Pecans are traditionally used in praline candies. If you use walnuts, they are called Northern pralines.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- A pinch of salt
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 cups nuts, halved or coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Preparation:
Pick a big saucepan. (The buttermilk and baking soda will foam with an exuberance that can shortly have you cleaning the whole stove.)In it, put sugar, buttermilk, baking soda, and salt. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Keep right on stirring till the candy thermometer says 210 degrees F. (And do not be afraid you will end up with white pralines. Somehow it all turns a beautiful dark gold.) Now add the butter and nuts, lower the heat a little, and keep cooking till the thermometer says 230 degrees F. If you do not have a thermometer, test it: the syrup should form at least a 2-inch thread without breaking, when you tilt the spoon.
Take it off the heat, add the vanilla, and let it sit till it quiets down. Beat it till it loses its gloss, and drop it by spoonfuls on waxed paper. When they've cooled, wrap them individually in waxed paper squares and hide them in an unpleasant-looking used can in the back of the refrigerator.
The author says: Known as Elegant Northern Pralines if they are made with walnuts instead of pecans. --Peg Bracken
Recipe Source: The Complete I Hate to Cook Book by Peg Bracken (Budget Book Service)
Reprinted with permission.
