OMG, these are delicious and they're not even cold yet! I followed the recipe exactly, but have had to really watch them in my fan oven! I had to pull them out well before the first ten minutes was up because they were threatening to burn, so turned the oven down (to 125 degrees C) for the final six minutes. I would recommend that, if you have a fan oven, lower the heat proportionately. And watch them closely whatever oven you're using! I would also suggest that you take them off the foil whilst they're still warm and sticky. Seems to me they'd be murder to break off if they were left on the foil to get cold. For my taste, they're not quite spicy enough (although they may become more spicy when they're cold)! I think there's plenty of cumin, but next time I think I'll heap the quarter teaspoon of cayenne pepper and use a little less sugar - perhaps 3/4 of the half cup. That's just me though - I love spicy but am not so keen on too sweet! Otherwise, these come highly recommended by me! Thank you so much for sharing, Chef John!
These are delicious! I followed the recipe to the letter, except that I bought a big jug of deluxe mixed nuts that contained pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, cashews and Brazil nuts and measured out four cups of that since this recipe called for 1 cup of 4 different types of nuts. They turned out really well, and are so easy to make. I'm giving them as gifts and will have to make at least another batch, if not more.
These nuts are really good. Next time I will add a little more cayenne pepper as I like them with a little more kick. However if giving these as a gift or serving them for friends the spice is just right. P.S. If you have any kind of juvenile sense of humor, watch the video (I used to teach Jr. High, I can't help it).
Love, love love these. Very addictive. I did change the prep a little as I couldn't see how the spices would evenly distribute if applied directly to the nuts, so I stirred them into the butter mixture before I put it on the nuts and mixed. I also made sure I loosened them from the foil and broke them apart while they were done and still warm. Have made several times and will make them again. Thanks for the post.
These were ok but could be alot better. I didn't read any of the reviews first so didn't see that you should NOT let the nuts cool in the pan. So I did let them cool in the pan and they turned into a solid block of nuts!I had to literally pry/hack them apart and then try to peel off the foil bit by bit. A total disaster. I then just reheated them in the pan to soften them and was able to get most of them out but it wasn't easy. So be SURE to put them in a bowl as soon as you take them out of the oven. Secondly there's just not enough spice. I added a little more of everything and they still tasted way too mild. If I made these again, I would put double the spices and salt (if not more) and add garlic powder. 1/4 tsp? That's just not enough. You can heat the butter and sugar mix in the microwave instead of on the stove. I would also add the spices to the butter next time instead of on the dry nuts so it blends better. I liked the fact that these were not too sweet.
I made three batches, the first as the recipe states, the second I made Cajun spiced, the third I made Chipotle spiced and put some dashes of Worcestershire and Hot sauce in the sugar mixture...boy did that add a nice flavor. This is one of the easiest spiced nuts recipe I've ever made...get creative with it and add whatever spices you like.
Yummy! Made this twice over the holidays, and everyone loved them. First batch used almonds and walnuts (still 4 cups total) with smoked paprika instead of cayenne (only because I'd never used smoked paprika, and wasn't sure how much heat it had already). They were really good ... my husband's first comment was "tastes like bacon" ! Second batch used cashews and almonds, with all seasonings as listed, plus a teaspoon of smoked paprika. We liked this batch even more, and can't stop eating them! For the people that mentioned them "sticking together", I suggest you missed watching the video, which explains that when you take them out of the oven to stir, it's a thorough 3 or 4 minute process ... not a quick stir like when you're making party mix. After that cooling and stirring, I had no sugar/spice mixture left on the parchment sheet I used, meaning it was all adhered to the nuts as it should be. After the final baking and cooling, every nut was perfectly coated and separate as they should be. Great recipe!
DO NOT LET THESE COOL ON THE FOIL!! These nuts taste great, but the are really hard to get off if you let them cool on the foil, even if they are well separated. Parchment paper may also be the way to go, as another reviewer suggested. Other than that, these are easy to make and tasty, so I'll probably make them again. I might reduce the salt next time and mix them with pretzels before serving
We loved these nuts. If you had problems breaking them up, try separating them a little more before they go back in for the last six minutes. As Chef John stated in his video, you could use any varieties of spices. Since cumin isn't my favorite, I used a specialty mix of Cajun spices gifted to me by my friend ~Lissa~. I might try adding the spices to the butter/sugar mixture to see if it will more evenly coat the nuts and then the salt at the end. These would make a very nice hostess gift as stated by other reviewers. I would also perhaps like some snipped rosemary added to these. Thanks for this recipe! Yum!
