Another Halloween has come and gone. As JR said to me on November 1: “Only 364 days ’til next Halloween!” Our house is full of Snickers, KitKat, and Twix, but I thought that what we really needed was some homemade candy. Okay, no. The last thing we need actually is more candy of any kind, but I had some free time and an itch to try something new. Hence this brittle made with roasted pumpkin seeds from our Halloween Jack-O-Lanterns.

I dutifully saved and roasted the seeds after carving our pumpkins but I found the plain roasted pumpkin seeds a little uninspiring. My first thought was to make a pumpkin seed chocolate bark maybe with some dried cranberries — and I still might try that sometime. But on further reflection I decided on a pumpkin seed brittle. You see, Zuzu’s allergies prevent me from cooking with tree nuts and peanuts and I have found that pumpkin seeds often make a good substitute. So, I enjoy trying recipes that traditionally include nuts and peanuts and seeing how well they work with pumpkin seeds.

In this case, I think the pumpkin seed brittle is a terrific substitute for peanut brittle and one that any toffee lover would enjoy. Because they were roasted first, the pumpkin seeds are crispy and the brittle still has a nice snap to it. The taste of the pumpkin seeds comes through and gives a pleasant earthiness to the sweet toffee. A sprinkle of salt is a must to pull the elements together.

As I told my horrified husband, I really enjoy making homemade candy and could see myself becoming slightly obsessed with it, especially with the holidays approaching. Homemade confections have a lot of the same advantages as homemade jams and pickles: you know exactly what is in them; they make wonderful gifts and you get to indulge your inner Laura Ingalls Wilder.

When you do starting trying your hand at homemade candies, it is a good idea to invest in a candy thermometer. But you can also use the old-fashioned method of telling when your candy has reached the correct temperature by dropping a piece in cold water and seeing what form it takes: soft ball, hard ball, soft crack or hard crack. That’s straight-up Laura Ingalls Wilder. For a brittle like this, you want to reach the “hard crack” stage, about 300 degrees. That means that a piece dropped in cold water will form a hard thread that will snap when bent.

As always when making candy, give the pot on the stove your full attention. Sugar syrups go from just right to burnt very quickly and with temperatures this hot, you want to exercise the utmost caution. And please do not send me hate mail for using corn syrup. It really is necessary to achieve the right texture and avoid crystallization when making candy. If you can source it, you could substitute Lyle’s Golden Syrup.

Packaged in a pretty tin or bakery box, this pumpkin seed brittle would make an outstanding holiday or hostess gift. I can also see it as an elegant garnish to a fall holiday dessert.  So, put those leftover pumpkin seeds to good use!