These Sweet and Spicy Almonds (or mixed nuts) are lightly sweetened, with just the right amount of spice. They make a great party appetizer or holiday gift!
*This post was originally published 12/2013. Photos and text were updated 11/2017*
Hi Friends!
I can’t believe it’s been almost 4 years since I shared these sweet and spicy almonds on the blog. I originally shared the recipe using just almonds and have made them that way many times. But this year I decided to change things up and use a combination of different nuts that I found while cleaning out my pantry. For this batch, I used almonds, pecans and walnuts. You could also try cashews!
I remember how many tries it took me to get this recipe right when I first made them a few years ago. They were actually inspired by the sweet and spicy pecans from Trader Joes that I absolutely love.
Seems like all the candied nut recipes out there call for tons of sugar, which I didn’t want….I just wanted to dress them up with a hint of sweet and a little kick of spice.
First I tried using sriracha. What I learned is, it takes A LOT of sriracha to makes nuts spicy. Here’s how it went down:
- Round 1: Wasn’t spicy at all, despite the fact that I added sriracha.
- Round 2: Tasted like straight sriracha, which I’m not a huge fan of.
- Round 3: Delicious. I put the sriracha away and used my beloved cayenne pepper instead.
Here’s the recipe I used:
Sweet & Spicy Mixed Nuts
A lightened-up, healthier version of your favorite candied nuts- with a kick!
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw nuts (I used almonds, walnuts & pecans
- 1 egg white
- 1 Tablespoon water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Place the nuts in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg white and water together until foamy.
- Pour over nuts and stir to coat.
- Add sugar and cayenne and stir to coat.
- Pour nuts onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake at 300 degrees F for 15 minutes. Stir and bake 10 minutes more.
- Remove from oven, let cool and break apart large clusters.
These are addicting! I’d definitely recommend the parchment paper- makes cleanup a breeze! Feel free to adjust the sugar and spice to your liking. These are not overly sweet but they’re perfect for me. The sweetness hits you first and the spice kicks in later!
Enjoy!
–Lindsay–
Yum! I’m so over the overly sugary nut. This looks great with lots of flavor. Happy New Year Lindsay!
yum! that’s funny about the different tries it took you – i, too, much prefer cayenne pepper over sriracha!
so many tries! but worth it 🙂
I am always a fan of sweet and spicy! These sound great 🙂
Yum a delicious and healthy treat! Looks perfect!
DELISH!!!!!!!!!!! I have made some other flavors in the past – addicting yes – especially the cinnamon flavor for me!
i like cinnamon too!
ohhhh spiced nuts are so one of my favorite things, but I try to pass them most of the time because I’ll eat em all in one sitting haha!! these look much healthier!
yeah portion control is definitely necessary!
I love Cinnamon roasted almonds, but tit’s recipe sounds amazing!
maybe next time i’ll add some cinnamon to the mix!
OMG candied nuts, my weakness . . .
eek mine too!
I’ve been snacking on nuts like they are going out of style recently. I love that you made some homemade ones to share. Maybe I’ll get my act together and make some of these for post-NY gifts (since I never brought christmas gifts to work this year!). 🙂
i think that sounds like a fabulous idea!
I could see myself getting super addicted to these..thanks for the timing info. Happy New Years 🙂
I usually toss back my almonds raw and plain, but these sure sound great! LOve the spicy/sweet combination.
me too! it’s my favorite combo!
This recipe looks so simple and I love how you cut back on the sugar. I can see how these could be totally addicting! Happy New Year!
definitely addicting..and still sweet enough even with just a little sugar!
This. is. awesome. What I miss is all the flavoured almonds you could get in the USA- now I have no excuse. You bet these will be made!
hope you like them!
These look delish! Can you substitute the cayenne for cinnamon or nutmeg?
absolutely! i think they’d be delish with cinnamon!
These are SO delicious! I just made them, and I honestly cannot stop eating them. I used cinnamon instead of cayenne, and they are so, so tasty. Thank you!
i’m so glad you like them! i’m def adding cinnamon next time!