Cinnamon Glazed Nuts

 

I volunteered for a an international children's festival today, and aside from an overcast day and crazy wind swirling from an incoming tornado (getting its storms right now--eep!), it was nice! Though, I didn't get the chance to walk and check out the other booths--well, I did, but only to find the Philippines booth I was scheduled to volunteer for. My classmate and I got food and I had to seriously refrain myself from buying jerk chicken or kettle corn (which I had promised to buy myself before I left, but by the time I did the booth was gone which made me very, very sad) or about five other international foods. The blocked off street just smelled so good. We ended up getting pad thai, which I will never complain about. I love pad thai. 

My classmate also bought cinnamon glazed pecans, and when I tried some I was immediately hooked . . . but I was not about to spend $4 on a small paper wrapped package of nuts. Naturally, when I came home today I looked up a recipe for cinnamon glazed almonds and found one. Then made wayyyyy more than I would have gotten had I paid the $4. This is quadruple the amount for the same price. 

I love sweetened nuts, whether they're baked or roasted. The bad thing is that they're addicting. I'm eating some as I type this post. You bite into the softness of the baked pecans and almonds through the crunchiness of the glaze, and throughout there's a subtle cinnamon-y sweetness. They're especially good served warm. 

 

Cinnamon Glazed Nuts 

Yields about 4 cups of nuts

Ingredients

1/3 cup unsalted butter

2 egg whites, at room temperature

Pinch of salt

1 cup sugar

3 cups whole natural almonds, or any whole or half nuts (I used 1 1/2 cups almonds, and 1 1/2 cups pecans)

4 teaspoons cinnamon 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees

2. Place butter in a 13" x 9" pan; place in oven to melt butter, about 10 minutes

3. Meanwhile, beat egg whites with salt until frothy; gradually add sugar, beating to stiff peaks

4. Gently fold in nuts and cinnamon

5. Pour nut mixture onto pan and toss with butter, making sure to evenly coat all nuts

6. Bake about 40 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes until nuts are crisp

7. Serve warm or at room temperature