I do have a great recipe for turtles, and I will post it when I get home. I make them in a silicone Madeleine pan (I have photos documenting the process), and I generally add a bit of wax to the chocolate so that they don't melt too fast in your hand. The best part of the recipe is the caramel part, which I make with all cream and no milk. You need a candy thermometer for this, as the temperature of the caramel is critical. I always toast the pecans as well.

Lars

Oh! I'd LOVE to have this recipe too, so Thank You Lars for sharing! Caramel and Chocolate are my favorite combination, and adding toasted pecans is very nice.

Here's the recipe I use every year:

Turtles

2 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup margarine
1 cup light corn syrup
1/8 tsp. salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2# pecans
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup milk chocolate chocolate chips
2 TB shortening

Combine the first 4 ingredients. Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add milk and mix well. Cook until 248 degrees. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Fold in pecans. Drop by TB on lightly greased cookie sheet--Chill. Melt chips and shortening--drizzle over turtles.
I drop them on lightly greased wax paper or aluminum foil and set them on the back porch (where it's cool) to set.

Here's my recipe. It's a bit involved because I use a mold, but you can alter it to suit your needs:

Madeleine Turtles

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup (or 3/4 cup light corn syrup and 1/4 cup molasses)
1/2 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream, divided
~2 cups whole pecans (or 36 pecan halves)
3.2 oz paraffin wax (Parowax brand will work use ~3/4 block)
~2 pounds bittersweet chocolate (have an extra pound on hand in case you run out)

Directions:
Dissolve 1 cup sugar, 1 cup dark corn syrup, 1/2 cup butter, and 1/2 cup cream in a large heavy saucepan, stirring until the mixture boils. [Note: you will need a very large pan because mixture will bubble up when it boils and increase three-fold in volume.]

Cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, to the firm-ball stage, 244°. Remove from heat and add very gradually the remaining half cup of cream.

Return to heat and cook to the firm-ball stage, 244°.

Place Madeleine mold in freezer for at least 5 minutes. Silicone molds work best. If you are using a metal mold, it should be buttered very lightly with all excess butter wiped out.

Remove the necks of the pecans so that the bottoms are flat and toast the pecan halves at 325° for 10 minutes, stirring at least once and allow to cool. This could be done way ahead of time.

Melt the wax in the top of a double boiler and add the chocolate, broken into small pieces. Take the mold from the freezer and spoon chocolate into the molds, filling about 1/4 to 1/3 full. With the back of the spoon, push some chocolate up against the sides of the molds so that all of the bottom of the mold is covered. If there is too much chocolate at the bottom of the mold, spoon some of it out and return it to the pan of tempered chocolate. Scrape the top of the mold with a putty knife or metal spatula so that there is a clean edge around each mold. Return the mold to the freezer for five more minutes.

Have the caramel mixture warm but not hot  approximately 120° - enough to able to work with. Take the mold from the freezer and spoon about one teaspoon of caramel mixture into each cavity. Place two pecan halves, upside down into the caramel and push down so that they can be covered with caramel. Use the back of a spoon to spread the caramel over the pecans, making sure to leave 1/8" or so space from the top of the mold. Do not push caramel all the way to the corners, if possible. Return the mold to the freezer for 5 minutes.

Make sure the chocolate is still warm, and remove the mold from the freezer. Spoon melted chocolate mixture into the molds and spread to all corners. The chocolate can go slightly above the mold. Drag the putty knife or metal spatula across the top of the mold to clear off excess chocolate, especially at the edge of the mold. This should be done before the chocolate cools. Return the excess chocolate to the tempered chocolate. Chill the mold for 10 minutes or more in the freezer and then remove the candy from the mold. Wrap candy pieces in plastic wrap and store in an air-tight container (or baggy) in the refrigerator or freezer.

To use the mold again, make sure that excess chocolate has been removed from the inside. Do not wash the mold  wipe clean only. If using a metal mold, it will have to be buttered again. If the caramel is too cold, place it in a 200° oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until usable.

*Note: You do not have to melt all the chocolate and wax together at the same time, but you will need to keep the proportions of 1:10 wax to chocolate.

You will get firmer caramel if you cook to 248°, which is what I would recommend if you are not using a mold. If you cook to 244°, you will have a very soft caramel that will not stand up by itself but is very good as a filling or center in a chocolate candy.

Let me know if you want photos.

Lars

I want photos!

Yep! Need pictures!

Lars, your post caught my eye the other day when you mentioned Turtles. I'm glad to see your recipe and will be even happier to see pictures! THanks so much!!

Okay, I had to re-upload the photos. See if these work as clickable links:

The first link shows the finished product, and the second shows them in the mold before I added the final chocolate.

Lars

Beautiful! I had decided to try your recipe Lars, but didn't intend to use a mold. After seeing your picture, I may have to invest in one.

The caramel made with cream is very rich and is also very good just by itself.

I've noticed that some people make turtles by placing the pecans on waxed paper in a formation, spoon caramel of that, and then chocolate on top. I saw that on YouTube, but they used bought caramels, which don't taste the same at all.

Lars

Beautiful Lars! I love a professional looking presentation, which is what your turtles are. I was wondering where the head/feet are, but I see these are French looking turtles, which explains the lack of appendages! I too may just have to invest in some silicone myself...

My turtles had the heads and feet retracted into their shells, which is why I called them "Mad Turtles", but Mad was also short for Madeleine. I will say that the silicone is very easy to work with for chocolate, although it is a bit strange for baking. I haven't baked nearly as many Madeleines as I have made turtles in that pan.

Lars

Beautiful yet shy turtles!

Thanks Lars.

Oh, good! I was going to ask about the caramel. How long will it keep, Lars? I love caramel on ice cream, but I don't like the jars of stuff most groceries sell.

I've had the caramel last for two months, and it would last longer in the fridge, I think. It definitely lasts much longer than the cream would by itself, and I would guess that it would last more than two months, although why should it? If you just want to use it on ice cream, you could cook it to a different stage, I think. At 244° it becomes pretty stiff at room temperature, but not as stiff at store bought caramels.

Lars

I think this thread has convinced me to make turtles.

PS if you're ever desperate, you can usually google "Gardenweb whatever", although in the case of "Gardenweb turtles" you get posts about people using turtles to eat slugs in the garden and whatnot.