Bourbon Praline Pecan

What is it?

Praline means different things on different continents. In France it's ground nuts and caramelized sugar worked into a paste; in the American South it's a patty made by cooking sugar and cream down with pecans until it sets. This is the American one, and the bourbon puts it in the same part of the country. French settlers brought the technique to New Orleans and swapped the almonds they would have used at home for the nut growing locally. Brown sugar in the base is the useful detail. It carries molasses, which brings a slight bitterness white sugar doesn't, and against bourbon that's the only thing keeping the tub from running entirely sweet.