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Pecan Pralines-A Treat from the South

Praline is a kind of sweets that is made up of nuts and syrup made from melting sugar. Some pronunciations of the word in the Americas are prah-leen, praw-leen, and pray-leen.

The name ‘praline’ comes from French which means powdered nuts that have been coated with sugar. They add praline powder to other ingredients used for making pastries and cakes.

In the United States especially in the Southern parts such as the states of Louisiana and Texas, pecan pralines are very popular. European people usually use traditional nuts such as almonds or hazelnuts and they just use sugar syrup to coat the nuts. Southern American people usually add cream to their pecan praline mixture.

In New Orleans, they have one special kind of these candied pecans which they call ‘praline candy patties’. Although these are usually considered as New Orleans candies, they are also very popular among other neighboring states.

It is very easy to make pecan pralines. All you need is, of course, pecans, butter, cream, granulated sugar, and brown sugar, and baking soda. These are the basic ingredients of a pecan praline. You can add other ingredients for unique flavour such as vanilla, peanut butter, chocolate, rum, and shredded coconut.

Although there are many manufacturers of pralines made from pecans, they do not follow one standard recipe that is why each praline has its own unique taste.

Ever since its popularity, praline pecans have been prepared as Christmas foods and have also been given to friends or family members who have sweet-tooth. So if you want the holidays to be really happy and merry, give pecan pralines to your loved ones and enjoy the sweetness and the tradition of eating them.

How to Make Spiced Pecans

Pecans can be cooked using different recipes. Different kinds of ingredients can also be added to enhance or complement the flavour of these nuts. One very delicious yet simple and easy to make sweet made from fresh pecans is the spiced pecans. This is just like sugared pecans but for this recipe, you can add different kinds of spices other than vanilla extract. Here are the procedures that you should follow to make delicious spiced pecans.

• The ingredients that you will need for this recipe are as follows: one whole egg white that is slightly beaten, three cups of pecan halves, half a cup of fine white sugar, a tablespoon of water, a half teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of cinnamon. One half teaspoon of pounded and finely ground nutmeg, and half a teaspoon of ground cloves.
• Use a baking sheet covered with aluminium foil while oven is preheating to 350 degrees.
• Lightly beat the egg white in a mixing bowl. Add water while doing it. Add the pecans and mix them all together until the pecans are already well-coated with the egg whites.
• The remaining ingredients-sugar, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves-should be mixed together in a separate mixing bowl. Sprinkle the mixture of spices to the pecan nuts covered with egg white and then spread them on the foil-covered baking pan.
• Put inside the oven and bake for half an hour while stirring after every 10 minutes. Make sure that the nuts will not be overcooked or burned even just slightly top prevent them from becoming bitter. I love spiced pecans!

How to Make Cinnamon Pecans

Many recipes which feature pecan nuts as the main ingredients have been developed because of their richness in flavour plus the health benefits that they can give. One example of a traditional recipe using raw pecans is coating them with cinnamon. Making cinnamon pecans is as easy as you think it is. Here are the simple steps on how to make a cinnamon pecan.

• Prepare the ingredients-a pound of pecans, two egg whites, two tablespoons of ground cinnamon, a cup of fine white sugar, and half a teaspoon of salt.
• Prepare the equipments and tools that you will need such as oven, mixing bowls, whisk, spoon, and a greased baking sheet.
• Oven should be preheated at a temperature of 250 degrees.
• For the egg whites, whip them until they reached the consistency of an icing or until they are foamy white.
• In another mixing bowl, add the remaining ingredients-the cinnamon, sugar, and salt. Mix them all together.
• Add the pecans in the whipped egg whites and mix them together. Make sure that each and every pecan is coated with the egg white.
• Add the egg white-coated pecans into the sugar-cinnamon-salt mixture. Again, make sure that all the pecans are covered with sugar.
• The final mixture should be spread thinly on the baking sheet to make sure that all of them will be baked evenly. Before you do this, however, make sure that you grease the baking sheet to prevent your cinnamon pecan from sticking.
• Bake the mixture for an hour. While baking, stir the mixture every now and then to make sure that they are being properly and evenly baked and they are not sticking to the baking sheet.

Don’t you love cinnaman pecans?

Health Benefits of Pecans

Pecan tree is the only nut tree that is native in the American region. For centuries, it has been grown and cultivated by the early settlers in America and pecan nuts have been used in several recipes. As years go by, more and more people are using pecans instead of other nuts because of their unique taste and also their health benefits. To know more abut the advantages of pecans to our bodies, here is a list of some of the health benefits of pecans.

• If your family has a history of heart diseases, eating a handful of pecan nuts may prevent you from experiencing the same illness. They have been found out to have natural antioxidants which are the substances that can help you avoid heart problems.
• Another great benefit of these small nuts is their ability to reduce the level of cholesterol in our body. This, too, can help you prevent heart diseases.
• Are you on a diet and are trying to lose weight? Eat nuts such as pecans. They can make you shed those extra pounds you got from the last party that you have attended where you sampled on each and every dish available on the buffet table.
• You can also get a lot of nutrients in one small nutshell. About 19 vitamins and several minerals were found in pecans, research shows. Vitamins A, E, B, and minerals like calcium, potassium, magnesium, folic acid, phosphorus, and zinc are some of the nutrients that you can get from eating pecan nuts. They are also rich in protein, low in carbohydrates, and are cholesterol-free, which make them ideal snacks for dieters or even health-conscious individuals.

Don’t you just love pecans?!?!