Walnuts and pecans are coated with an unrefined sweetener (such as coconut sugar), spice, and salt, for a delicious combo of sweetness, saltiness, and spice. They make a perfect gift!
Every December for the last few years I try to come up with a new holiday nut mixture to give as hostess gifts where ever we are visiting. It is one of the easiest things to do and a thoughtful gesture to parents, friends, and neighbors. They can be made up way ahead of time which I love too.
Speaking of DIY gifts, see other lovely and healthy DIY Christmas gifts here (Everything from Dairy-free Hot Cocoa Mix to Homemade Candies to a Healthy Ice Cream Basket), and see the other two posts for the 2015 12 Days of Christmas Series, Mint Chocolate Lip Balm, and Chai Eggnog.
I always end up going back to giving my candied nuts a bit of a spicy kick to them though! There is just something about that flavorful heat that goes so well with the sweet candied coating.
I actually do not have much of a palate for super spicy food but I do appreciate a flavorful heat from a smokey chipotle or a cayenne type of heat and these nuts have just the perfect amount of heat to me. If you prefer things really spicy you could definitely get away with almost doubling the heat in the recipe.
Soaking the nuts before they are prepared will help with digestion – it only takes a little bit of extra time and very little hands on time. (See also how I used this method to make salted soaked and dehydrated almonds). If you are sensitive to eggs you can leave the egg white out. It does give the nuts a pretty candy like coating but they still come out really good without the whites and I do this with one of my batches every year for a family that we visit that has egg allergies.
By the way! Don’t throw that egg yolk out! Put it in a smoothie or use it for this delicious Caesar dressing! They are very nutrient-rich. (Katie shares great safety information on consuming raw eggs here. As always, consume at your own risk – as small as that risk may be.)
The nuts wrap up great in those little holiday party bags or look gorgeous in a little mason jar with ribbon.
If you don’t have one yet already, here is a (affiliate link) good dehydrator that is high quality and long lasting.
Sweet and Spicy Candied Walnuts
Ingredients:
- 2 cups raw walnuts
- 2 cups raw pecans
- 1 tablespoons sea salt for soaking
- 1 egg white
- 1 cup organic pure cane sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper if you like a smoky heat (more if you like more heat – you can do a combo of these to pepper powders too if you wish)
Directions:
- Put the walnuts, pecans, and 1 TB of sea salt in a medium mixing bowl and add water to cover by a couple inches. Place the bowl in a warm spot in your kitchen 8 hours – this soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the nuts making them easier to digest as well as making their nutrients more available to absorb.
- After the nuts soak, place the nuts in a strainer to drain the water while you put the egg white, sugar, sea salt, and cayenne pepper in the bowl and beat to combine.
- Return the drained nuts to the bowl of seasoned egg white and combine with a big spoon to coat the nuts in the seasoned mixture.
- Spread the coated nuts onto your dehydrator trays and dehydrate overnight at 150 degrees until crispy and dried out. If you are using an oven you can bake them around 300 degrees for a half hour stirring occasionally.
- 2 cups raw walnuts
- 2 cups raw pecans
- 1 TB sea salt for soaking
- 1 egg white
- 1 cup organic pure cane sugar or coconut sugar
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper if you like a smoky heat (more if you like more heat - you can do a combo of these to pepper powders too if you wish)
- Put the walnuts, pecans, and 1 TB of sea salt in a medium mixing bowl and add water to cover by a couple inches. Place the bowl in a warm spot in your kitchen 8 hours - this soaking process breaks down the phytic acid in the nuts making them easier to digest as well as making their nutrients more available to absorb.
- After the nuts soak, place the nuts in a strainer to drain the water while you put the egg white, sugar, sea salt, and cayenne pepper in the bowl and beat to combine.
- Return the drained nuts to the bowl of seasoned egg white and combine with a big spoon to coat the nuts in the seasoned mixture.
- Spread the coated nuts onto your dehydrator trays and dehydrate overnight at 150 degrees until crispy and dried out. If you are using an oven you can bake them around 300 degrees for a half hour stirring occasionally.
Latest posts by Renee Kohley (see all)
- Cinnamon Dandelion Tea With Milk & Honey (Inspired by Stuart Little) - January 21, 2016
- Sweet & Spicy Candied Walnuts & Pecans - December 3, 2015
- Cinnamon Roasted Pumpkin - October 28, 2015
This looks so yummy, but with only one egg white, I have clump of hot, salty sugar that is not spreading and distributing through the nuts. Bummer.