Praline (nut confection): Difference between revisions
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[[File:SouthernCandymakersPralines.jpg|thumb|right|200px|American pralines on a marble slab to cool. Unlike European ones, American pralines are made with cream.]] |
[[File:SouthernCandymakersPralines.jpg|thumb|right|200px|American pralines on a marble slab to cool. Unlike European ones, American pralines are made with cream.]] |
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'''Praline''' is [[sugar candy]] made from [[nut (fruit)|nut]]s and [[sugar syrup]], whether in whole pieces or a ground powder, or, alternatively, a [[chocolate]] cookie containing the ground powder or nuts. [[Belgium|Belgian]] pralines (often called Belgian chocolate) are different; they consist of a hard chocolate shell with a softer, sometimes liquid, filling. French pralines are a combination of [[almonds]] and caramelized [[sugar]]. American pralines also contain [[milk]] or [[cream]] and are therefore softer and creamier, resembling [[fudge]]. |
'''Praline''' is [[sugar candy]] made from [[nut (fruit)|nut]]s and [[sugar syrup]], whether in whole pieces or a ground powder, or, alternatively, a [[chocolate]] cookie ([[biscuit]]) containing the ground powder or nuts. [[Belgium|Belgian]] pralines (often called Belgian chocolate) are different; they consist of a hard chocolate shell with a softer, sometimes liquid, filling. French pralines are a combination of [[almonds]] and caramelized [[sugar]]. American pralines also contain [[milk]] or [[cream]] and are therefore softer and creamier, resembling [[fudge]]. |
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==Europe== |
==Europe== |
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Revision as of 02:30, 20 October 2014
 Belgian pralines | |
| Type | Confectionery |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | France |
| Main ingredients | Chocolate, nuts, syrup |
Praline is sugar candy made from nuts and sugar syrup, whether in whole pieces or a ground powder, or, alternatively, a chocolate cookie (biscuit) containing the ground powder or nuts. Belgian pralines (often called Belgian chocolate) are different; they consist of a hard chocolate shell with a softer, sometimes liquid, filling. French pralines are a combination of almonds and caramelized sugar. American pralines also contain milk or cream and are therefore softer and creamier, resembling fudge.
Europe
As originally inspired in France at the Château of Vaux-le-Vicomte by the cook of the 17th-century sugar industrialist Marshal du Plessis-Praslin (1598–1675),[1] early pralines were whole almonds individually coated in caramelized sugar, as opposed to dark nougat, where a sheet of caramelized sugar covers many nuts.[2] Although the New World had been discovered and settled by this time, pecans and chocolate-producing cocoa (both native to the New World) were originally not ingredients in European pralines. The European chefs used local, easily available and relatively cheap ingredients: nuts such as almonds and hazelnuts.
The powder made by grinding up such sugar-coated nuts is called pralin, and is an ingredient in many cakes, pastries, and ice creams.[3] When this powder is mixed with chocolate, it becomes praliné in French, which gave birth to what is known in French as chocolat praliné (chocolate praline). The word praliné is used colloquially in France and Switzerland to refer to these, known simply as "chocolates" in English, i.e. various centres coated with chocolate.[4] In Europe, the word praline is used to mean either this powder or the paste made from it, often used to fill chocolates, hence its use by synecdoche in Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium to refer to filled chocolates in general.[5] In the United Kingdom, the term can refer either to praline (the filling for chocolates) or, less commonly, to the original whole-nut pralines.
In Europe, the nuts are usually almonds or sometimes hazelnuts.[dubious – discuss]
America
French settlers brought this recipe to Louisiana, where both sugar cane and pecan trees were plentiful. During the 19th century, New Orleans chefs substituted pecans for almonds, added cream to thicken the confection, and thus created what became known throughout the American South as the praline. Pralines have a creamy consistency, similar to fudge. It is usually made by combining sugar (often brown), butter, and cream or buttermilk in a pot on medium-high heat, and stirring constantly, until most of the water has evaporated and it has reached a thick texture with a brown color. Then it is usually dropped by spoonfuls onto wax paper or a sheet of aluminum foil greased with butter, and left to cool. [2][6]
Pralines and Cream is a common ice cream flavor in the United States and Canada.
Belgian pralines
Pralines, commonly known as "Belgian chocolates" or "chocolate bonbons" in English-speaking countries, are chocolate pieces filled with a soft centre. They were first introduced by Jean Neuhaus II, a Belgian chocolatier, in 1912.[7]
There have always been many forms and shapes in Belgian pralines. They nearly always contain a hard chocolate shell with a softer (sometimes liquid) filling. Confusion can arise over the use of the word praline in Belgium as it may refer to filled chocolates in general known as pralines (pronounced pra-LEENS) and it may also refer to a traditional praline filling common in Europe (caramelised hazelnuts ground into a paste) known as praliné (pronounced pra-lee-NAY). Belgian chocolates (pralines) are not limited to the traditional praliné filling and can include butter, liquor, nuts, marzipan, or even a chocolate blend that contrasts with the hard outer shell. They are often sold in stylised boxes in the form of a gift box. Today, Belgian pralines are still very popular in Belgium, as well as in other countries. The largest manufacturers are Neuhaus, Godiva, Leonidas, and Guylian.
See also
References
- ^ Food Timeline Praline History
- ^ a b The Creole Confection – New Orleans Pralines
- ^ Julia Child (1961), Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Alfred A. Knopf
- ^ Template:Wayback
- ^ Belgian Pralines
- ^ Praline Definition
- ^ Amy M. Thomas (December 22, 2011). "Brussels: The Chocolate Trail". New York Times. Retrieved 2011-12-25.
Ever since the Brussels chocolatier Jean Neuhaus invented the praline 100 years ago, the city has been at the forefront of the chocolate business. ... They are breaking away from traditional pralines—which Belgians classify as any chocolate shell filled with a soft fondant center...
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