This is one of my 'Greatest-Hits' recipes, and in the spirit of holiday sharing, I thought it was time to share it with everyone.
I made it for a cocktail get-together the other night and my guests dove in so fast that I had to pull the bowl away just to get some for myself!
Although I confess, I ate my fair share before my guests arrived...but what's a holiday party without at least one of your guests feeling guilty about doing something they might later regret?
This is is a real "keeper"—not just because it tastes so good, but also because it's quickly made from ingredients that most of us have on hand. So it can be made at the last-minute while you race around showering, shaving, and freshening-up anything around the house that needs freshening-up for your arriving guests.
When I moved to France, I had a bit of a time finding the small twisted pretzels that I prefer in this mix, so I've made it with pretzels sticks too, which are called 'sticks d'Alsace'. But use any mix of nuts you want. Pecan halves are particularly appealing...at least to me, since those are the nuts I catch myself mostly plucking out before my guests arrive.
But whole almonds, cashews, peanuts, and hazelnuts are all very good as well in the mix.
Spiced Glazed Nuts and Pretzel Mix
About 4 cups (300 gr)
Glazing the nuts with spices and adding a touch of sweetness, makes this the perfect nibble before dinner with an aperitif. I melt the butter in a large bowl, so I can do all the mixing in that bowl, making one less thing for me to wash as well.
Note that the salt is added after the nuts are stirred, so it doesn't dissolve. And be sure to use coarse salt, which has an appealing, crunchy texture and more delicate flavor than ordinary table salt.
2 cups (200 gr) mixed raw nuts (untoasted); any combination of cashews, whole almonds, peanuts, pecan halves, and hazelnuts
1 tablespoon (15 gr) unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons (45 gr) dark brown sugar (or cassonade sugar)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or piment d'Espelette)
1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse or kosher salt
2 cups (90 gr) small pretzel twists
1. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and roast in a 350F (180C) oven for 10 minutes, stirring once for even toasting.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, cayenne, and maple syrup.
Add the salt, warm nuts, pretzels, and stir until the nuts and pretzels are completely coated.
3. Spread the mixture back on the baking sheet and return to the oven for 12 minutes, stirring twice during cooking. Remove from oven and cool completely, separating the nuts and pretzels as they cool.
Once cool, this mixture can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.
I haven't yet made spiced nuts but i have a couple of recipes waiting for me to get started. Your recipe will join that list without further questions:) These would definetey make a good snack for those long hours of New Year's Eve.
I've seen a few different recipes lately for spiced nuts and I'm ready to try making some! I like the addition of the pretzels in your recipe and also the maple syrup! I'll be trying them out this week, thanks!
I hope you like them! If you can't get maple syrup, you can use honey instead, although it's so tempting to put maple syrup in as many things as I can.
I make a version of these as little holiday gifts for all my coworkers. My fave is also the pecans so I put more of them in the mix.
happy holidays!
I heartily agree with the idea that Maple Syrup (or maple sugar or maple candy or anything maple) should be used as often as possible. So delicious. Equally appealing is the pic of Vincent Cassel that is part of the blogads. Its like a gift with purchase...an extra prize just for checking out my favorite blog! Happy day!
I followed the recipe for fresh-roasted peanuts (with sea salt and corn syrup) you posted a while back, and those have become a staple snack in our house. I can't wait to give this one try. Thanks for the recipe!
Ooohhh, sounds good. I may just have to add this to the list of holiday treats I'll be pulling together over the coming week... I sort of Chex-Mixed myself out over the past few weeks. This may be the perfect fill-in.
Is it easier to find Maple syrup in France now? I remember being on the lookout for peanut butter (back in the early 90's) but can't recall seeing anything maple. Being a good New Englander I should have noticed.
My wife seems to think Chocolate should somehow be added here...(which is odd, she's more of a salty than sweet treat person) Any thoughts on that?
Perfect! I was just looking for a recipe for the walnuts my neighbour gave me that he picked off his tree. Do you think walnuts will work too?
Scott: For some reason maple syrup is readily available here. It's imported from Canada and not expensive...another reason to live in France!
Gladys: Yes, you could certainly use all those fresh walnut halves in here. I just stop tying all the different kinds of nuts folks could use since the list was getting a bit too long.
Val: I didn't know who Vince Cassel was, but I'm glad to share my blog with him if it makes you happy : )
A few suggestions.
"This is one of my 'Greatest-Hits' recipe[s]"
What is "holiday sharing"? Is it really the holidays you are sharing? Do you mean "In the spirit of holiday, sharing, [...]"?
"Although I confess, I ate my fair share before my guests [had] arrived."
Why "Although"? You are not contradicting your confession in the following sentence.
appealling -> appealing
"Note the salt it added after the nuts are stirred ..."
Note, that the salt is added ....
or
Note: The salt is added...
Dear Hans: Because I type on a small laptop computer, and use Movable Type, the entry field I type in is about 4-inches wide, 5-inches tall, and it's extremely difficult to read for me. When I write a blog entry, I first type it in Word, correct for errors, then have to run it through another program, Text Wrangler, for the ASCII conversion. At that point, I transfer it to Movable Type. Then I re-read, and make changes and add things to enhance the blog entry.
When publishing via Movable Type, everything needs to be in HTML as well, requiring complex coding for many words, and even simple symbols, accents, and the like. It makes it very difficult for me to read. And I try to be as correct as possible as a courtesy to native speakers of the various languages I write about. (Or is it "write in"?)
Consequently, I beg my reader's indulgence when there's any grammatcial or typographical errors. Because I often use French terms, and it's not my native language, as much as I try, I regret that there's bound to be a mistake once in a while. So I do aplogize to any French people for butchering their lovely language, which I struggle to understand as best as I can.
Since the blog is basically a way for me to share Paris, some recipes, and my experiences in a foreign country with my readers, I hope they overlook the few flaws that pop up once in a while in favor of the total experience of the site.
Each blog entry takes me quite a bit of time: this particular one took about 3 hours to type, code, and format. The previous entry, the run-down of the prizes for Menu For Hope III, took about 5 hours of my time. I do re-read each entry after I publish it to check for errors, but they do slip through. I wish I was perfect (and so do a few other people, I'm sure)...but I'm not.
If readers would like recipes and text that have been professionally copyedited and proof-read, I urge them to buy one of my five books, which are absolute perfection. And they make great holiday gifts...in the spirit of holiday, sharing.
Sounds far superior to the ubiquitous Chex-Mix I am bombarded with this time of year. Thanks for sharing.
Funny thing about reading your own writing: You see only what you think you have written. Without an army of proofreaders and editors, little things slip through.
The writing here is lively and the writer's personality shines through. I like the conversational tone.
Five books??? I only know about three! David, what on earth are you hiding from us?
I can't say about the ones you've obviously kept secret, but the other three are indeed perfection. From the entertaining headnotes to the meticulous instructions to the always-successful results, I have yet to spot a single flaw.
p.s. And really, five hours is nothing... Sometimes I'll spend two days on a post and still manage to overlook about 500 typos!
Sounds like an excellent variation on one of my favourite munchies, the Bar Nuts from Union Square Cafe. I usually halve this for a small group, otherwise I inhale the leftovers.
Recipe By : Union Square Cafe, NYC via Saveur Magazine, March - 2001
1 1/2 cups cashews -- unsalted
1 1/2 cups pecans -- unsalted
1 1/2 cups walnuts -- unsalted
1 1/2 cups hazelnuts -- unsalted
6 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons melted butter
Put the nuts onto a large baking sheet. Toast in a pre-heated 350~ oven until golden brown about 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and toss with the fresh rosemary leaves, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, coarse salt and the melted butter.
Makes about 6 cups
Serving Size : 12
David, I used this recipe on Thanksgiving and it was a big hit! I'd meant to tell you but then I got too busy working on my book, "Pretzels, Nuts and Sugar: A Journey into the Soul of David Lebovitz, an Unauthorized Biography." Thanks for a great recipe!
Thank you for all the hard work you do on these post. They are always informative
Alright! Because of you I'm not going to make my own candied nut recipe this year. I'm going to HAVE to make yours instead. :)
I'm glad you responded to Hans in the way you did. He clearly doesn't understand what it means to blog. I think you set him straight.
Hmm. Nuts, my favourite. I'll think I'll print out the recipe to take with me to the braces chappy next visit and see if he'll give me a reprieve, there again I could take along some nuts already made up and then I might get more sympathy for my indiscretion.
Cheers
I for instance, enjoy your blog so much that I never have time to notice small grammatical errors or typos, I guess you can say that I literally breathe it in and I'm sure so do most of your readers.
What grammar? Where? ;)
Good luck with the Food Blog Awards, you certainly got my vote.
Thanks - this is a greatest hit recipe. Easy to put together and very tasty.
This is an excellent and simple recipe. I made one batch yesterday as Christmas present for my boyfriend's grandparents that we will be visiting over the holidays. Unfortunately, half of it was gone an hour after my boyfriend came home from work. I had to make a second batch to make up for the "loss."
I used popcorn instead of pretzels because everyone in my boyfriend's family loves popcorn. It is just as good. I also used less salt because it was a bit too salty.
I made your nuts and pretzels recipe (heavy on the pecans) tonight with the idea of taking it to a Christmas Eve party. Can't now. It's half gone. Delicious!
David- don't you change a thing- your blog is thoroughly enjoyable...and ahem...educational for so many of us...see you in 2007 my friend.
Thanks for sharing this - I've made it 3 times.
Did you use salted pretzels? The brand I bought (the Actor turned food manufacturer) were very salty, so I didn't add the additional salt. I haven't found a thin unsalted pretzel yet.
Happy New Year -
Since Christmas, I've now made 3 variations of this recipe - the last being all pecans (4 cups!), because you weren't kidding about them being the most addictive part. Increased the butter, salt and maple syrup a little for the all-nut version. These are meant to be some 'new year/thank you' type gifts, but crap. I can't keep my mitts off them. Thank you so much for this recipe!
I made these last year for 250 people and everybody loved them. Lost the recipe! Argh. Just found it again. It will never be lost again. Thanks for a really, really good mix.
I never ever thought I would criticize a recipe on this site, but these were very sweet for my taste. Next time I will nix the maple syrup, cut down the brown sugar, and increase the cayenne to 1 teaspoon. (Have to say though, even then I doubt they will hold a candle to your pralined nuts! I do them with cashews and people lose all sense of restraint).