Creamy Pralines

Butter a medium saucepan.

(This will make clean-up easier.) Pour in cream and place over high heat.

When it begins to boil, add sugar and stir rapidly until it dissolves.

Then stir in vanilla and pecans and continue to cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture reaches soft ball stage (236° on a candy thermometer).

Remove from heat and quickly beat in butter.

This helps arrest the cooking process.

The candy should lose its glossy color and become very cloudy.

Lay out a long strip of waxed paper on a work surface.

Moisten it with a damp towel. (Prepare paper while candy cooks, to avoid delaying this process.) When candy is ready, drop good-sized spoonfuls of it onto the paper, stirring occasionally as you go along to keep the pecans well distributed.

Remove pralines from the paper before they have cooled completely.

Later on it will be hard to remove them without breaking them.

Store between layers of waxed paper in tightly sealed container.