Line a sheet pan with a Silpat baking mat or lightly coat the pan with neutral oil like grapeseed.

Place 1 1/2 cups of sugar in a 5 to 8-quart heavy duty pot.

To the sugar, add 3/4 cup of light corn syrup and 1/2 cup of water and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir the ingredients until well combined.

Put a candy thermometer in the pot and cook over a moderate heat until the thermometer reaches 240 degrees or soft ball stage. The timing will vary widely depending on your stove and circumference of your pot but a good estimate is 10 to 15 minutes.

When the sugars reach 240 degrees, add 12 ounces of red skin peanuts. At this point, you will need to stir the brittle regularly, keeping your eye on it until the thermometer reaches 295 degrees.

Turn off the heat and immediately add vanilla, butter and baking soda. This mixture will bubble up a lot, so don’t worry - that is normal. Mix as quick as you can and pour the mixture on the prepared sheet pan.

Let the peanut brittle set at room temperature until completely cool, about 2 hours. You can crack it simply by picking it up off the sheet pan and bending it a little or cracking it with a heavy utensil.