Chocolate Drizzled Pecan Pralines

Pecan Pralines are such a sweet treat, and drizzled with dark chocolate adds another level of flavor for us chocolate and pecan lovers!!!

Ingredients

3/4 cups sugar

• 1/3  cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4  cup butter 
• 1/4  cup milk 
• 1 tablespoons corn syrup
• 2 1/2  cups toasted pecan halves
• 3 oz Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
• Preparation
• Stir together all  ingredients except pecans and chocolate, in a heavy 3-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Continue to boil, stirring constantly, 7 to 8 minutes or until a candy thermometer reaches 234°.Remove from heat, and stir in pecans.  Spoon pecan mixture onto parchment lined baking sheet, spreading in an even layer.  Let set about 20 minutes.  Separate and break up praline-coated pecans into pieces using 2 forks.   Microwave chocolate in a microwave safe bowl at 50% power for 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval.  When smooth, drizzle chocolate over pecans and let set.  For quicker setting place in refrigerator or freezer.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.
• Adapted from Southern Living

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Pecan Praline Ice Cream

So yesterday was National Praline Day and that was enough to inspire me to make up some sweet Pralines and even try making Pecan Praline Ice Cream.  I LOVE pecans and the sweetness added by the praline candy mixture makes them such a heavenly treat :)

I am not very experienced at making ice cream nor have an ice cream maker, but that didn't stop me from trying, and I am glad I did.  Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 cup packed light brown sugar

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

2/3 cup chopped pecans

Optional:  caramel or apple cinnamon ice cream topping for mixing in 

Optional toppings:  chopped up pralines, chopped dark chocolate

Instructions:

In a medium saucepan combine the cream, milk and brown sugar, cook over med-low heat, stirring frequently until hot and sugar is dissolved.  In a med bowl whisk the egg yolks together.  Add and whisk about 1 cup of the hot mixture into the yolks until blended.  Then slowly add the egg mixture to the saucepan, whisking until well blended.  Continue cooking on med-low heat for about 5-7 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon.  Cook until the mixture coats the spoon.  

Stir in vanilla and pecans and let cool completely, for quicker cooling transfer to a metal bowl placed in an ice bath.

Pour cooled mixture into a aluminum foil lined 9 X 5 loaf pan or other 2 quart container. 

Cover tightly and freeze for 6 hours or more until firm.  Once or twice move the mixture around with a fork to distribute and freeze evenly.  

If desired about 1/2 way through freezing process mix in chocolate syrup, caramel or apple cinnamon ice cream topping for more flavor.  In this batch I added about 1/2 jar of the apple cinnamon topping, it gave it a pecan-apple pie flavor, I liked it but I think it would have been just fine and delicious without it too.

adapted from about.com southern food

Optional apple-cinnamon add-in

Ready for the freezer

When it was all done I topped it off with whipped cream and crushed praline pecans to make it over the top sweet!  This tasted just like praline pecans in ice cream form, the texture was in between a gelato and icecream.

On a cone dipped in chopped pralines and chopped dark chocolate, heaven!

For the praline topping I used this recipe:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/praline-pecans-10000001133867/

Enjoy!