As we approach Halloween, mediocre candy is everywhere. It lines the shelves at local drug stores and is available for free if you’re even just a little bit nice to your local bank teller.

As someone who tries to keep her sugar intake on the low-to-moderate side of things, I can easily go over my personal daily quota with just a couple of mindlessly consumed fun size candy bars .

I find that one of the best ways to pass on the smorgasbord of seasonal offerings is to have a small stash of homemade candy at home. I know that the treats I make will taste better and be more to my liking than anything I might pick up while out running errands.

Right at the moment, my personal candy jar contains small fragments of Hazelnut Brittle. It’s a recipe from Giada De Laurentiis that requires just sugar, water and well-toasted hazelnuts.

The sugar and water are combined in a small saucepan and boiled until they smell caramelized and take on a medium amber color (if you have a candy thermometer, the target temperature is about 300 degrees F). You spread the nuts out on a baking sheet and pour the finished caramel over top (be very careful here — that is some really hot sugar).

Once the sugar is cool, you can crack the finished brittle into small pieces and nibble away. I sometimes top it with a handful of chocolate chips and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt for extra fanciness.

For more good weekend recipes, check out previous Weekender columns.