We’re heading to both sets of parents for Thanksgiving and I am very excited about eating some delicious food that is not on a budget! I mean, we eat well for our $30/week, but I’m looking forward to being fed. It will also be nice to get out of the city for a while and spend time with the family. There will be some cooking for us though. Our three Thanksgiving recipes will be: our Autumn Millet Bake, Chewy Ginger Cookies and Mary’s Spiced Nuts for nibbling on with cocktails before the main meal. These nuts are addictive, tasty, easy to make and perfect to make in advance or to give out as a gift in a pretty jar. Good mixed nuts can be expensive, but if you’re thinking of making something savory to give out during the holiday season, the cost is worth it. My friend Mary used to only give this recipe out to people who beat her in arm wrestling. Consider yourself lucky you can just get it off this website. Thanks Mary!
Mary’s Spiced Nuts
Ingredients:
4 c. raw, unsalted, un-roasted nuts (cashews and pecans work best, but a mixed bunch are good too)
2 TBS unsalted butter
2 TBS honey or maple syrup
1/2 – 1 tsp. hot pepper sauce (Mary uses Tabasco)
2-3 tsp. yellow curry powder (more or less depending on its strength and your taste)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
extra salt and raw sugar for sprinklingTo Do:
Heat oven to 250. Line a large baking sheet with tinfoil. Make sure the tinfoil covers the edges, because otherwise you will have to scrape caramelized curry goo off the corners of your baking sheet.
Put your raw nuts in a big bowl.Combine butter, honey, and hot pepper sauce in a small saucepan. Heat just until it melts together. Stir together.
Remove from heat and stir in salt and spices. Pour the honey mixture over the nuts in the bowl and toss well, until the nuts are nicely coated. Taste one and adjust seasoning/sweetness/saltiness until you like it.
Spread the nuts on the prepared sheet and bake until they are dry and toasty, about 40 minutes. Stir them a few times so they don’t burn, and remember, they’ll crisp up a little as they cool.
Use your hands to separate any clumps. If you like (and I do like), sprinkle them with some raw sugar when they’re still slightly warm, for an extra-crunchy coating. You can add a little extra salt then too.
When the nuts are completely cool store them in heavy-duty airtight plastic bags. They keep for a week, allegedly, but I’ve never had any go uneaten that long.
2 Comments
November 27, 2008 at 9:38 pm
thanks for this recipr..i will try this
December 3, 2008 at 2:49 am
Um I believe that now everybody who reads this site and sees the recipe will have to win an arm wrestling match or have their eyes gauged out, Tina. I hope you’re ready for that.