Thanks, lindac92. I hadn’t thought about using it for an alternative. DH would love it over ice cream!

Worked great! Thanks, @lindac92!

Would there be any way that it would work using a mixer instead of a spoon? Between Carpal Tunnel and Arthritis there's no way I can do hand beating any more but these sound perfect for after dinner grazing.

@ediej1209 AL Zn 7 I have trouble with my shoulder. I had already reached my limit of hand-mixing this morning. So, when I recooked it, I used a stand mixer. I over mixed it, but didn’t realize that when I commented above. However, if you are careful, and unlike me, know what you are doing, I think you could use a mixer. In the alternative, call Leah’s in New Orleans and have them send you a dozen!

I stocked up on pecans when they were on sale; never had room in the freezer, so now it's "find 100 ways to use pecans" before they start going rancid :-0. I think I will make a batch tomorrow unless we get swept away in a tornado tonite. Yikes.

I wonder what the pudding mix contributes to pralines? It's almost like a mystery ingredient. A good friend once used some leftover turkey gravy in a batch of caramels so most anything is possible. (It was not really detectable but they were slightly oiler than typical caramels and had a slight umami.)

I can‘t imagine turkey gravy in caramels! I’m clueless why this recipe has vanilla pudding mix, except for the vanilla flavor.

I'm guessing the pudding mix is a quick-set thickener. About how many pralines do you usually get from this recipe?

I love the microwave method! And if its good enough for The Times Picayune Food Editor it can't be that bad.

https://www.nola.com/entertainment_life/eat-drink/article_58953937-63b3-55ad-baca-336af8537c0d.html

@ediej1209 AL Zn 7 I made about 2 dozen this morning. I put 3 pecan halves in each one. Since you are trying to use up pecans, you could go to 4 pecan halves per praline.

Great - thanks!!

I thought praline was this https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/praline

I'm a bit confused about the animal milk!

@Islay Corbel in the southern US, pralines look more or less like this

Basically, the recipe is sugar (brown sugar and white granulated sugar in some proportion), butter, and cream boiled to the soft ball stage, beaten, then dropped over clusters of pecans. There are, of course, regional and personal variations.

I think we would call the candy in your link “brittle.”

P.S. Leah’s is my favorite purveyor of pralines. They ship!

Well ... Not so good luck. I may have messed with the cooking. The instructions didn't say whether covered or not; I looked at the bowl for a second and all I could see was caramel all over the microwave so I covered the bowl. I did the 4-minutes, stir, 4 minutes more then beat with a mixer. And I probably didn't beat it enough. When I tried to spoon it over the pecans, they "floated" apart even though I tried to be very careful so the pan is a mess of caramel and pecans everywhere (nope, didn't set up except the last couple of pieces that came out hard as rocks. Go figure!) But it tastes good. I may just use it as a topping for brownies or something.

Pet milk - any pet?

foas LOL. Wonder, though... I didn't use PET, I used Carnation Evaporated. Would that have made a difference?

@ediej1209 AL Zn 7 your problem sounds almost the opposite of mine. Unbeaten, the candy was really chewy, not in a good way. It would stick to your teeth. But it did hold it’s shape, more or less. Maybe the covering of the bowl made a difference. I used a 2 or 3 qt glass bowl. I think evaporated milk is evaporated milk. I can’t imagine that a recipe using pudding mix as a base would be so finicky that the brand of evaporated milk would make a difference. I keep saying I’m going to give it another try, but then I find something else to do.

FOAS, you crack me up!

Yep I always treat each new experience as a learning tool. What works is great but what doesn't gets analyzed so if I get a chance to try again sometime, at least I know what NOT to do. And these do taste good (at least the ones I could get off the waxed paper - anyone know what the RDA is for maximum consumption of waxed paper LOL?!)

The most common reasons for any kind of candy being too runny or sticky is undercooking or trying to make candy on a bad weather day. I always thought it was the rain or humidity that as the problem, but I think moisture in the air has more to do with storage than the cooking results themselves. i think the cooking has to do with air pressure, which drops in poor weather and boiling points and such are based on good weather air pressure. Anyway, that's my theory and I haven't been able to confirm it with a scientific source.

I don't trust microwave recipes for things like candy that rely on chemical changes that occur quickly and need to be tested. Power levels and cooking patterns vary and you can't watch and test the progress like you can on the stovetop. And they can boil over in the micro. To my way of thinking, micro pralines and peanut brittle are more trouble with less certain results.

If you are up for it, I'll share out family favorite praline recipe. I remember my mother cooking these one time and nearly being in tears because she was making them for a special occasion and thought she had burned them. They will not be like the photo above -- they are going to look more like chocolate in color, but they taste wonderful. I would probably drop them on parchment these days. Also, you can test the accuracy of your thermometer and verify whether it reads 212 F/100 C when water boils. If not, you need to adjust accordingly.

Buttermilk Pralines

2 c sugar
1 tsp soda
1 c buttermilk (do not use powder)
1/2 tsp salt
2 T butter
2-1/2 C pecans

Line cookie sheets or large smooth surface with waxed paper.

In a large, heavy pan, combine sugar, soda, buttermilk and salt. Cook over medium heat to 210 degrees, stirring frequently and scraping pan. Add butter and pecans and continue cooking and stirring until mixture reaches 234 degrees, about 5 minutes. Mixture will darken to similar to chocolate (this is not the light brown sugary type of praline in many Mexican restaurant).

Remove from heat and cool SLIGHTLY. Working quickly, drop by tablespoon onto waxed paper and cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Lascatx, thank you for sharing your recipe too. After all the holiday hoopla is over I will give these a try too, when I am looking for things to do that involve staying in the warm kitchen!