I was at one of my favorite restaurants this past weekend and decided to go with their signature vanilla bean crème brulee for dessert. It was to-die-for, as always. But, I loved it so much, I wanted to be able to make it on my own and add a few extra elements to give it a real flavor kick. Fortunately, I found this great recipe that uses Green Valley Pecans on AZCentral.com. ()
I’ve never had orange, chocolate or pecans in my crème brulee before, but this recipe sounds fantastic and looks pretty easy to make. Plus, you get to use a little kitchen blowtorch to caramelize the sugar.
Try it out and let me know how you like it. Or, if you have another crème brulee recipe to share, email it to IHeartPecans@gmail.com. I’d love to hear about it.
With the widespread FDA recalls surrounding peanuts and pistachios just a few months ago, now is the perfect time to experiment with different nuts as a substitute for peanut butter. And, yes, pecan butter is definitely an option.
I found this article from CookingLight.com and it’s surprisingly easy to make your own nut butters. Simply take the nut of your choice, toast until golden brown and blend in a food processor until creamy and smooth. A little salt kicks up the flavor but other than that, there’s no need to add oils or creams or unnatural ingredients like so many store-bought nut butters contain.
This companion article provides a helpful guide as to where you can use your new nut butter creations. Some nuts, like pecans, won’t necessarily satisfy that sweet peanut butter and jelly sandwich craving but they will go great with spicing up a hearty meat dish.
Give it a try and let me know what your favorite flavor is. And if you’re feeling adventurous, try combining a few different nuts for a new “nut”tacular butter combination.
Even if you’re not the biggest fan of Paula Dean’s southern-inspired home-style recipes, you got to admit that she sure knows her way around the kitchen. Although we already posted a video about how to toast nuts and pecans, this in depth video from Paula gives you a little more insight and advice than the last one.
Click the image below to watch the Toasting Nuts video and become a roasting, toasting expert in no time.
When I go somewhere that lets you pick out your own ice cream toppings, I can’t help but notice that pecans are always ignored and completely overshadowed by peanuts and walnuts.
That is until I was at the mall a few weeks ago and suddenly realized that I was walking through a sea of people carrying brightly colored cups filled with all sorts of fantastic flavor combination. The source, I discovered, was a little shop called Mojo Yogurt.
The place was definitely different than anything I had seen before. Completely self-serve, Mojo Yogurt only carries fat-free frozen yogurt and features flavors that range from your classic chocolate and vanilla to exotic passion fruit and sugar free blueberry.
After you fill up your cup, you get to pick your own toppings and decide how much or how little you want. And the best part is that they have tasty chopped pecans. I’ve been there several times now, and while the yogurt flavors and the toppings are consistently rotated, the pecans have always been there.
My absolute favorite flavor combination is a little bit of chocolate yogurt, a little bit of vanilla yogurt and lots of chopped pecans. That little cup totally makes my day.
Next time you find yourself on Highway 24 near Brunswick, Missouri, you might want to pull over to catch a glimpse of the World’s Largest Pecan.
Constructed in 1982 by George and Elizabeth James, this giant concrete replica is set in front of their Nut Hut roadside stand. It weights 12,000 pounds, measures in at a whopping 7′x12′ and rests on the north side of Highway 24. Something tells me that you won’t have trouble finding it.
And while flood damage, and, sadly, George’s passing in 1998, had taken a toll on the World’s Largest Pecan, it recently received a much needed face-lift in October 2004-so it’s back and better than ever.
Watching this video makes me wish that it were Thanksgiving, because I don’t want to have to wait to make it. This is a great instructional video on how to make a pumpkin pecan braid. Although I’m not a fan of how they say “pecan” at the beginning, I do love how they use basic, ready-made store ingredients like the refrigerated Pillsbury dough. It’s so simple and it looks so delicious.
Leave it to Martha Stewart to make you feel so plain and uncreative. I was looking up some recipes on pecan clusters and came across this cute how-to page on packaging your own pecan clusters from scratch.
So, not only does she bake delicious confectionery treats, but she makes her own packaging too! This package is designed to hold one batch of pecan clusters, and includes a step-by-step guide on how to cut and assemble your own box that slides open.
I have to admit that this would make an adorable gift, if you have the time to put it together. But, if you don’t, I’m sure the treats would taste just as good in a store-bought box.
