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Hemp Nougatine (Brittle) Recipe

Serves: 4
Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
  • 2 cups (250 g) hemp seeds
    (alternatively, you can use 1 cup [125 g] of almonds [with the peel] and 1 cup [125 g] of walnuts or hazelnuts)

  • ¼ cup (50 ml) water

  • 2½ cups (250 g) sugar

  • ⅛ cup (30 g) honey

  • ½ tsp fresh lemon juice

  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds (golden or white)

  • 2 wafer sheets (20 cm by 20 cm) (optional)

Featured in Hélène Jawhara Piñer‘s Cookbook:

FROM CORDOVATO ROME

Aldonza mentions the sweet treat called “testones de cañamones,” which is a speciality of Villahermosa, a city located at the gates of Andalusia and about 200 km from Cordoba. It is a type of nougatine that can also be prepared between two sheets of wafer. It is mainly consumed during the Christian holiday of All Saints’ Day, but it also seems to be connected to Jewish practices, based on a trial document drafted by the Spanish Inquisition. The document states that in 1484, Juan Sánchez Ezarch, a converso from Teruel, was denounced for eating brown nougatine on the occasion of Sukkot (which usually falls in October): “They made huts with branches [for Sukkot] […] where they did all the ceremonies that Jews used to do in those days, eating inside those and making collations with candy nougat and other thing.”

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C), and spread the nuts in a single layer on a baking tray.

2. Toast them for about 15 minutes. Be careful not to burn them; they should turn golden brown. Remove them from the oven and set them aside.

3. In a saucepan over medium heat, add the water, sugar, honey, and lemon juice. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until you obtain golden caramel. Add the nuts to the caramel and continue stirring carefully with the spoon until the caramel browns slightly. All the nuts need to be covered with caramel. Add the sesame seeds.

4. Take a square baking pan about 8-inches by 8-inches (20 cm/20 cm). If you’re using a wafer sheet, put it at the bottom of the baking pan. Pour all the brown nougatine in. It should be about half an inch (1 cm) thick. Be careful, it is very hot! Cover quickly with another wafer sheet and press. The surface needs to be flat. If you prefer making sticks, wait for 1 hour and flip the baking pan upside down. Take a long sharp knife and cut the brown nougatine into rectangles.

5. If you’re not using wafer sheets, lightly grease the square baking pan with neutral oil and pour in the brown nougatine. Let it cool for at least two hours.