Courthouse peanut brittle: ‘Once you have it, you want it’

If you know who to ask, you might just score one of Wichita’s tastiest holiday treats at the Sedgwick County Courthouse.

For four to five weeks each year, 78-year-old Helen Brown puts her 50-plus years of experience making peanut brittle circles to good use. And each holiday season, it’s sold behind the counter in the courthouse lobby.

Eula West, the 89-year-old receptionist at the entryway desk, is the connection who can hook you up if you need a peanut brittle fix.

It’s been a courthouse tradition for at least 20 years.

“I don’t know how long ago I met Helen,” West said. “She’s a really nice lady.”

Brown said she’s licensed by the city of Wichita to produce and sell her peanut brittle. In addition to supplying her fans at the courthouse, she also fills call-in orders from people who are familiar with the product.

So what’s the secret recipe that keeps people coming back?

“There is no secret recipe,” Brown said with a chuckle. “It’s not the recipe. It’s just knowing how to cook it.”

At the courthouse, sales are by request and all advertising is by word of mouth.

“Once you have it, you want it,” said jury clerk Deon Comer. “It gets around the building. She (Brown) is pretty popular around here.”

“It’s good candy, amen to that,” added her colleague Karen Spencer.

West said she moves 140 to 200 bags of brittle at $4.25 a pop in the weeks leading up to Christmas. As of Monday, she had about 45 bags left.

Monday was Brown’s last production day, so if you don’t get one of the remaining bags, you’ve got a year’s wait.

“It takes all of my time to do this,” Brown said. “Then I have to hurriedly get ready for Christmas.” She has two daughters who live in the area and a son who’s flying in from Alaska for the holiday.

Brown said the peanut brittle sale is mostly to spread holiday cheer, and she generally uses the income “for some project we need done around the house.”

“I don’t get rich, that’s for sure,” she said.

This story was originally published December 20, 2016 at 10:43 AM with the headline "Courthouse peanut brittle: ‘Once you have it, you want it’."