Pecan Pralines

(about 20)

The original southern pecan pralines just contained sugar, water, butter and pecans. At some point milk was introduced, often evaporated or condensed.

I decided to experiment a bit with these. I used heavy cream because I had some. I toasted the pecans beforehand as I often do because I like how that intensifies the flavour. Finally I decided to stir in a bit of baking soda at the end hoping to lighten the caramel somewhat even though I didn't cook it long enough as you would a brittle. I'm not sure if that made much difference although it did slightly foam up the caramel, and perhaps changed the texture somewhat.

1 tsp butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup broken up pecans, lightly toasted

Butter the insides of a saucepan to prevent sugar crystals from traveling up. Turn on the heat to medium and add the brown sugar, cream and salt. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and let the mixture come to a boil. Lower the heat a bit and allow the mixture to simmer, stirring occasionally until the sauce reaches softball stage, about 235° F; 5-8 minutes.

Remove from heat and add the vanilla and baking soda. Mix well and stir in the pecans.

Drop by the tablespoonful onto waxed paper or buttered cookie sheets and allow to cool and harden.

Candied Lemon Peels Dipped in Dark Chocolate

(makes about 10 oz)

I planned on making candied orange peels, but the organic lemons looked better this week.

As it turned out, the tangy lemon complimented the dark chocolate just fine.

4 lemons
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1/4-1/3 cup sugar, for rolling
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted

Score each lemon lengthwise into quarters and remove the peel. Cut into strips lengthwise about 1/4" wide.

Bring a few cups of water to boil and parboil the lemon peels for about a minute, then drain. This helps remove the bitterness.

Combine the cup of water and sugar, and bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Add the lemon peels and lower the heat. Simmer gently for about an hour or until the peels look transparent.

Remove the peels from the syrup (which can be reserved for another use) and separate them on a cookie rack or waxed paper. Allow to cool.

Sprinkle the 1/4 cup sugar evenly onto a large plate and roll the lemon peels to coat them on all sides. Dip one end into the melted chocolate and place on waxed paper to let the chocolate harden.

Making Yummy Salt Water Taffy

(36-48 pieces)

I love salt water taffy, but had never made it. I came across this recipe on the Farmer's Almanac, and decided to give it a try. I ended up making raspberry flavoured taffy.

The taffy required about 15-20 minutes of pulling and the result was well worth the time and effort. It was probably the best salt water taffy I have tasted, and it was very fresh! This is something I will probably make again at some point.

1 cup sugar
1/2 tbsp cornstarch
2/3 cup corn syrup
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
flavoring
coloring

Mix sugar and cornstarch in saucepan, add corn syrup, butter, and water. Stir until boiling point is reached and boil to 250 degrees F (or until a bit of syrup dropped into a cup of cold water forms a firm but not sticky ball).

Add salt, pour on greased slab, and when cool enough to handle pull until light colored.

Divide taffy in separate portions and add flavor or color as desired while it is being pulled. Lemon, orange, peppermint, lime, strawberry, or pineapple flavoring may be used along with pink, green, yellow, or orange food coloring.

Pull out until 1-1/2 inches wide and 3/4-inch thick. Cut in pieces with scissors and wrap in waxed paper.