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as the syrup was ready to be removed from the heat. The praline was a family concoction and it remains so today, even in the “Praline Capital of the World.” The bustling, genial operators of the small, independent candy kitchens work at full speed six days a week to turn out the delicious pecan delicacies and claim there are more little family factories in the area than in any other place on the globe.
The traveler comes upon the shops shortly after crossing the two-mile Hancock-Harrison County bridge, spanning the waters of the Bay. They appear as an unevenly spaced assortment of cluttered-look-ing, brightly painted red and white candy and gift shops, groaning under signs, billboards, and flashing arrows and decorated with gaudy souvenirs hanging from windows and stacked up in heaps in the parking areas. But along with the advertisements for souvenirs and nov-
elties are the inevitable names in large plain letters: PRALINES — FRESH DAILY-3 for 254.
In these shops the simple praline recipe experiences an exaltation. Through years of continuous mixing, cooling, and pouring, in which the praline makers have experimented with all kinds of flavors and ingredients, each candy kitchen has developed its own secret formula and delicate combination which it shields carefully from all outsiders. This is one reason why the praline candies are a family-factory production. The immediate family only, without outside help, still does the actual cooking and blending in the candy kitchen.
Joyce and Fabian Buquoi, a couple who owns and operates Joyce’s Candy Shop, learned the secret formula from Joyce’s parents, who previously owned the shop.
“My parents were immigrants from Sicily,” Joyce explained. “They first settled in New Orleans and later moved to the Bay where they became interested in pecans, which were common in the area; from a small roadside cart, located on old Highway U. S. 90 then, they made their living by selling pecans to the passing tourists.
“One day an elderly black lady living near us offered my parents the recipe of the basic, old-time Creole, brown sugar praline that everyone made, but which turned out differently under each cook’s hand. Soon their praline sales began
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to compete with the pecan sales. As the demand for pralines grew, more and more stands appeared along the highway with bright signs inviting travelers to stop and buy.”
All the shops are named for girls —Brenda’s, Carolyn’s, Louise’s. It was easier to remember a girl’s name than to recall the strange French or Italian name of the owner, they explained. So a man chose the name of his wife or daughter for his shop.
The peak season for pralines is summer, when tourists’ cars continually flow through the shops’ spacious driveways. But at no time of the year is business dull. Once tasted, the pralines aren’t easily forgotten, and most shops maintain a mail order service for customers who remember the flavor, but aren’t able to return to the source. At his first purchase, the customer is given a card with the mailing address of the shop and other pertinent information for ordering. Some ship orders only in the States, while others send them all over the world. The praline makers find it a popular gift for servicemen overseas.
Fortunately, or otherwise, I’ve indulged in both mullet and pralines while on the Gulf Coast; consequently, I’m doubly hooked. Someday I’ll return to the Bay. And when I do, I’ll buy myself a box of pralines and carry them to my favorite marine restaurant where, relaxing beside the peaceful waters, I can enjoy the best that both land and sea have to offer.	Q
J™ FORD ALMANAC
1 . K FOR FARM AND HOME
There are hundreds of reasons why readers will treasure the 1972 Ford Almanac. This latest edition is packed with 144 pages of information . .. such things as part-time money-making ... home and family hints ... 1972 All-American lawn and garden guide . . . time and money-saving gadgets ... new family fun ideas .. . great vacations for ’72 . . . unusual hobbies ... and new ways to enjoy leisure life.
You can order copies — at $1.00 each (Illinois residents please add 5% sales tax)—by writing to: Ford Almanac, 515 W. Jackson Street, Woodstock, Illinois 60098.
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