Friday, May 15, 2009

Nuts 'n Honey

This recipe concludes Honey Week! First up we had Cinnamon Honey Butter, Rosemary Flatbread with Blue Cheese, Grapes and Honey and now Honey Roasted Cinnamon Almonds- yum!

I actually made these for Easter, but got so behind in my postings so I'm finally blogging about it. These were delicious. I quadrupled the recipe and packaged them in cello bags for friends and family. To make them more festive, I added m&m chocolate speckled eggs to the mix for more color.

These were toasty, crunchy, sweet, cinnamony and quite addictive. The smell was amazing and a treat in itself. Make a bowl and leave on the counter for snacking or for gifts, nut lovers will be glad you did.

Honey Roasted Cinnamon Almonds from Stephanie's Kitchen
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 cups whole natural almonds

Spread the almonds out on a baking sheet and roast in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until lightly roasted. Keep a close eye on them to make sure they do not burn. Stir occasionally.

In a medium saucepan, bring the butter and the honey to a simmer, stirring occasionally for about 2 minutes. Add the almonds and simmer for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

In a large bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon until well combined. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the almonds from the saucepan to the sugar mixture. Mix until the almonds are well coated.

Transfer the almonds to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and put under the broiler for just a few minutes, just until sugar melts and caramelizes.

Let cool and break apart if necessary.

NOTE: There will be a little honey syrup leftover after you strain all your almonds. Let this cool completely and it will thicken into a nice caramel. Eat it with a spoon or drizzle over ice cream- delish!

Also, I'm notorious about burning anything/everything that goes under the broiler, so put it on low and pull up a chair and watch them or they'll burn and what a dissappointment that would be. Burnt nuts are never good.

One more thing, it may take a while, but you need to work in small batches. Strain a spoon full of nuts at a time and cost in the cinnamon sugar. Any more than that and they'll clump together and not be so pretty.

And my honey is finally home. I'm a happy lady :-)

12 comments:

  1. Wow.. the almond nuts looks lovely with the wrapping :)

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  2. who are you giving the bags too? huh huh?
    me? lol

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  3. I have always been wary of making sugared nuts for some reason, I bet my Dad would love them they would make a great birthday gift for him. I'm thinking I better give these a try :)

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  4. This looks delicious. I love them.. and the bags look adorable.

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  5. That looks so colorful and tasty!

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  6. Yum, those look fantastic! I'm a nut lover! (thankfully Donna's already commented. I'd be afraid of the comments she'd say! ;))

    Thank you for sharing. I think this is going to be another one of your recipes that I make but never get to blog about! Like the graham cracker toffee and cinnamon toast! These are Miss Monica's recipes. :)

    Sorry I haven't been around to comment.
    ~ingrid

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  7. This one's just WOW! I love your blog, so amazing recipes and a lot of imagination! :))

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  8. I was peaking at your site at work and one of my collegues saw these and said, "Now those look good" - I'm now honour bound to make some for her :o)

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  9. I want to try these! I've made sugared almonds before, but they were sliced and for garnish only. These look awesome.

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  10. I'm so glad your sweetie is home!! Thank you for the almond recipe, we love almonds here.

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  11. THese do look great! There's a place called Hadley's that has sugared-orange almonds...wish I could figure out how to make 'em!

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