Name: Hazelnut Praline: Gluten-Free Breakfast Spread
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 300 g
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 200 g hazelnuts; 130 g caster sugar; 1 pinch of fleur de sel

Last Updated on July 15, 2019 by Irina | Baking Like a Chef

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Hazelnut praline is a delicious gluten-free and dairy-free breakfast spread and a base for many different pastries. It is an easy recipe with 100 % guaranteed result!

Praline in a teaspoon over a glass jar with hazelnuts on a marble board

While you can always buy the best Praline by Valrhona, you can also make the homemade version. Just spend 50 minutes and enjoy the best Hazelnut Praline you can ever make by yourself. Then use it as a perfect breakfast spread on toasts, as a filling for crepes/pancakes or make delicious desserts, such as choux pastry Paris-Breast or Fig Tart With Praline.

What Are The Best Nuts to Make Praline

Praline can be made with all different kinds of nuts, but the classic flavor is hazelnut.
Replace hazelnuts with blanched almonds to make the almond praline. Enjoy it as a spread or make a gluten-free dessert Cinnamon Pavlova With Figs.
If you combine half almonds and half hazelnuts, you might compete with the traditional French Almond & Hazelnut Praline by Valrhona.
Experiment with roasted pistachios to get the pistachio flavored praline.
Try cashews or macadamia nuts as substitutes of hazelnuts.

Brioche toasts topped with Praline and slices of figs and a glass jar with Praline on a marble board

Why This Hazelnut Praline Recipe Works

Three handy ingredients (hazelnuts, sugar, salt) result in a wonderful breakfast spread.
Homemade hazelnut Praline is an inexpensive alternative to store-bought Praline.

How to Make Hazelnut Praline – Step by Step

To roast hazelnuts, preheat oven to 300 F/150 C. Spread whole nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes. Remove skins by wrapping warm hazelnuts in a dish towel (rub vigorously!) and let them sit 5 to 10 minutes. Place roasted hazelnuts as a single layer on parchment paper or silicone baking mat (photo 1).

To make a caramel, heat a pan and pour caster sugar in three times, swirling pan between each addition (photo 2).

Photo 1: Roasted hazelnuts on a board Photo 2: Caster sugar turning into a caramel in a pan — **PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2**

Cook over medium heat until sugar mixes well (photo 3) and turns into a golden caramel. Do not mix the caramel (when the sugar melts) with a spoon or spatula!

Pour the caramel over roasted hazelnuts and cool completely, about 20 minutes (photo 4).

Photo 3: Caster sugar in a pan almost turned into a golden caramel Photo 4: Hazelnuts with the poured caramel on parchment paper — **PHOTO 3 PHOTO 4**

Break the caramel plate into pieces and place in the bowl of a food processor. Turn on low speed and get a praline powder first (photos 5-6).

Photos 5-6: Praline powder in the bowl of a food processor — **PHOTO 5 PHOTO 6**

Then switch to higher speed and process more until it turns into the Praline (photos 7-8).

Photos 7-8: Praline powder turned into Praline — **PHOTO 7 PHOTO 8**

Important Tips for Making Hazelnut Praline

Use store-bought roasted unsalted hazelnuts to save time for making Praline.
DO NOT touch the pot or the caramel while it is still hot or you may get burned.
Replace fleur de sel with any coarse salt or sea salt; however, don’t use iodized table salt because the taste would be too strong.
Store Praline in a mason glass jar at room temperature for up to one week, in the fridge for up to one month.
Freeze and defrost Praline as needed.

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