sugar and spice candied nuts
Have you ever had one of those days weeks (groan) months where your to-do list seems to grow at an irrational rate of speed all while your time to complete said tasks rapidly vanishes making you feel like you are moving in slow motion when in fact you’re running around like a mad person trying to get everything done atthisverymoment. Ack! That has been me for, oh, since Thanksgiving. You see, Josh and I are planning on skipping outta this cold weather that seems to have taken over these here parts (and just when I was starting to get used to the 65-degree November/December weather too. No, please come back!) — in fact we plan on being quite the grinches this year by spending Christmas whisked away falling asleep on beach beds and having waiters bring us blended cocktails with brightly colored umbrellas — it’s ok to be jealous.
But our sun tanned skin and salt-water smelling hair will (apparently) be sorely missed by the family members we are leaving behind to enjoy a hopefully white Christmas. So celebrations, gift-giving, and Christmas dinner all have to be done in the twelve days (who am I kidding, yes I am counting days) before we go through see-through-your-clothes scanners and pat downs that would make you rather endure another ’09 blizzard — and believe me, I want to do practically anything but that again.
So, gifts — they include a lot of baking and holiday tins. Except for these which I put in a mason jar, because, well, that is just what you are supposed to do with nuts. And, thankfully, after my fourth batch and an empty wallet (nuts will do that to you) these are not only a perfect holiday gift, but they are easy and quick, which really helps me feel better about that endless checklist.
Sugar-and-Spice Candied Nuts
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen and Elizabeth Karmel of Hill Country from the New York Magazine
1/3 cup dark-brown sugar
2/3 cup white granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of mild smoked paprika, or for more heat you could add a pinch or two of cayenne
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pound walnut or pecan halves, almonds or whole peeled hazelnuts
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix sugars, salt, paprika, and cinnamon, making sure there are no lumps; set aside. Beat egg white and water until frothy but not stiff. Add nuts, and stir to coat evenly. Sprinkle nuts with sugar mixture, and toss until evenly coated. Spread sugared nuts in a single layer on a cookie sheet fitted with parchment paper. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven, and separate nuts as they cool. When completely cool, pour the nuts into a bowl, breaking up any that stick together.
Conversions & Equivalents
Volume | Baking | Metric | Pan Size | Temperature | Oven | Other
1/2 teaspoon
=
30 drops
1 teaspoon
=
1/3 tablespoon OR 60 drops
3 teaspoon
=
1 tablespoon or 1/2 fluid ounce
1/2 tablespoon
=
1 1/2 teaspoons
1 tablespoon
=
3 teaspoons or 1/2 fluid ounce
2 tablespoons
=
1/8 cup or 1 fluid ounce
3 tablespoons
=
1 1/2 fluid ounces
4 tablespoons
=
1 1/4 cup or 2 fluid ounces
5 1/3 tablespoons
=
1/3 cup or 5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
8 tablespoons
=
1/2 cup or 4 fluid ounces
10 2/3 tablespoons
=
2/3 cup or 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
12 tablespoons
=
3/4 cup or 6 fluid ounces
16 tablespoons
=
1 cup or 8 fluid ounces or 1/2 pint
1/8 cup
=
2 tablespoons or 1 fluid ounce
1/4 cup
=
4 tablespoons or 2 fluid ounces
1/3 cup
=
5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
3/8 cup
=
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons
1/2 cup
=
8 tablespoons or 4 fluid ounces
2/3 cup
=
10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons
5/8 cup
=
1/2 cup + 2 teaspoons
3/4 cup
=
12 tablespoons or 6 fluid ounces
7/8 cup
=
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons
1 cup
=
16 tablespoons or 1/2 pint or 8 fluid ounces
2 cups
=
1 pint or 16 fluid ounces
1 pint
=
2 cups or 16 fluid ounces
1 quart
=
2 pints or 4 cups or 32 fluid ounces
1 gallon
=
4 quarts or 8 pints or 16 cups or 128 fluid ounces
FLOUR
1 cup all-purpose flour
=
5 ounces or 142 grams
1 cup cake flour
=
4 ounces or 113 grams
1 cup whole wheat flour
=
5 1/2 ounces or 156 grams
SUGAR
1 cup granulated white sugar
=
7 ounces or 198 grams
1 cup packed brown sugar
=
7 ounces or 198 grams
1 cup confectioners sugar
=
4 ounces or 113 grams
COCOA POWDER
1 cup cocoa powder
=
3 ounces or 85 grams
BUTTER
4 tablespoons
=
1/2 stick or 1/4 cup or 2 ounces
8 tablespoons
=
1 stick or 1/2 cup or 4 ounces
16 tablespoons
=
2 sticks or 1 cup or 8 ounces
32 tablespoons
=
4 sticks or 2 cups or 1 pound
1/4 teaspoon
=
1.23 milliliters
1/2 teaspoon
=
2.46 milliliters
3/4 teaspoon
=
3.7 milliliters
1 teaspoon
=
4.93 milliliters
1 1/4 teaspoon
=
6.16 milliliters
1 1/2 teaspoon
=
7.39 milliliters
1 3/4 teaspoon
=
8.63 milliliters
2 teaspoon
=
9.86 milliliters
1 tablespoon
=
14.79 milliliters
2 tablespoons
=
29.57 milliliters
1/4 cup
=
59.15 milliliters
1/2 cup
=
118.3 milliliters
1 cup
=
236.59 milliliters
2 cups or 1 pint
=
473.18 milliliters
3 cups
=
709.77 milliliters
4 cups or 1 quart
=
946.36 milliliters
1/4 teaspoon
=
1.23 milliliters
4 quarts or 1 gallon
=
3.785 liters
PAN SIZE
VOLUME
CAN SUBSTITUTE WITH
1 8-inch round cake pan
4 cups
1 8x4-inch loaf pan
1 9-inch round cake pan
1 9-inch pie plate
2 8-inch round cake pans
8 cups
2 8x4-inch loaf pans
1 9-inch tube pan
2 9-inch round cake pans
1 10-inch bundt pan
1 11x7-inch baking dish
1 10-inch springform pan
1 9-inch round cake pan
6 cups
1 8-inch round cake pan
1 8x4-inch loaf pan
1 11x7-inch baking dish
2 9-inch round cake pans
12 cups
2 8x4-inch loaf pans
1 9-inch tube pan
2 8-inch round cake pans
1 10-inch bundt pan
2 11x7-inch baking dish
1 10-inch springform pan
1 10-inch round cake pan
11 cups
2 8-inch round cake pan
1 9-inch tube pan
1 10-inch springform pan
2 10-inch round cake pans
22 cups
5 8-inch round cake pans
3 or 4 9-inch round cake pans
2 10-inch spring form pan
9-inch tube pan
12 cups
2 8-inch round cake pans
2 9-inch round cake pans
1 10-inch bundt pan
10-inch tube pans
16 cups
3 9-inch round cake pans
2 10-inch pie plates
4 8-inch pie plates
2 9x5-inch loaf pans
2 8-inch square baking dishes
2 9-inch square baking dishes
10-inch bundt pan
12 cups
1 9x13-inch baking dish
2 9-inch round cake pans
1 9-inch tube pan
2 11x7-inch baking dishes
1 10-inch springform pan
11x7x2-inch baking dish
6 cups
1 8-inch square baking dish
1 9-inch square baking dish
1 9-inch round cake pan
9x13x2-inch baking dish
15 cups
1 10-inch bundt pan
2 9-inch round cake pans
3 8-inch round cake pans
1 10x15-inch jellyroll pan
10x15x1-inch jellyroll pan
15 cups
1 10-inch bundt pan
2 9-inch round cake pans
2 8-inch round cake pan
1 9x13-inch baking dish
9x5-inch loaf pan
8 cups
1 10-inch pie plate pan
1 8-inch square baking dish
1 9-inch square baking dish
8x4-inch loaf pan
6 cups
1 8-inch round cake pan
1 11x7-inch baking dish
9-inch springform pan
10 cups
1 10-inch round cake pan
1 10-inch spring form pan
2 8-inch round cake pans
2 9-inch round cake pans
10-inch springform pan
12 cups
2 8x4-inch loaf pan
1 9-inch tube pan
2 9-inch round cake pans
1 10-inch bundt pan
2 11x7-inch baking dishes
2 8-inch round cake pans
8-inch square baking dish
8 cups
1 9x5-inch loaf pan
2 8-inch pie plates
9-inch square baking dish
8 cups
1 11x7-inch baking dish
1 9x5-inch loaf pan
2 8-inch pie plate
Water Freezes
32°F
0°C
40°F
4.4°C
50°F
10°C
60°F
15.6°C
70°F
21.1°C
80°F
26.7°C
90°F
32.2°C
100°F
37.8°C
110°F
43.3°C
120°F
48.9°C
130°F
54.4°C
140°F
60°C
150°F
65.6°C
160°F
71.1°C
170°F
76.7°C
180°F
82.2°C
190°F
87.8°C
200°F
93.3°C
Water Boils
212°F
100°C
250°F
121°C
300°F
149°C
350°F
177°C
400°F
205°C
450°F
233°C
500°F
260°C
275°F
=
140°C or Gas Mark 1
300°F
=
150°C or Gas Mark 2
325°F
=
165°C or Gas Mark 3
350°F
=
180°C or Gas Mark 4
375°F
=
190°C or Gas Mark 5
400°F
=
200°C or Gas Mark 6
425°F
=
220°C or Gas Mark 7
450°F
=
230°C or Gas Mark 9
475°F
=
240°C or Gas Mark 10
And for conversions that are not listed I found a great conversion calculator here!
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- Nastygrams. Every once in a while I find one of these in my inbox or in a comment on a post. People sending me nastygrams: don't do it. You're wasting your time. I really don't care if you think my blog "looks like" another blog, of if you think talking about my kid and putting pictures of him in posts is "copying" another blog. Seriously. The blog you're rushing to defend probably didn't come up with that one either, and even if they did there is nothing illegal, unethical, or unfair about doing the same thing. If you're genuinely concerned that plagiarism has taken place on The Red Spoon, just send me a polite email asking if I forgot to credit someone somewhere. But when you leave an anonymous comment saying that my website is ugly, you have become that annoying kid on the playground that wants to correct everyone but that no one else likes, except you're not a kid so what's your excuse? Your comment will be deleted, your email won't be responded to, and thank you for the page views and corresponding advertising revenue.
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Wow! Brown sugar and paprika, sounds intriguing! I’ve been thinking of making edible Christmas gifts for my friends, but I thought I wouldn’t manage because I have a 2.5-month-old baby. I think I could give these nuts a try! Seems like they are quite easy to make – and the flavour must be very interesting!
We made many batches of a similar version for our wedding! Can’t wait to try yours.
“Its ok to be jealous”…good cuz I totally am about your fancy extra long holiday vacations!!! Can you pleeeeaasse squeeze me in your suitcase somewhere??
And I totally heard about these spicy nuts and some kind of caramels from my hubby after skit practice the other night. And I was like, “what, you couldn’t save me one nut to bring home?”
They look really yummy!
Love candied nuts and the bit of spice sounds fabulous.
You save yourself and go on a lazy vacation. Not all of us have to suffer in this 20-degree weather! :)
I love the look of nuts. Paprika really adds a nice smoky flavor in everything it goes into. I will give it a try this weekend. I totally hear you about the nuts and wallet!
OMG–Just tried these. I love the candy-like coating with just a hint of heat. (I did use a pinch of cayenne.) Great recipe and thanks for sharing.
Having grown up in NY I totally understand your desire to find warm tropical temps. I found myself on a flight south every 6-8 weeks prior to re-locating to Miami. Anyways these Sugar and Spice Candied Nuts look delicious. I love the combo of sweet and spice. These are definitely on my list of things to make.
These look so incredibly yummy! Thanks for posting, can’t wait to try this recipe out :)