These Sweet and Spicy Almonds (or mixed nuts) are lightly sweetened, with just the right amount of spice. They make a great party appetizer or holiday gift!
*This post was originally published 12/2013. Photos and text were updated 11/2017*
Hi Friends!
I can't believe it's been almost 4 years since I shared these sweet and spicy almonds on the blog. I originally shared the recipe using just almonds and have made them that way many times. But this year I decided to change things up and use a combination of different nuts that I found while cleaning out my pantry. For this batch, I used almonds, pecans and walnuts. You could also try cashews!
I remember how many tries it took me to get this recipe right when I first made them a few years ago. They were actually inspired by the sweet and spicy pecans from Trader Joes that I absolutely love.
Seems like all the candied nut recipes out there call for tons of sugar, which I didn't want….I just wanted to dress them up with a hint of sweet and a little kick of spice.
First I tried using sriracha. What I learned is, it takes A LOT of sriracha to makes nuts spicy. Here's how it went down:
- Round 1: Wasn't spicy at all, despite the fact that I added sriracha.
- Round 2: Tasted like straight sriracha, which I'm not a huge fan of.
- Round 3: Delicious. I put the sriracha away and used my beloved cayenne pepper instead.
Here's the recipe I used:
Sweet & Spicy Mixed Nuts
A lightened-up, healthier version of your favorite candied nuts- with a kick!
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw nuts (I used almonds, walnuts & pecans
- 1 egg white
- 1 Tablespoon water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Place the nuts in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg white and water together until foamy.
- Pour over nuts and stir to coat.
- Add sugar and cayenne and stir to coat.
- Pour nuts onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake at 300 degrees F for 15 minutes. Stir and bake 10 minutes more.
- Remove from oven, let cool and break apart large clusters.
These are addicting! I'd definitely recommend the parchment paper- makes cleanup a breeze! Feel free to adjust the sugar and spice to your liking. These are not overly sweet but they're perfect for me. The sweetness hits you first and the spice kicks in later!
Enjoy!
–Lindsay–
The post Sweet and Spicy Almonds (or Mixed Nuts) appeared first on The Lean Green Bean.
Original Content: Sweet and Spicy Almonds (or Mixed Nuts)
No comments:
Post a Comment