Heaven in Cellophane

Even though it's a bad year for pecans, with the price of a pound up by 50 cents, the namesake of Nanny's Candy Co. in Carencro says she is more worried about a fitness fad that just won't fade away.

"Atkins is killing us," Rene Gary says, half-joking. "People call us, I bet we get one phone call a day, maybe five, 'Can you make a sugar-free praline?'" A sugar-free praline may seem like an oxymoron, or just a clump of buttered pecans, but Gary and her husband, Ed, haven't ruled it out. "That's definitely brewing in both our minds ... Maybe we'll make a sugar-free praline and surprise everybody."

In the meantime, Nanny's, which anyone who has ever paid at the register or browsed through the impulse bin will recognize for its copper colored, antique-style label, sticks to what it does best: sugar. Every week, Nanny's bill for milk and sugar, which comes from Sysco in 50-pound sacks, totals $2,000.

Just from walking through the door of Nanny's kitchen, the size of a small, two-bedroom house, you could gain a pound or two from the overwhelming smell of sweet pralines. Close to the entrance, there's two copper kettle pots where all Nanny's candies - original and chewy caramel - are born at the hands of Georgia Bruno, who runs the shop with her son and grandson. Starting between 4 and 6 a.m., Bruno and her crew pour in milk and sugar, cooking it until it reaches a certain temperature for a certain length of time. The batches take about an hour to cook, but that temperature is a closely guarded secret.

"Everybody says, 'Oh, if it's damp outside pralines don't turn.' Well there's a secret there. Only they (the workers) know," says Gary. Speaking of the crew, she says, other than the temperature, what makes a Nanny's praline a Nanny's praline is the ingredients and the quality the crew provides.

"We use only whole foods: pecans, milk, real butter, no preservative and consistency." The crew barely misses work and doesn't mind staying late until the last praline is wrapped. They also monitor the caliber of their output, ensuring that each praline has enough pecans. It's no easy task when dealing with the five to 10 thousand pralines they cook a day.

After the mercury rises accordingly, the crew adds pecans, then pours the gooey mixture onto a table and scoops them out manually onto cooling trays. The only automation is their wrapping machine in which pralines are spit through and dressed in the trademark design. It's a far cry from the business' beginnings.

Fifteen years ago, the Garys took the advice of their family and entered the business. Their family and friends had always enjoyed their pralines, begging them to cook up a batch or two for the holidays. When they first started, they had only two accounts, but the first one was a sure indicator that Nanny's would be a success.

One day, Rene made a batch, wrapped them herself and slapped on a homemade label. With three kids sitting in her back seat, she headed to Chris' Po-Boys and meekly asked for them to carry their confection.

"I guess he felt sorry for me. He said, 'Sure I'll take your pralines.' He called me back the next day, and he said, 'You know what? I sold every praline in here.'"

Nanny's began to grow local restaurant by local restaurant. After the first couple of months, they enlisted siblings and other family members to help wrap the goodies.

At first, Nanny's label was just a tag listing ingredients. The Garys had not even come up with a name for their rapid-selling dentists' dream. After Nanny's caught on locally, the Board of Health paid a visit to the house where they lived and cooked pralines - now the headquarters for their shipping and gift box operation. The board gave them three months to come up with name and get up to code with their business licenses. Once again, her family helped out, offering that all the kids called her Nanny, even though she was young.

"I'm so glad we didn't call it 'Granny's'!" For the next two years, the family was their only help before they hired their first employee - a man named Mr. Pee Wee, who still lends a hand around the house.

Now, they ship praline orders from the Internet, faxes and phone lines across the country. You are also likely to see their pralines in Cracker Barrel and Wal-Mart stores. Customers who stock them on a weekly to monthly basis number about 500. "That's a lot of files in the cabinets!" says Gary.

Until last year, Nanny's moved half a million dollars in sales annually from its two, small, home-like buildings. With the expansion of the kitchen building, they have doubled production and sales.

And with Valentine's Day here, sales are only heading up. It's still second fiddle to Christmas, which moves about 75 percent more pralines than the February holiday, but it keeps the machines going overtime. The company starts shopping for Christmas gift boxes in January and preparing for the holiday in June.

"Valentine's Day is an interesting holiday because you would think most people give chocolate. But, women buy pralines for their husbands. I think it's not as feminine a gift," says Gary. "... Men don't want the big flower, the rose, the red, the velvet. It's a great man's gift."



nick.pittman@timesofacadiana.com