Sweet and Spicy Roasted Mixed Nuts →

Here’s a delicious recipe for roasted mixed nuts your friends and family will love for special occasions or just healthy everyday snacking. They also make a great holiday gift. Use any combination of nuts totaling 11 cups. Adjust the spicy heat and salt to your preference. Happy Holidays!

Sweet and Spicy Roasted Mixed Nuts
Yield 11 cups
Ingredients
· 4 cups mixed of whole almonds, cashews, and peanuts
· 4 cups pecans or walnut halves
·   3 cups pepitas (green pumpkin seeds)
·   2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary (from about 4 big sprigs; or sub a teaspoon of ground dry rosemary)
·   ¼ cup maple syrup
·   4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
·   3 teaspoons fine sea salt (See *Note)
·   2 teaspoons vanilla extract
·   1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (1/4 is mild, use 1/2 teaspoon if you like spicy)

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 325 F.
1. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat so the maple syrup doesn’t stick to the pan. (It will also stick to aluminum foil.)
2.   Pour the mixed nuts into a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
3.   Melt the butter and add the rosemary (or your choice of seasoning), maple syrup, salt, vanilla, and cayenne. Mix well.
4.   Pour the mixture over the nuts in the bowl. Stir well, until all the nuts are lightly coated. Spread the mixture in a single layer across the prepared sheet pan.
5. Bake, stirring to mix after the first 13 minutes Stir again after the next 13 minutes and bake for another 5 minutes. (The nuts will have browned and will look a bit wet. They will crisp up as they cool.) Remove the pan from the oven and stir the nuts once more, spreading them into an even layer across the pan. Let them cool for about 10 minutes and carefully separate any clumps.
6. Cool the nut mixture completely on the pan. The nuts will keep for up to 2 months in a sealed bag or air-tight container at room temperature. (If they last that long.)  Enjoy!
*Note: if you use salted nuts and salted butter, reduce the salt to 2 teaspoons.

Adapted from: https://cookieandkate.com/roasted-party-nuts-recipe/

Candied Walnuts →

Use these simple to make sweet and savory glazed walnuts as snacks or as chopped garnishes on salads. Great with aperitifs before dinner. Betcha can’t eat one!

Candied Walnuts
Makes 1 cup

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup walnut halves

• ¼ cup light brown sugar

• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

• ½ teaspoon black pepper

• *Optional: pinch of cayenne

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350 F.

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray.

2. Combine all ingredients except the walnuts in a medium bowl and mix well.

3. Rinse the walnuts with water; drain and add to the dry ingredients; toss to coat the walnuts.

4. Place the coated walnuts on the baking sheet in a single layer and bake for 8-10 minutes, stirring once after 4-5 minutes.

5. Remove from oven and cool for at least a half hour. They will become crunchy after they cool completely.

6. Store in an air-tight container in a cool dry place for up to a couple of weeks.

Chinese Five Spice Nuts →

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2021
Copy and paste to print the recipe.

CHINESE FIVE-SPICE NUTS
Yield: 2 cups of spiced nuts
Ingredients:
·   1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
·   1 cup unsalted almonds
·   1 cup unsalted cashews
·   1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
·   1 teaspoon salt
·   1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:
1.  Toss the almonds with oil.
2.  Add the five-spice powder, salt, black pepper, and toss.
3. Spread on a baking sheet and cook at 300 F for about 45 min.

Store in an airtight container for a few days.

If you would like to try something different from everyday salted nuts to snack on, give this recipe for roasted nuts a try. Chinese Five Spice powder is a blend of warm, fragrant spices: star anise, fennel, cloves, and cinnamon along with exotic Sichuan peppercorns. Use the nuts of your choice. The nuts will stay crunchy in a tightly closed container for several days. Like any roasted nut, wait for them to fully cool to reach full crunchiness. Snack-on!

Pan con Tomate y Ajo Asado (Tomato Toast with Roasted Garlic) →

Pan con Tomate is an easy-to-make iconic Spanish dish served in tapas bars all over Spain, or at home as a snack any time of day from breakfast to midnight. Fresh ripe tomatoes, good olive oil, and a good bread are key to your success. If you’re a traditionalist, rub a fresh clove of garlic on a slice of toast and drizzle with olive oil. Rub the garlic toast with a cut tomato and sprinkle with a small amount of salt. If you’re preparing for a group, here’s a twist on the classic “pan con tomate”. Instead of rubbing each slice of toast with a fresh garlic clove, roast the garlic until it is buttery with a mellow garlic flavor minus the bitter garlicky edge of uncooked garlic. I also use a coarse grater to make the fresh tomato sauce instead of rubbing the face of a cut tomato on the toast. If serving as an appetizer, serve the slices of toast on a platter and let your guests spoon the tomato garlic mixture onto their toast, otherwise, if the toast sits too long dressed with the tomato sauce it will get soggy. If serving to guests as a first course, spoon a small amount of the tomato/garlic sauce onto each toast and top with a thin slice of Serrano ham or Prosciutto. In addition to ham, pan con tomate is often served accompanied by anchovies, Manchego cheese, or blistered Padrón peppers (similar to Shishito peppers). However you serve it, Buen provecho!

Serves: 4-6; serving size 2-3 slices of tomato toast per person

Ingredients:

• 3-4 fresh, ripe, but firm medium size tomatoes

• 1 head of garlic

• 1+ tablespoons good quality olive oil

• 1/2 baguette or ciabatta, or other good quality bread sliced to about ½ inch and toasted

• flaky salt like Maldón for garnish (optional but recommended)

• thinly sliced Serrano or Iberian ham (Optional, but highly recommended. You can substitute Prosciutto if you can’t find jamón serrano or ibérico.)

Preparation:

1. Remove the extra loose garlic paper skin from the garlic head. Cut the head in half and drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the cut ends. Wrap the head in a foil pouch and bake in a 400 F oven for 30-40 minutes or more. (A convection toaster oven on “bake” works well and is a more efficient way to roast the garlic.)

2. While the garlic is roasting, cut the tomatoes in half, and using the coarse face of a box grater and a bowl, grate the tomatoes with the cut half face on the grater. You will end up with a slurry of tomato in the bowl separated from the skin of the tomato. Discard the skin.

3. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to the tomato slurry and mix. You can add a pinch of table salt at this point if you want.

4. After 30-40 minutes check the garlic. It should be soft and buttery and easily squeezed out of the skins of individual garlic cloves. Mash about 6 cloves of roasted garlic to a paste and mix with the tomato slurry until well incorporated. (Alternatively, you can spread a small amount of the mashed garlic paste directly onto the toasted bread and top with the tomato sauce.) Save any unused roasted cloves of garlic in a closed container in the fridge for other uses.)

5. Brush one face of the sliced bread lightly with olive oil and toast until just beginning to turn golden brown.

6. Spoon a small amount of the tomato/garlic mixture onto each slice and sprinkle with a few flakes of salt.

7. Optional: top with a thin slice of Jamón Serrano or Ibérico, or Prosciutto.

Anise Flavored Shrimp with Saffron Aioli →

This amazingly easy special appetizer is one of my favorites. The anise-flavored shrimp combined with creamy, not overly garlicky, saffron aioli creates a flavor profile that will indulge your taste buds and impress your guests. Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world, so I use it sparingly only for special dishes. If you choose to use saffron, just a small pinch will suffice.

Anise Flavored Shrimp with Saffron Aioli
Yield: 4 appetizer servings

For the Shrimp
Ingredients:

• 1 pound 21-25 count shrimp shelled

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

• 2 teaspoons dried oregano

• 1-2 teaspoons garlic powder to taste

• 2 tablespoons Anisette (or other licorice-flavored liqueur, like Ricard or Pernod)

Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and allow to marinate for 1/2-1 hour.

2. Spread the shrimp on a sheet pan and place under a preheated broiler until opaque and barely pink, about 2 minutes.

3. Remove from the oven, drizzle with Anisette, and serve while warm.

4. Garnish with chopped parsley (optional)

For the Saffron Aioli
Quick Aioli:

• ½ cup mayonnaise

• ½ garlic clove (finely minced or grated and mashed to a paste with a pinch of salt)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1-2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (start with 1 teaspoon, mix, taste, adjust to taste)

• Pinch of salt (to taste)

• Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

• pinch of saffron-crumbled and soaked in 2-3 teaspoons of hot water for 5 minutes to release the full flavor (optional)

• ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard (optional: add up to ½ teaspoon to taste after mixing the other ingredients first)

After soaking the saffron, combine all the ingredients and mix well. Taste and adjust the seasonings to taste. Refrigerate for an hour before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

Plate the shrimp
Serve the shrimp as appetizers with the aioli for dipping.

Maple Curry Candied Cashews →

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020

Great holiday gifts or easy to make snacks. Be warned, these nuts are seriously addictive when combined with a good beer or an off-dry sparkling wine! Can you say “maple, curry, candied, cashews” fast three times?

Maple Curry Candied Cashews
Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cashews

• ¼ cup maple syrup

• 1 teaspoon Madras curry powder

• ½ teaspoon ground cumin

• ½ teaspoon ground coriander

• ½ teaspoon chili powder

• 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 300 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or greased tin foil

1. Place the maple syrup and nuts in a medium-sized bowl and toss until well coated. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well to coat evenly. Transfer the nuts to the prepared sheet and arrange them in a single layer. Bake until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, 25 to 30 minutes.

2. Remove from the oven, immediately loosen the nuts with a spatula, separate the clumps, and set aside to cool to room temperature before serving otherwise they won’t have a good crunch.

Adapted from http://www.eat-drink-smile.com/2010/12/spiced-macadamia-nuts.html

Chili Chocolate Pecans →

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020

Here’s a recipe inspired by the magical Mexican mixture of chili and chocolate. Sweet, spicy, chocolaty, chewy, and crunchy, this nut mixture is great for celebrating the Holidays (or any time) and makes for a special home-made gift for friends and family. Enjoy these delectable snacks with your favorite sparkling wine, aperitif, or beverage. Holé Mole!

Chili Chocolate Pecans
Yield about 4 cups

Ingredients:

• ½ cup dark brown sugar

• ¼ cup cocoa powder

• ¼ cup finely grated dark chocolate (I used unsweetened, but semi-sweet would work.)

• 2 teaspoons sea or kosher salt

• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

• 3/4 teaspoon chili powder

• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to kick-it-up-a-notch)

• ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

• 1/8 teaspoon allspice

• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

• 2-3 large egg whites

• 4 cups (about 1 pound) pecans (or your nuts of choice)

• 1/2 cup pepitas

• ½ cup Craisins (optional)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 300°F, position rack in the middle position, line a rimmed baking sheet with tin foil, and grease lightly with oil or nonstick cooking spray.

1. In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, cocoa powder, chocolate, salt, cinnamon, chili powder, nutmeg, allspice, and ginger.

2. In a large bowl, lightly beat the egg white until slightly foamy. Stir in the spiced sugar mixture until a smooth batter forms. (If the mixture is still dry add the third beaten egg white. You want a thick batter consistency.)

3. Fold in the pecans and pepitas until evenly coated. Spread the glazed pecans in a single even layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake until nuts are lightly toasted, about 30 minutes.

4. If you include craisins, as soon as you remove the sheet pan from the oven sprinkle the craisins over and stir to mix in. (If you bake the craisins they will be overly chewy and tough.)

5. Let cool, stirring several times to separate the nuts. Once cool, break up any remaining clumps and serve. Nuts can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Adapted from:
https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/12/mexican-spiced-chocolate-pecans-nuts-recipe.html