Made some bread in the bread machine for the daughter's
boyfriend's family. We were down on the Gulf Coast last
year and spent a night in New Orleans before we came
back. Amber bought some ridiculously expensive pralines
for her boyfriend, who really likes them. I was bored
watching TV so I tried some pralines for the first time.
I looked at a few of them at recipesource.com and chose
the easiest one:

1 c Brown sugar
1 c Granulated sugar
1 ts Vanilla
1/2 c Evaporated milk
2 tb Melted butter
1 1/2 c Chopped pecans

Stirred it up, cooked it to 238, let it cool for a short
time in the pan, and then dumped it on foil. Amber and
her boyfriend were thrilled.

Is the above a good recipe for pralines? Would you
recommend anything different? When I cooked the fondant
I made last weekend, I didn't stir it as it was boiling
(not supposed to), but I didn't know whether I should
stir the pralines as they were boiling or not. I did.
Did I need to?

Thanks, Michael

On Sat 22 Jan 2005 08:30:12p, Michael called across the abyss...

> Made some bread in the bread machine for the daughter's
> boyfriend's family. We were down on the Gulf Coast last
> year and spent a night in New Orleans before we came
> back. Amber bought some ridiculously expensive pralines
> for her boyfriend, who really likes them. I was bored
> watching TV so I tried some pralines for the first time.
> I looked at a few of them at recipesource.com and chose
> the easiest one:
>
> 1 c Brown sugar
> 1 c Granulated sugar
> 1 ts Vanilla
> 1/2 c Evaporated milk
> 2 tb Melted butter
> 1 1/2 c Chopped pecans
>
> Stirred it up, cooked it to 238, let it cool for a short
> time in the pan, and then dumped it on foil. Amber and
> her boyfriend were thrilled.
>
> Is the above a good recipe for pralines? Would you
> recommend anything different? When I cooked the fondant
> I made last weekend, I didn't stir it as it was boiling
> (not supposed to), but I didn't know whether I should
> stir the pralines as they were boiling or not. I did.
> Did I need to?
>
> Thanks, Michael

There are two basic types of pralines, the "cream" style, representative of
your recipe, and the crisper more brittle style which contains no cream or
milk. One is not particularly better than the other, but I have a personal
preference for pralines without the cream.

I've used the following recipe for many years. It's from a book entitled,
_New Orleans Cookbook_ written by Lena Richards in 1940. Ms. Richards
began her culinary life as a caterer in New Orleans and later opened a
cooking school there in 1937, publishing her book three years later.

Pecan Pralines

2 cups white sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups small pecan halves (or broken, not chopped) larger pecan halves

Combine all ingredients, except butter and pecans, in a 3 quart saucepan.
Cook at a full boil, stirring occasionally, until a thread forms, or to 234
degrees F. Remove from heat. Add butter and pecans, stirring for 5-6
minutes with a wooden spoon, or until mixture begins to lose its gloss and
appears slightly granular. Then drop by spoonfulls on doubled waxed paper,
to make pralines 2 to 2-1/2 inches in diameter. Allow to cool completely,
then peel away from paper. Store tightly covered.
__________________________________________________ ________________________

To stir or not to stir? I stir only occasionally like the recipe states.
As with many candies at the boiling stage, very little stirring is
necessary and too much stirring can cause it to be very granulated.

These make wonderful pralines!

Wayne

Michael wrote:
> Made some bread in the bread machine for the daughter's
> boyfriend's family. We were down on the Gulf Coast last
> year and spent a night in New Orleans before we came
> back. Amber bought some ridiculously expensive pralines
> for her boyfriend, who really likes them. I was bored
> watching TV so I tried some pralines for the first time.
> I looked at a few of them at recipesource.com and chose
> the easiest one:
>
> 1 c Brown sugar
> 1 c Granulated sugar
> 1 ts Vanilla
> 1/2 c Evaporated milk
> 2 tb Melted butter
> 1 1/2 c Chopped pecans
>
> Stirred it up, cooked it to 238, let it cool for a short
> time in the pan, and then dumped it on foil. Amber and
> her boyfriend were thrilled.
>
> Is the above a good recipe for pralines? Would you
> recommend anything different? When I cooked the fondant
> I made last weekend, I didn't stir it as it was boiling
> (not supposed to), but I didn't know whether I should
> stir the pralines as they were boiling or not. I did.
> Did I need to?
>
> Thanks, Michael

Nope, real "pralines" are just a soft ball stage sugar candy with pecans.

2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. water
2-1/2 cups pecan pieces
1-2 tablespoon butter

Combine sugar and water in a 2-quart saucepan; heat to boiling stirring
constantly. Stir in pecans. Cook until mixture reaches soft ball
consistency (235F degrees or until a drop flattens when dropped in cold
water). Remove from heat; stir in butter quickly. Immediately drop by
tablespoons onto wax paper.

Jill

In article >,
Wayne Boatwright > wrote:

> Pecan Pralines
>
> 2 cups white sugar
> 1 cup dark brown sugar
> 2 cups water
> 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
> 2 tablespoons butter
> 2 cups small pecan halves (or broken, not chopped) larger pecan halves
>
> Combine all ingredients, except butter and pecans, in a 3 quart saucepan.
> Cook at a full boil, stirring occasionally, until a thread forms, or to 234
> degrees F. Remove from heat. Add butter and pecans, stirring for 5-6
> minutes with a wooden spoon, or until mixture begins to lose its gloss and
> appears slightly granular. Then drop by spoonfulls on doubled waxed paper,
> to make pralines 2 to 2-1/2 inches in diameter. Allow to cool completely,
> then peel away from paper. Store tightly covered.

Shouldn't the vanilla be added at the end, right after the butter and
pecans? I would think that most of the flavor would be lost if you add
it before the mixture's even heated.

--
to respond (OT only), change "spamless.invalid" to "optonline.net"

<http://www.thecoffeefaq.com/>

On Sun 23 Jan 2005 09:41:17a, Scott called across the abyss...

> In article >,
> Wayne Boatwright > wrote:
>
>> Pecan Pralines
>>
>> 2 cups white sugar
>> 1 cup dark brown sugar
>> 2 cups water
>> 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
>> 2 tablespoons butter
>> 2 cups small pecan halves (or broken, not chopped) larger pecan halves
>>
>> Combine all ingredients, except butter and pecans, in a 3 quart
>> saucepan. Cook at a full boil, stirring occasionally, until a thread
>> forms, or to 234 degrees F. Remove from heat. Add butter and pecans,
>> stirring for 5-6 minutes with a wooden spoon, or until mixture begins
>> to lose its gloss and appears slightly granular. Then drop by
>> spoonfulls on doubled waxed paper, to make pralines 2 to 2-1/2 inches
>> in diameter. Allow to cool completely, then peel away from paper.
>> Store tightly covered.
>
> Shouldn't the vanilla be added at the end, right after the butter and
> pecans? I would think that most of the flavor would be lost if you add
> it before the mixture's even heated.
>

You might be right, but the recipe calls for it added before cooking and
that's always the way I've done it. The flavor of the finished product
certainly tastes of vanilla.

Wayne

On Sun, 23 Jan 2005 11:41:17 -0500, Scott >
wrote:

>Shouldn't the vanilla be added at the end, right after the butter and
>pecans? I would think that most of the flavor would be lost if you add
>it before the mixture's even heated.

I think you called me on the same thing regarding my fudge procedure. I've
changed to adding the vanilla at the end, and have much better results,
taste-wise. Thank goodness it's past fudge season now. Too much of a good
thing is ... too much.

Thanks,
Carol
--
"Years ago my mother used to say to me... She'd say,
'In this world Elwood, you must be oh-so smart or oh-so pleasant.'
Well, for years I was smart.... I recommend pleasant. You may quote me."

*James Stewart* in the 1950 movie, _Harvey_