"pralines" news and stories

Happy National Pralines Day!

This cloyingly sweet treat certainly isn't for the finicky -- the caramelized sugar that wedges its way into teeth may just be the dentist's worst nightmare -- but the brittle dessert is excellent devoured as is or used as a saccharine, crunchy component in cake fillings or as a texturizing garnish.

Named after Praslin, a sugar industrialist, pralines originated in 17th century France using butter, cream, almonds and sugar, but the American variety was born in New Orleans, where almonds were replaced by pecans due to their local abundance. The dessert morphed into -- and has remained -- a popular holiday tradition in southern states.

Giving Ms. Paula Deen credit for her specialties -- butter and southern comfort -- we recommend her Pecan Praline Morsels recipe, but if you'd prefer a bold, salty variety, trust Alton Brown with his gutsier Praline Bacon.

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There's nothing like a wobbly stack of thick, fluffy pancakes spilling over with melted butter and maple syrup on a weekend morning (or early afternoon, if you prefer), but there are occasions when we need to be a little more refined. That doesn't mean you can't have pancakes, though. It just means that you might want to dress them up by molding your pancake batter on the griddle with a set of molds in floral shapes. Williams-Sonoma has a set of three in different sizes for pretty stacking for $16. Williams-Sonoma also provides a recipe for Praline Pancakes (pictured above) so that your Sunday morning brunch will feel a little bit fancier than a truck stop (not that truck stops aren't absolutely delicious).

The praline frosting that I used to top the buttermilk layer cake that I made a few weeks ago was probably the best part of the cake. It was very sweet, almost candy-like, and after scraping a spoonful from the bottom of the bowl, I was struck with a craving for something salty to counteract the sugary praline taste. Inspiration struck when I spotted a bag of pretzels was sitting within reach on the counter. One thing let to another and soon I was making up a second batch of the praline to coat pretzels with. The pretzels were devoured by friends and family within a few days and almost everyone requested another batch.

Next time, I think I'll be adding a chocolate drizzle, too. You can find the frosting recipe here, though you might want to cut it in half unless you need dozens of pretzels.