Coconut and Pecan Pralines

I'm all about easy.  But only if delicious is also in the description.  These little Coconut and Pecan Pralines are both.  No baking or thermometer needed!

Since I knew it would be dangerous to keep these little bits of sugary goodness in the house too long, I decided to share them.  They received rave reviews!  Not 5 minutes after I dropped some of to a friend, I got this lovely text.

"Holy Hannah!
De-freaking-licious treats.
Worth every calorie in them. Thanks lady!!"

They really are that good!

2 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups chopped pecans
2 cups shredded coconut

In a large sauce pan, combine sugar, evaporated milk, corn syrup and sugar.  Bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat, then boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, pecans and coconut.  Stir for 4 minutes (the mixture with thicken a bit).  Drop by the spoonful onto waxed paper.  Let sit to harden - about 1 hour.

Recipe from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen.

No Fail 7 Minute Microwave Caramels

When I say "No Fail," I seriously mean it!  This is the third batch of caramels I made in about 3 days.  The first 2 were on the stove top and were complete and total FAILS!  I couldn't get either of them to get up to temperature, and then they were both hard as a rock.  After the second batch I decided that it was my thermometer that was the issue, not so much the cook.  Thank goodness!

I didn't feel quite brave enough to try another stove top batch of caramels and so I decided to give these a try.  They were amazing!  Quick, easy and they worked!!

We ate about half of them plain and I dipped the other half in milk chocolate and sprinkled them with a little sea salt.  Oh. My. Heavenly!  If you are a chocolate dipper, try it!  You can thank me later.  Or not, when you can't stop eating them.  Thank goodness there are so many mouths around here to help devour the holiday temptations!

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large microwave safe bowl and cook until melted.  Add corn syrup, white and brown sugars and sweetened condensed milk.  Mix well until everything is smooth.  Return to the microwave and cook for 7 minutes.  Remove from the microwave and stir in vanilla.  Pour into a buttered 8x8-inch baking dish and let cool completely.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy.