New Orleans Pralines
Pecans are a gift from God. Delicious, crunchy, buttery....and a good source of vitamins and minerals. One ounce contains 3 grams of protein, less than 200 calories, and 1 net carbohydrate, making them a darn good snack.
As wholesome as pecans are right out of the shell, we tend to embellish them. The Mister makes a very good pecan pie, and one of my sisters has a wonderful recipe for toasted pecans with thyme and maple syrup. I'll ask them later if I can share. A particular favorite of the extended family, though, are pecan pralines.
Pralines (praw-leenz): Sugar cooked in cream and butter, yielding melt-in-your-mouth bites of heaven. Really. 7 ingredients and 20 minutes of your time is all it takes.
Pralines
(makes approximately 2-3 dozen depending on size)
1 & 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup half & half (or milk)
6 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 & 1/2 cups chopped pecans
**My Aunt Toodie would make the pralines without pecans, but would then press a pecan half into each candy before it cooled. I like using chopped pecans. It "almost" insures a bit of pecan in every bite. That having been said, you can substitute walnuts if that's what you have on hand. I once also used toasted (shelled) pumpkin seeds for a co-worker with a nut allergy and they were a hit!**
First, prepare a surface to receive the cooked confection and allow the pralines to cool undisturbed. My personal choice is a couple of silicone baking mats. Virtually indestructible up to 480F, they will protect your counters and your candy: Nothing sticks to them! My second choice is parchment paper. Waxed paper is a distant third. The hot candy melts the wax to the point where it sticks to your counter as it cools and hardens. You could solve this by lining your counter with newspaper or paper towels but this is just one more thing to do.
Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches "soft ball stage." This entails dropping 1/2 tsp of the candy-as-molten-lava into a cup of ice water. If the candy disintegrates, cook a bit longer. However, if you can dip your fingers into the ice water and form a cohesive soft ball out of the candy, it has cooked long enough. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir until the candy cools slightly and you can see sugar crystals form along the side of the pot and the pecans are suspended in the candy, not just floating in top.
Now, quickly spoon the candy out onto your prepared surface, creating individual pools approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. Do not be concerned about perfection in shape or neatness. Your goal is to spoon out the candy before it hardens in the pan. But...if it does, no problem. Return the pot to the heat for a minute until the praline melts again and carry on.
Allow the candy to cool and harden completely, and then store them in an airtight container. Pralines make a perfect light dessert. Broken pieces can be sprinkled over ice cream. Around holidays, I also box up pralines as gifts for neighbors.
As wholesome as pecans are right out of the shell, we tend to embellish them. The Mister makes a very good pecan pie, and one of my sisters has a wonderful recipe for toasted pecans with thyme and maple syrup. I'll ask them later if I can share. A particular favorite of the extended family, though, are pecan pralines.
Pralines (praw-leenz): Sugar cooked in cream and butter, yielding melt-in-your-mouth bites of heaven. Really. 7 ingredients and 20 minutes of your time is all it takes.
Pralines
(makes approximately 2-3 dozen depending on size)
1 & 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup half & half (or milk)
6 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 & 1/2 cups chopped pecans
**My Aunt Toodie would make the pralines without pecans, but would then press a pecan half into each candy before it cooled. I like using chopped pecans. It "almost" insures a bit of pecan in every bite. That having been said, you can substitute walnuts if that's what you have on hand. I once also used toasted (shelled) pumpkin seeds for a co-worker with a nut allergy and they were a hit!**
First, prepare a surface to receive the cooked confection and allow the pralines to cool undisturbed. My personal choice is a couple of silicone baking mats. Virtually indestructible up to 480F, they will protect your counters and your candy: Nothing sticks to them! My second choice is parchment paper. Waxed paper is a distant third. The hot candy melts the wax to the point where it sticks to your counter as it cools and hardens. You could solve this by lining your counter with newspaper or paper towels but this is just one more thing to do.
Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches "soft ball stage." This entails dropping 1/2 tsp of the candy-as-molten-lava into a cup of ice water. If the candy disintegrates, cook a bit longer. However, if you can dip your fingers into the ice water and form a cohesive soft ball out of the candy, it has cooked long enough. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir until the candy cools slightly and you can see sugar crystals form along the side of the pot and the pecans are suspended in the candy, not just floating in top.
Now, quickly spoon the candy out onto your prepared surface, creating individual pools approximately 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. Do not be concerned about perfection in shape or neatness. Your goal is to spoon out the candy before it hardens in the pan. But...if it does, no problem. Return the pot to the heat for a minute until the praline melts again and carry on.
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