Makes 2 1/4 pounds

1/2 pound high-quality raw bacon (about 8 to 10 strips)

2 cups sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup water

2 cups salted peanuts

1 1/2 tablespoons butter

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons baking soda

1. Cook the bacon strips until very crispy and fully cooked through. (Bacon must be cooked totally crispy and not have any white fatty part left.) Drain well, patting off fat. Chop the bacon fine; you should have 1/2 cup chopped. Set aside.

2. Grease a large, rimmed baking-sheet pan and set aside.

3. In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup and water, and cook over medium heat to thread stage, 230 degrees. Add the peanuts. Stir and cook to hard-crack stage, about to 301 to 302 degrees, or until a small amount of candy dropped into a bowl of cold water becomes hard and brittle.

4. Once the candy is at the hard-crack stage, immediately remove from heat. Stir in the butter, vanilla, soda and reserved bacon until blended. Pour the candy onto the prepared pan. With two forks, pull the peanut brittle out to a large rectangle, spreading the candy to about 1/4 inch thick. Once it is cool, break the candy into pieces. It is important to store in a tightly covered container at room temperature.

Tip: Take care and protect your hands when working with hot liquid.

Editor's note: Public-health experts suggest to store the brittle for no more than two weeks.