Master the Art of Southern Pecan Pralines

If you've got a sweet tooth and a love for Southern food, pecan pralines are a treat you’ll want to try. These classic confections blend the rich, buttery taste of pecans with a caramelized sugar coating that melts in your mouth. Perfect for satisfying cravings or gifting to friends, their sweetness with a hint of nutty goodness makes them hard to pass up. Let’s take a closer look at what makes Southern pecan pralines such a beloved treat!

Pecan PralinesPhoto byButter & Baggage

Old Fashioned pecan pralines are a Deep South tradition. Found around the holidays in most areas and all year round in New Orleans and Savannah. Mastering this creamy candy is not as hard as it sounds and if they don’t set perfectly no one will care, they still taste scrumptious. A Southern classic that requires a candy thermometer, brown and white sugar, cream and of course pecans.

Impress with a Southern Classic

This pecan pralines recipe is cooked on a stovetop, and then scooped out into cookie-shaped patties to set. Made from just a few simple ingredients.

My pecan praline recipe only takes about 15 minutes to make, and there’s no baking required like with cookies. They don’t take long to set so while it’s not instant gratification, you don’t have long too wait. Some say not to make pecan pralines on a humid day, if that were true, we would never have pralines around here!

The problem with making these candies is that at the end you beat it with a whisk or wooden spoon. If you don’t beat it enough, it will be gooey and if you beat it too much it becomes crumbly. You’re looking for the perfect balance. It still tastes amazing, but if you want the perfect texture, you need a candy thermometer and a little luck. Practice makes perfect when it comes to pralines.

Pecan PralinesPhoto byButter & Baggage

Once it seizes up, it will crumble and you’ll have coated nuts but not pralines so you need to move fast and have everything ready before you begin.

These are candy, which means they’re sweet – they’re mostly sugar. While they may look like a cookie, you’ll find them to be much sweeter. For this reason, keep them small when you’re scooping them.

These are pretty hard to resist, so I keep them in the freezer so I’m not tempted to eat them in one day. Try making two batches, they’re great to give to a friend and special enough to give as a birthday present or a thank-you gift for teachers.

What You'll Need For Pecan Pralines

Ingredients

• ▢4 tablespoons butter
• ▢1 cup sugar
• ▢1 cup light brown sugar
• ▢¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢½ cup heavy cream
• ▢2 cups pecan halves (lightly toasted)
• ▢1 tablespoon vanilla

Instructions

• Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Toast the pecan halves.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add white and brown sugar, salt, and cream and whisk to combine. Cover and turn heat to medium and bring to a boil, about 2-3 minutes. Once boiling, remove the lid and continue boiling until it reaches 242º with a thermometer, about 5 minutes.
• Working quickly, add the pecans and vanilla and whisk until it turns from shiny to creamy and starts to thicken. (Don’t let it get too thick, or you won’t be able to spoon it out.)
• Quickly spoon the mixture onto the parchment paper. using a spatula to slide it off the spoon. It makes about 24.

If you like Pralines, try making a praline frosting for a buttermilk cake or top a pumpkin pie, they make everything a little sweeter!