spiced pecans

by sweetonwallstreet

With as much as I love nuts now, you would have thought I grew up eating bowls of them.

I didn’t.

Actually, I only liked peanuts and peanut butter and they’re not technically nuts. (They’re legumes.)

Then I had almond butter. Then I had a piece of pecan pie last Thanksgiving. Then my first piece of raw cheesecake with a crust of almonds and walnuts… and then…well it was all downhill from there.

A few weeks ago, I was craving sweet and smokey, salty and nutty. After throwing in some spices into a bowl with some pecans, ten minutes later I had the perfect snack which turned into dessert when I tossed them with some coconut flakes and Taza Chocolate chocolate covered cocoa nibs. 

Then I had to recreate it. That’s how this came about… AND they even succeeded in the “roommate test” which is pretty good in my book. (My roommate and I eat very very differently which is to not say either of us is wrong, but when we find some similarities, it’s nice too.)

Spiced Pecans

2 cups pecans (or any nut for that matter)

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 ancho chili pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 teaspoon of orange zest or any citrus zest

Preheat the oven to 350* and line a baking pan with aluminum foil. This will make clean up easy 🙂

Place all of the ingredients into the bowl except for the nuts and zest and whisk together until thoroughly combined. Add the nuts and toss in the spice mixture. I usually use my hands and rub it into the nuts. It’s a little more messy this way, but definitely more fun.

Bake for about 10 minutes, stirring once in the middle of the time, until the nuts are toasty and fragrant. Cool. When cooled, toss the citrus zest with the nuts before serving..and try to not eat them all in one sitting 😉

Serving: These have become a staple for me in the morning with some fruit and peanut butter filled dates, but they’re also a great post-workout snack. Store in an air tight container.