praline a combination of almonds and boiled sugar, is a popular confection with a long history. The name is originally French, and the Dictionnaire de l’épicerie (1898) gives this definition: ‘praline.—Bonbon formé d’une amande rissolée dans du sucre dont elle forme ensuite le noyeau, et parfumé et coloré de diverses manières.’
The important points in this definition are that it refers to almonds which are whole and separate, each covered with boiled, grained sugar. This remains the primary meaning of the word in modern French.
