Maple-Nut Pralines
Stacked on a plate or piled in a decorated canister, these make a wonderful host gift or snack for a buffet table.Makes about 2½ dozen candies
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil for pans
- 2 cups 16 ounces pure maple syrup
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons, if needed, heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 cup 4 ounces walnuts, chopped
- 1 cup 4 ounces pecans, chopped
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Instructions
- Generously oil 2 rimmed baking sheets.
- In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stir together the maple syrup and 1 cup cream. Clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan. Bring to a boil and boil the mixture until the thermometer registers 238°F, about 15 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and let cool to 220°F, about 5 minutes. Add the butter and stir just until melted and the mixture is creamy, about 1 minute. Stir in the walnuts, pecans, and nutmeg. Immediately, using a tablespoon, scoop up spoonfuls of the mixture and drop onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them evenly. If the mixture becomes too dry to drop, add 2 tablespoons cream and stir over low heat until melted.
- Let the candies cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.
Notes
Tip
Grating nutmeg: The flavor of freshly grated nutmeg is unmatched. Whole nutmegs look like unshelled pecans. Grate your nutmeg, if possible, on a specialized nutmeg grater, which has tiny rasps and usually a small compartment for storing a nutmeg or two. Or, grate the nutmeg with a microplane grater.