cinnamon and vanilla candied pecans

How To Make cinnamon and vanilla candied pecans

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  1

  Put pecans and oil in a flat baking pan; stir until pecans are coated. Roast in 300 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring frequently. Cool. Do not roast at a higher temperature or overcook -they will become bitter. (SEE NOTE BELOW.)
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  2

  Combine sugar, cinnamon, salt and water in a saucepan; cook, stirring over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.
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  3

  Boil to 236 degrees of a candy thermometer, or to soft ball stage*. FYI: Tonight I decided that I'd time the candied mixture (both times I made it) and from the time it started boiling until it reached the soft ball stage was only 4 minutes (and it only took about 4 minutes on medium to start boiling). So -in about 8 minutes from mixing it in the saucepan until you remove it from the heat and stir in the Vanilla and Pecans -you have a wonderful confection! Just thought I'd let you know that it isn't time nor labor intensive -just good.
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  4

  Remove from heat; blend in vanilla. Add pecans and stir until mixture is creamy (and loses its sheen). Turn out onto waxed paper and use a fork to separate pecans.
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  * TO TEST FOR SOFT BALL STAGE: If you do not have a candy thermometer, drop a small amount of syrup into chilled water. When it forms a ball, but is soft enough to flatten when picked up with fingers (234 to 240 degrees), it will be to the soft ball stage.
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  NOTE: You can skip the roasting step if you are in a hurry. However, if you taste the candied pecans that have been roasted and ones that have not been roasted, you will prefer roasting them before cooking on the stove -the flavor is so much richer.
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  7

  ENJOY!!
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