I live in the Deep South where pecans are abundant. Every year, the kids and I try to go and pick up pecans from some lovely soul's home or business. To keep the kids interested while doing the monotonous work of pecan picking, I tell them it's like hunting for Easter eggs, so they'd better get to it! The one with the most pecans wins! May I just say, it never works. Pecans are not lovely eggs filled with chocolates, and the kids soon get bored and I am left to do the work - which I do not love. So usually, we end up just buying some at a local produce stand. I try to get enough for the entire year, because, well, they are only in season for a short time and you'd better get them while you can! And there are SO many amazing foods to be made using pecans!
One of my favorite things is pecan praline. You can make this yummy, sugary stuff into a syrup to put over pancakes, candies that melt in your mouth and cause you to hear angels singing, or, my favorite, a topping/glaze for baked things!
Today, I want to share another of my favorite Southern slow foods - pecan praline sweet rolls! These lovelies are just amazing! Granted, it takes several hours to make these, but they are definitely worth it! Plus, if you make these over the weekend, you can surprise your family with a lovely Sunday morning breakfast before heading out to church. THAT, my friends, is a WIN!
Start out by scalding 1C of milk. If, like me, you had no idea what "scalding milk" is, let me explain. You are going for milk that has been heated to almost boiling, but not quite boiling. Use a whisk to keep it from burning to the bottom of your pot (which it will do very quickly!!), and also to get the milk nice and frothy! It should look like this when you're done.
Take the pot off the heat, and drop in half a stick of butter (use REAL BUTTER here, people!). Let the milk cool down and the butter melt while you work on the next few steps.
In a Pyrex measuring container (or a bowl), add 2 packages of active dry yeast, 1 Tablespoon of sugar (white or brown), and 2/3C warm (NOT HOT) water. If your water is too hot, it will kill your yeast and your rolls won't rise! Better to be on the cooler side than too hot!
This is what the mixture starts out looking like.
And this is what you have after 5-10 min. This is what you are going for.
While your yeast mixture is rising and your scalded milk is cooling, mix together 2 eggs, 1/2C sugar, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg.
My friend, Amy, brought this fresh nutmeg back straight from Guyana just for me!! She is the best! It comes in a shell (just like any other nut - which I did not know when I got these!), so be sure to crack it before trying to grate it. Yes, I tried that. Let me just say, nutmeg shells just don't grate well. (Ignore the expiration date! I keep them in my freezer, so they are still fabulous!) But do not worry! If you don't have a friend going to Guyana anytime soon, or if you can't find this in the grocery store, just use some already ground nutmeg from the spice section!
By now, your milk should be cooled and your yeast should be well risen. Add it all to your lovely bowl. Then start mixing in 5 1/2C plain flour. You're going to have to mix it about a cup at a time, and it gets pretty thick. So when you can't use your whisk anymore, just get your hands in there and get them messy!
Now you need it to turn into a lovely dough ball. So start adding more flour and mixing in by hand. All total, I used 7C of plain flour in this batch, but yours could end up with more or less depending on things like the weather and humidity in your house. When you finish, though, it should look like this - a lovely dough ball that isn't sticky anymore and stays altogether.
Stick this baby on a counter and cover it with plastic. Leave it alone until it looks like it's about to rise out of your bowl. Like this...
Take the plastic off and give it a good punch down. Really get out some stress here!
Take a sharp knife and cut it right down the middle. Unless you have a ton of counter space (which I do not!), you will need to make 2 rolls out of this dough. I actually use the top of my stove to roll my dough, because it's a nice, big area. And it just barely fits.
Roll out one chunk of that dough into a long rectangle. (Be sure to cover your bowl back up, so the other dough chunk doesn't dry out.)
** Please notice my amazing rolling pin. My amazing Mr. Right hand turned this lovely thing on his wood lathe for me several years ago. It is my favorite rolling pin ever! He's the best!
Take a second to mix up your filling, if you haven't done it already. To make the pecan praline, you need a stick of butter, a cup of chopped pecans, and a cup of brown sugar. If you really love this stuff, make a double batch! Use a pastry cutter or just your fingers to mix all of this up really well.
Use a few Tablespoons of vegetable oil or melted butter to give your dough a good rub down. You want something that your filling will stick to, so get that oil/butter all over the top of that rolled out dough.
Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar mixture all over the top of the dough. Remember that you have another chunk of dough to roll out after this, so be sure to divide your filling in half. Or just make more. Or make the second roll just cinnamon and sugar. Lots of options here, people!
Take your pecan praline filling and put it on half of the dough. You're only going to put it on half, because, as you roll it up, it sometimes tries to sneak out the other side. You need room on your roll to avoid this catastrophe! Go slow, work from one of the long sides, and start rolling up the dough.
Now that you have a nice, long roll, grab a really sharp knife. Cut the roll into slices about 1 inch wide. Lay the circles on a greased pan. Spray the tops of the rolls with Pam and cover them with plastic. Stick them on the counter and let them rise until they are about double in size. This will take about an hour.
After these had risen as much as I wanted them to, I put some of my pecan praline filling on top of each one. As they cook, the butter would melt into each roll and leave a sugary, buttery goodness!
Into the oven they go! Cook them at 375 degrees for about 20-25 min. I always use at least one glass pan, so I can see the bottoms. If the bottoms are golden, they are done!
While these babies are cooking, take a minute to mix up an icing glaze. All you need is about a cup of powdered sugar and a couple Tablespoons of milk. Use enough milk to make it as thick or thin of an icing as you'd like. And if you get too much milk, no worries! Just add a little more powdered sugar! You can really never have too much icing!
After they come out of the oven, pour your glaze on them immediately. The hot sweet rolls will suck that icing right in, and it will be just fabulous! This is the finished product!
Thankfully, this recipe makes several pans of sweet rolls!! Because my children were standing around watching them cook and waiting until the moment I pulled them out, so they could grab one for a snack! And then we had them again for breakfast this morning!
There are lots of variations to this recipe. If you don't live where you can easily get pecans, use walnuts. If you don't like nuts, go with just cinnamon and sugar. You can really fill these sweet rolls with any number of things!
If you give these a try, I'd love to hear how they turn out for you. And how your family loved them. And how your weekend was just perfect because you took some time to cook for your family.
Pecan Praline Sweet Rolls
1 C milk
1/4 C real butter
2 packages active dry yeast
1 Tablespoon sugar
2/3 C warm water
1/2 C sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
5 1/2 C plain flour (plus more for kneading)
Filling:
1 C chopped pecans
1 stick butter
1 C brown sugar
Directions:
Scald milk. Remove from heat and add butter. Allow to cool completely.
Mix together yeast, sugar, and water, and let rise for 5-10 min or until very bubbly.
In a large bowl, mix together remaining sugar, eggs, salt and nutmeg. Add in bubbly yeast and cooled milk/butter mixture.
Mix in flour, 1 C at a time. After mixing in the 5 1/2 C, begin kneading in extra flour, 1 C at a time, until you get a smooth, elastic dough that is no longer sticky. Allow to rise until doubled, about 1-2 hours.
While dough is rising, mix up the filling. Using a pastry cutter, fork, or fingers, mix together the butter, brown sugar, and pecans until you have a nice crumble that is well incorporated.
When dough has risen, punch down. Cut the dough in half. Roll out one half of the dough into a rectangle. Oil top of dough, and add filling. Roll up into a long tube, and cut into 1" circles. Place on a greased baking sheet, cover, and allow to rise until sweet rolls are double in size. Repeat with remaining half of the dough. After rolls have risen, add extra topping, if desired, and put in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20-25 min.
A powdered sugar icing/glaze can be added when the sweet rolls are taken out of the oven. Eat while hot, or cover and save for tomorrow's breakfast!
