Have you ever picked up a bag of spiced, roasted nuts at the grocery store? Look carefully at the weight of the package, and then compare the price to a bag of raw, unseasoned nuts. More often than not, you’ll notice that the price per ounce is about twice as high when you go the pre-spiced route.
It’s dead simple to make your own spiced nuts at home, and you probably have all of the ingredients in your pantry already. My recipe is just a template — keep the amounts of nuts, sweetener, spice and seasoning the same, but feel free to substitute your favorites of each. For instance, you could use honey or agave syrup instead of the maple. Substitute chili powder or a dab of sriracha for the Aleppo pepper. Use regular sea salt or kosher salt instead of the smoked variety. You get the idea.
I will say, this particular combo was truly delicious, and I’ll definitely be making them again. When I received a package of goodies for review including smoked salt from New Zealand, I wasn’t sure what to use it on. Upon opening the container I was met with a wallop of barbecue pit smoke — they sure aren’t kidding around with this stuff! Used judiciously, it’ll be a fantastic addition to my seasoning repertoire. Just a quarter teaspoon seasons an entire half pound of pecans, and the smoke is a fantastic counterpoint to flavorful maple syrup and brightly spicy Aleppo pepper.
Put these out in a tray for your guests to snack on with cocktails (they’d be great alongside whiskey sours), or sprinkle them on top of salads.
Smoky Maple Pecans
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound 8 ounces pecan halves
- 2 tablespoons Grade B maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon Mesquite Smoked Pacific Sea Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread out the pecans on the baking sheet, then toss with the maple syrup, pepper flakes, and salt.
- Bake for 25 minutes, or until pecans are well-toasted but not burned. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature before serving.
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