Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter, cut up, plus more for pans
- 3/4 pound pecan halves (about 3 1/2 cups), toasted
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening (recommended: Crisco)
Directions
Generously butter 2 baking sheets.
On the baking sheets, arrange the pecan halves in snowflake-shaped clusters of 5 pecans each, overlapping the nuts in the center, leaving 2 inches of space between each.
In a medium saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of the evaporated milk, the corn syrup, and sugar and bring to a boil. Add the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk and the 4 tablespoons butter, and cook, stirring constantly, until it reaches the soft ball stage, 240 degrees F. Stir in the vanilla and remove from the heat. Let cool to 200 degrees F.
Using a tablespoon, spoon caramel on top of each nut cluster and let harden. (If the caramel becomes too stiff to pour, return to low heat, and cook, stirring constantly, until it returns to the proper consistency.)
To make the chocolate coating, in the top of a double boiler or in a metal bowl set over barely simmering water, combine 6 ounces of the chocolate and the shortening. Melt over low heat, stirring, until it reaches 116 to 118 degrees F, or feels fairly warm but not hot to the touch.
Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining 2 ounces of chocolate. Continue stirring until the chocolate reaches 80 degrees F or feels cool to the touch. Return to low heat and cook, stirring, until the temperature rises to 85 to 87 degrees F, or feels barely cool. Remove from the heat.
Drizzle 1 tablespoon of tempered chocolate over each cluster. Set aside in a cool place to harden. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks, with waxed paper separating the layers to prevent sticking.
















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By AllRBored
Hagerstown, MD
on December 24, 2012
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Very tastey & goey. If your using a heavy bottom pot, turn the heat to medium once the sugar, milk, & syrup come to a boil. This way you dont have to stand there stirring for 20 min; I hardly stirred, and the caramel turned out goey, and delish! There...kill two birds with one stone...
By cindyt01ali
on December 14, 2012
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These are delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect. You must use a candy themometer to make this kind of candy..there is no guessing! The recipe didn't say to but I ended up storing them in the fridge. Mine were too soft & sticky otherwise.
By wichitamom
Wichita, KS
on January 16, 2012
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These are delicious. I removed the caramel from the heat immediately when it reached 240, as directed in the recipe, and they are the perfect consistency. Not too hard, not too soft. The only thing I changed, which doesn't affect the taste, is to make them smaller - I put the pecans in clusters of 2 halves. Thanks, Emeril, for this go-to recipe!
Read all 25 reviews