recipe Card, for more tips, options, substitutions and variations for this recipe!
Cuisine: American, Canadian
Course: Snack
Author: Jennifer Maloney
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 173kcal, Carbohydrates: 12g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 20mg, Sodium: 62mg, Potassium: 53mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 238IU, Vitamin C: 0.1mg, Calcium: 16mg, Iron: 0.3mg
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More Sweet Recipes to Love!
Jennifer Maloney
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
www.seasonsandsuppers.ca/about/
Maple Recipes Sweet Recipes
originally published on Dec 22, 2015 (last updated Aug 13, 2023)
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50 comments on “Salted Maple Walnut Brittle”
Leave a comment »
Alyson Davis —Reply
Okay, this was my first time making any kind of brittle. It got to 300 degrees. I put in on the baking sheet with parchment paper and it was really dark and tasted burned. What did I do wrong?
Jennifer Maloney —Reply
Hi Alyson, it sounds like it was over-cooked. Are you sure your thermometer is accurate? Did you use a candy thermometer or another type?
Caryn Ann —Reply
Im excited to try this recipe as Ive been gifted a big boxful of shelled walnuts. Only one question before I start: what size baking sheet do you use for spreading out the brittle to cool?Jennifer Maloney —Reply
Hi Caryn Ann, I think somewhere around 9×13-inch or even a bit bigger. It won’t spread to edges, so just enough room to let it spread on its own.
Allison —Reply
I just made this and it is excellent. Yet when I poured the brittle onto the parchment paper there was butter that ran out from the brittle. I mopped it up and let it rest and the brittle is excellent.
Did I do something wrong and what should I do differently?
Thank you!
Jennifer —Reply
Hi Allison, butter can separate for a number of reasons. It could be from not stirring the mixture enough during cooking, or from using a too-thin saucepan that doesn’t conduct heat evenly. The best advice is to try starting the mixture on a lower temperature, until the sugar is dissolved, then increasing the heat. And maybe stir it more regularly. Hope that helps.
Dee Brown —Reply
I plan to make this delicious sounding brittle recipe but wanted to know if you have ever added baking soda. I like my brittle a little more honeycombed than hard.
Thank youJennifer —Reply
Hi Dee and no, I’ve never tried adding baking soda to this one. It might be worth an experiment though, if you prefer a little lighter brittle. Let me know how it works out if you try it :)
Shea —Reply
I tried this recipe tonight while putting together my holiday cookie plates. Super easy! I did one batch exactly as described and one batch with a teaspoon of powdered red pepper flakes from my garden for some extra punch. The only question I have is whether I can safely double this or if I should stick to the amounts prescribed. It would be nice if I could make double the amount in one go, but I don’t want to ruin it… would doubling the recipe be a problem?Jennifer —Reply
So glad you enjoyed it, Shea! I’ve read mixed opinions on whether it’s a good idea to double a brittle recipe. Some say it takes too long to come to temperature and risks burning the sugar. Others say they do it without issue. So not really a consensus here. I’d hate to waste a batch myself, so might just stick to multiple, single batches.
Shea —Reply
You’re right. I certainly wouldn’t want to waste a batch either. I think I’ll just stick with doing single batches. It doesn’t take very long to come to temp, so not a huge issue. Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Andrea —Reply
I double my toffee recipes. Very similar. I would.
Gretchen —Reply
Loved the recipe! I added some maple extract and used some of my moms homemade maple syrup and it turned out fine.But the only thing that I have against it is how much butter and walnuts it takes and how little it makes. I have a big family so butter is kinda expensive for us. Same goes for walnuts. I might try replacing the butter with margarine next time and seeing how it goes.
But overall it tasted AMAZING! I would definitely have to make it again!
Jennifer —Reply
Glad you enjoyed it! I believe it should work with margarine Gretchen, though the flavour may not be quite the same.
Janet D —Reply
You did not mention the best size of baking pan-I have large and medium. The medium one is 17″ X 12″. Also I was wondering why you did not add a little bit of baking soda. I have seen some recipes call for 1/4 tsp baking soda. Thanks! I plan on making these for Christmas.
Olga —Reply
Do I use salted or unsalted butter?
Jennifer —Reply
You can use either really. If using salted, just add less salt. I typically use unsalted myself and add salt at the end on top.
Marjorie Watling —Reply
Can you use margarine instead of butter
Jennifer —Reply
Hi Marjorie, I have never tried it myself. I did a quick google and saw some brittle recipes that used margarine, but only in small quantities. As this recipe uses a cup of butter, it may not translate quite as well. I suspect an issue might be the water content of margarine vs. butter, which may affect the end result.
Nancy Bennett Hauser —Reply
What happens if I stir the syrup mixture constantly while it’s going to 300 degrees like I do with my favorite peanut brittle recipe?
My husband was a maple syrup junkie so when he passed in March I have a real backlog of the stuff ! Would it boost the mapley goodness by adding a bit of maple flavoring ?Jennifer —Reply
Hi Nancy, Since maple syrup is a simple sugar, it can sometimes crystallize when stirred during the boil I think. (doesn’t happen with corn syrup as it is an invert sugar and not as prone to crystalizing). And yes, a touch of maple flavouring would certainly boost the maple flavour.
Marjorie Watling —Reply
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply I won’t take. No chance I will use butter
Marj
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