Sugar & Spice Nuts

One of the things that seems to make an appearance starting around this time of year is some sort of homemade nut mix, am I right? I feel like they’re always at Grandma’s house or your Aunt Carol’s or something. I don’t have an Aunt Carol, but if I did, these would definitely be at her place this time of year. They’re sweet and salty with a little bit of kick, and they’re a great little snack to get the holidays rolling!

INGREDIENTS

cooking spray
1 cup untoasted walnut halves
1 cup untoasted pecan halves
1 cup unsalted, dry roasted almonds
1 cup unsalted, dry roasted cashews
2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
½ cup white sugar
¼ cup water
1 Tbsp butter

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

• Combine walnuts, pecans, almonds, and cashews in a large bowl. Add salt, black pepper, cumin, and cayenne; toss to coat.

• Heat sugar, water, and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Slowly pour butter mixture over nuts and stir to coat.

• Transfer nuts to the prepared baking sheet and spread into a single layer.

• Bake nuts in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Stir nuts to coat with warm syrup; spread out in a single layer. Return to the oven and bake until nuts are sticky and roasted, about 6 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.