Pecan praline cookies - house beautiful

3 dozen

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 cup Chopped pecans
1½ cup All-purpose flour
1¼ teaspoon Baking powder
¼ teaspoon Baking soda
¼ teaspoon Salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, slightly softened
⅓ cup Granulated sugar
1 cup Firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons Granulated sugar
1 large Egg
2 teaspoons Vanilla extract

Directions

PRALINE TOPPING

COOKIE DOUGH

Make praline topping: On a large baking sheet in a preheated 350'F oven, toast pecans 9 to 10 minutes, until fragrant but not burned.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine sugar with 2 T water. Bring to boil, stirring frequently to dissolve sugar. Cover and boil 2 minutes. Uncover and cook 2 to 2½ minutes longer, or until syrup thickens slightly, bubbles and turns deep amber, but not dark brown. Immediately add toasted pecans to syrup, stirring to coat. (Caution: mixture is very hot.) Quickly turn praline mixture onto a buttered dish and cool completely.

Transfer the praline to a heavy plastic bag. Using a mallet or the back of a heavy spoon, crack the mixture into tiny pieces. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator or freeze up to 1 month.

Make cookie dough: In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.

In another medium bowl beat butter until fluffy. Add sugars, egg and vanilla and continue to beat until smooth and well blended. Add half the dry mixture and beat until blended. Stir in remaining dry mixture until well blended.

Set aside ⅓ C of the praline mixture. Stir the remaining mixture into cookie dough.

Form dough into 1-inch balls. Dip top of each ball into reserved praline. Space balls 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake in center of a preheated 375'F oven 10 to 11 minutes, or until cookies are lightly golden around the edges. Remove from oven and let stand 2 minutes, then transfer cookies to wire racks and cool completely.

Store in an airtight container 1 week, or freeze up to 1 month. Makes 3 dozen 3-inch cookies.

House Beautiful Holidays 1993 Scanned & fixed by Di and Gary

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