Yann Couvreur is a popular young French pastry chef who, in addition to his Parisian shops, now has pastry shops in Miami and Dubai. I love his shop in Paris’s Marais district. Yann’s recipes are contemporary yet use many timeless flavors. This recipe is his hazelnut praliné, a mixture of toasted nuts and hard caramel ground together into a paste. This hazelnut praliné is delicious, especially with the flaky sea salt, and has many uses in desserts. It can be added to ganaches or, as Yann does in his video, added as a bottom layer of a chocolate mousse for more texture and interest. You can watch Yann make this praliné in his video here at 00:00 to 00:51 seconds.
1¼ cups (165 g) crushed or whole hazelnuts, with or without skins
1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp (85 g) granulated sugar
1/2 tsp (2 g) flaky sea salt
Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Spread the hazelnuts out onto a heavy-gauge baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat and set the pan on a heatproof surface (Because the extremely hot caramel will be poured over the nuts on the baking sheet, it important to use a silicone baking mat and a heavy-gauge baking sheet; see Chef Zach’s Notes if you are new to making caramel). Toast the nuts for about 15 minutes, or until they are light golden and fragrant. About halfway through the toasting time, stir the nuts or lightly shake the pan for more even toasting. Set the pan on a cooling rack and sprinkle the salt over them (once the caramel is applied, it will pick up the salt).
In a small heavy-bottom saucepan set over medium-high heat, sprinkle half the sugar evenly over the bottom of the pan. Let the sugar begin melting to a light amber color, without stirring, but occasionally gently swirling the pan so that the caramel develops evenly, if necessary. When the sugar is about three-quarters melted, sprinkle the remainder of the sugar evenly over the top and let melt, stirring the sugar gently using a wooden spoon or silicone spatula (stir briskly at the end if you need to, to encourage any small lumps to melt). Once the sugar is fully melted and the caramel is a medium amber color, remove the pan from the heat and immediately drizzle it over the hazelnuts (it does not have to be drizzled evenly). Set aside until the caramel has completely cooled and hardened on the nuts.
Break up the nut-caramel mixture into small pieces and place them in a food processor. Process for several minutes until the nuts become a semi-fluid and shiny paste. Stop the processor every 1 to 2 minutes, scraping the mixture from the bottom to ensure even mixing, and continue processing until the paste is formed. Store in a jar, refrigerated. It can also be stored for a few days at room temperature.
Chef Zach’s Notes:
Pralinés are super easy to make and versatile using any kind of nut (cashews, pecans, peanuts, pistachios, etc.), and you can grind them to any consistency you want depending on how you like them or how you’ll use them. Homemade caramel can be a little nerve-racking if you are new to making it. Yann makes what’s called a “dry” caramel because no water is used in the process; the sugar is simply melted dry in a pan on the stove top. Because melted sugar becomes ferociously hot, be sure to use a stainless-steel pan with a heavy bottom and a wooden spoon or silicone (not rubber) spatula that can withstand very high heat. I do not recommend using a cast iron pan, as cast iron heats very quickly and retains the heat too well, burning the caramel before you know it. Do not set the pan with the hot caramel onto any surface that cannot withstand high heat. Watch the caramel carefully as it develops to prevent it from burning. It is important to use a heavy-gauge baking sheet because the hot caramel will warp a pan that is thin and flimsy. Be careful to not get even the smallest amount of the hot caramel on your skin or else you risk a very bad burn.
The praliné can be spooned into the bottom of a serving glass (as shown in the video at 2:30 seconds) and topped with chocolate mousse, used as a bonbon filling, combined with chocolate ganache, used as part of a layer in layer cake, or spread into the bottom of a tart for extra texture and flavor. It’s always fun to have a jar of nut praliné on hand to add as an embellishment to a chocolate dessert.