fitfool | Pecan Praline Lace Cookies

These thin, lacy cookies provide plenty of eye candy and taste a bit like candy too. I spotted these online several months ago and have been itching to try making these. While the recipe assures you that it's simple to make, it took me several tries to get it right. These spread out a lot while they bake so at first the edges were overlapping a lot. In addition, I kept burning them. (Note: You're supposed to let the baking sheet cool in between batches! Didn't notice that line until I had finished.) A food processor would've made chopping the pecans a whole lot easier. Despite the effort, I think these would be worth making to wow dinner guests. Tastes great paired with vanilla ice cream.

Pecan Praline Lace Cookies
The full original recipe includes directions for molding these into more shapes.
http://www.recipelink.com/cookbooks/2000/0811826465_2.html

If using a baking sheet more than once, simply wipe off the excess butter with a paper towel. Be sure to let the tray cool before dropping the next batch of batter.

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped pecans
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 ounces (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup packed.dark brown sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a small bowl, combine the pecans and flour. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, and corn syrup. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir the dry ingredients into the pan. Transfer the batter to a bowl and stir occasionally until it thickens into a dough and is cool enough to handle, about 25 minutes.
With moistened hands, roll the dough into various size balls, depending on whether you're making cookies, cups, or coronets (see below). Place on ungreased baking sheets, 3 to 7 inches apart, depending on size-they spread quite a bit. Bake about 32 minutes, or until the active bubbling subsides. [It didn't take anywhere near that long for me. I ended up just checking every 5 minutes to see how it was coming and I think mine took 5-10 minutes to bake.] Place the baking sheet on a rack and let cool until the cookies are firm enough to lift with a flexible metal spatula but are still malleable, 3 to 5 minutes. Working quickly, mold each into shape and set on a wire rack to cool completely. If the cookies get too cool and brittle to mold, put the tray back in the oven for a minute to soften.

To Make 24 Cookies
1. With moistened hands, mold level teaspoons of the dough into balls. Place about 12 balls on an ungreased baking sheet. Follow the instructions above. When the cookies are set but still flexible, transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat with a second tray. [I must've made the balls too big or something. When I put 12 balls on the sheet, they all merged into one giant sheet which I subsequently burned. I finally settled on 4 balls spaced far apart and that worked ok.]

To Make 24 Cigarettes
1. Follow the baking instructions for cookies, but when you lift a cookie off the baking sheet, roll it around a chopstick or the handle of a wooden spoon [put the bumpy side on the outside]. Lay it on the cooling rack, seam side down. If the cookies get too brittle to mold, put the baking sheet back in the oven for a minute to soften them.

2. (optional) Dip the ends in melted chocolate. Immerse one end of a cookie, then the other, shake off the excess chocolate, and dip the end into a small bowl of grated chocolate. Lay it on a sheet pan lined with parchment or waxed paper. When all the cookies are dipped, place the tray in the refrigerator for 5 to 10 minutes, just until the chocolate sets.