New Orleans and the pecan

The Crescent City and pecans have long been linked. The sweet, creamy, French confection known as a praline first gained American fame in New Orleans, when almonds were substituted for native Louisiana pecans. Soon the praline became a Southern hallmark treat.

It was also in New Orleans that late 19th-century seedsmen became promoters of planting improved pecan varieties along the Gulf South. Later, it was the Port of Orleans, based on its strategic southern location, that became a global gateway to the distribution of pecans throughout the world by way of the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico.

– Jady Regard, Cane River Pecan Company