How to make almond and hazelnut praline

The perfect ingredient to elevate your desserts and sweets, and a delicious temptation even to enjoy by the spoonful, this homemade almond and hazelnut praline will have you salivating as soon as you taste it.

Praline is a creamy spread made from roasted nuts, cooked in syrup and caramelized , which are ground into a fine paste. In this case, you will see that there are two types of nuts, almonds and hazelnuts, but we can make praline with just one type of nut in the same way.

It is often accompanied by chocolate , an ingredient that goes perfectly with nuts. The paste or cream that you get, with that mixture of cocoa and hazelnut or almond flavour, is a delicacy for any sweet you are going to prepare. (See below the recipe to see how to make almond praline with chocolate).

You will see that, although it may seem a bit laborious, if you follow the indicated steps well, you will get a delicious homemade praline that I advise you to save immediately, because it will be your downfall!

And although it is traditionally a baking ingredient, as well as being perfect for filling chocolates, flavouring biscuits or adding to cream to create different desserts each time, it can provide an exquisite point of contrast when you prepare the vinaigrettes for your salads.

How to use praline

Praline is a cream or paste used for high-end pastries, a delicacy for anyone's palate. Some of the most common uses of praline are:

• It is often used to prepare delicious chocolates and truffles;
• for the preparation of nougat ;
• Use this wonderful paste for filling cakes and pastries , or for decorating them;
• to make homemade chocolates;
• to fill profiteroles mixed with a little cream;
• You can enjoy it as is on crackers or toast.
• for the preparation of mousses , both as a base and in their preparation.
• You can also stop pigeonholing it as a dessert and use almond and hazelnut praline for a sauce, filling or decoration on fish dishes and salads . That caramelized almond flavor can be the magic ingredient in countless recipes.

Let's get on with the recipe to make homemade praline!

Ingredients

• 125 g raw almonds with skin
• 125 g raw hazelnuts with skin
• 250 g of sugar

Preparation

1. Spread the almonds and hazelnuts on a baking sheet .
2. Toast them in the oven for 15 minutes at 150°C.
3. Once toasted, let them cool a little and rub them to loosen the skin. Put them in the oven to keep them warm.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the dry caramel and heat 1/3 of the sugar in a wide-bottomed saucepan. It is important not to stir the sugar so that it does not crystallize.
5. When you see that it starts to dissolve, add a little more sugar and move the pan gently in circles, so that it distributes evenly.
6. As you see the sugar melting, add a little more, stir gently by shaking the pan and let it melt.
7. Repeat the process until you have added all the sugar and let it heat up until you see that it has a golden color.
8. At this point, add the almonds and hazelnuts and stir well to mix them with the caramel.
9. Spread out on a smooth silicone mat placed on a baking tray, and allow to cool.
10. When they are cold, break them into pieces and put them in the food processor bowl.
11. Blend them until you get a fine, creamy paste (you'll need a good, powerful food processor for this).
12. Pour the praline into an airtight container and store for about two weeks.

How to make hazelnut and almond praline with chocolate

Praline is often presented as a spread of nuts and chocolate. If you want to make it this way, you just have to melt chocolate and mix it with the praline in the blender, adding it while blending.

The most common way to make pralines is with dark chocolate, but nowadays pralines are made with all kinds of chocolate (white, dark or milk). Use the type of chocolate you want for your preparation, but make sure it is of good quality. It has to be up to the task of making the delicious praline!

Grades

• You can use this recipe to surprise your guests with a sweet gift: place the praline in a nice glass jar , and you have an ideal gift.
• Use a smooth silicone mat to spread the caramelized nuts. If you do it on baking paper, they will stick to you when you try to spread them and you won't be able to handle them properly. Silicone will make the process much easier.