Sugar-and-spice nuts

Information

Notes

Although they are marvelous all winter long, I save these nuts for Christmas–if I don’t pack them up quickly and give them away, I’ll eat them all! It’s the egg white that holds the spices to the nuts. Once they bake and the egg white dries and hardens, the spices coat the nuts beautifully. If you use salted nuts, eliminate the salt in the recipe.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. Combine the sugar, spices, and salt in a bowl. Stir well and set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, toss the nuts with the egg white to coat them. Then add the sugar-and-spice mixture and mix well.

4. Spread the coated nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. You may need to use your fingers to separate the nuts as much as possible. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and use a metal spatula to scrape up the nuts and break them apart. Return the nuts to the oven for 5 minutes more to dry them thoroughly.

5. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and shake it to break up the nuts. Let the nuts sit on the baking sheet in a cool dry place for 1 hour to cool and harden. (Stored in a tin in a cool dry place, the nuts will keep for up to 2 weeks.)