December 31, 2009

... Sweet and Spicy Almonds

This recipe is so easy to whip up - perfect for a holiday gift, to take to a NYE party, or, I'm thinking, even a Super Bowl party, Game Night, whatever.  Who doesn't love a bowl of nuts for snacking??


Most likely, you'll have most of the ingredients in your kitchen and since it takes less than 20 minutes from start to finish, I think you'll love recipes from Everyday Food just like I do.




2 1/2 cups unblanched almonds
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spread almonds on a rimmed baking sheet; toast until fragrant, about 10 minutes.  In a large bowl, combine sugar, salt and cayenne pepper.

In a large skillet, over medium heat, cook honey and water with olive oil, stirring, until combined, 1 minute.  Add almonds; toss to coat.

Transfer nuts to sugar mixture (do not scrape extra glaze into bowl); toss to coat.  Cool in a single layer.

Taylor's Notes:
I just use a full 1 lb bag of almonds.  It's about 3 cups so I just adjust the other ingredients accordingly - like a heaping 1/4 cup of sugar instead of a level one.  Definitely be sure to not scrape the extra glaze from the skillet into the sugar mixture.  It makes a mess and the almonds don't come out looking like they do above (trust me).  They do taste as good, but they're not as pretty.  And who doesn't want pretty almonds??  

Enjoy!

2 comments:

Lexanne said...

mmm! can't wait to try this tonight!!

Lindsay said...

Tay-your nuts were awesome! :)