In praise of the pecan; or, sweet addictions.

Anyone who is more than a passing acquaintance of the Swede-Pole (or is that Pole-Swede) behind this blog must have noticed that he is a sucker for sweets. Let's be honest, let's face the facts: he is hopelessly addicted to chocolate. As his travel companions know, our temporary Oklahoman always carries emergency chocolate on him wherever he goes-and it is not a pretty sight when our mathematically inclined chocolate junkie does not get his fix in time. Our hero's health will, in time, no doubt be affected by his chocolate consumption, and interventions and/or rehab should probably be considered.

But now, instead of dwelling on this regrettable chocolate habit, let us instead turn to one of the best features of the South: the pecan! Or, as some call it, the king of nuts. Delicious, whether simply shelled or candied, whether served in a salad or used to flavor coffee, it grows abundantly over large parts of the Southern United States. (But to a Swede-Pole, it is an exotic nut!) Here is a picture of a genuine Texan pecan tree (recognize it, Austinites?):

Our hero has added a pecan addiction to his chocolate habit ever since he bought a bag of locally produced at the convenience store on campus, not too far from his apartment. These cinnamon-flavored candied pecans seem to be popular with other Stillwater residents also, so our blogger is pulling his friends down with him.

With considerable satisfaction, the Swedish-Oklahoman food blog presents its attempt to emulate the cinnamon pecans from Twentysomething. (Yes, that's what the convenience store is called.) Now that he knows how to make this cinnamonesque nutty delight, our hero will hopefully be spared those embarrassing late night pecan runs to said store...

Ingredients:

3 cups of shelled pecans from the groves of Oklahoma
1 egg (we need the white)
1/2 cup of brown sugar
2 spoons of honey produced by the bees of Oklahoma
cinnamon

Turn up the oven up to 275 F (or 135C). Prepare some parchment paper on which the nuts will be baked.

Beat the egg white. Add 1/2 cup of brown sugar and about 2 spoons of honey. Add as much cinnamon as you like; being from Sweden, I used a whole lot. Stir the mix, and then pour in the nuts.

Stir again, until the nuts are evenly coated. Pour the coated nuts onto the parchment paper, and into the oven they go.

Relax for about 10-15 minutes; make yourself some tea or watch the Academy Awards if you have a TV. Turn off the oven, remove the pecans and let them cool off. Try not eating them all at once. This may well prove a hopeless endeavor-they are so delicious!

Serving suggestions: "Live at McCabe's" by Norman Blake on the side, a cup of tea.