Sweet & Spicy Cocktail Nuts
This is a Hooray for Husbands! post. Last Tuesday it was Michael’s birthday. He would have been 86 years old. Instead of feeling sorry for myself and imbibing in Woe is Me, I decided to do what Michael loved best and invite friends to dinner. I asked two Aspen couples with a friendship history of 25 years, and another couple, who had only known Michael through my eyes, to join me.
I warned the gals about wearing lipstick, my code phrase for blogging purposes and photo ops and got down to the business of planning and cooking a meal. We neglected to mention to the men that this would be a work/blog dinner as well as, hopefully, a pleasurable evening.
…..which brings me to my French Fridays recipe choice, Sweet and Spicy Cocktail Nuts. The Doristas made these in 2010 prior to my joining the clan. Since everything I was serving for dinner I’d never made before, these would be a simple and tasty cocktail nibble. If as delicious as anticipated, wouldn’t they be a great hostess gift when packaged in holiday finery?
The whole almonds after they have been mixed thoroughly into the frothy egg white.
Although you can use a variety of nuts, I chose only whole almonds. After beating an egg white to a runny froth, I swished 2 cups of almonds until all were coated and shiny. Then I poured in a mixture of sweet (sugar and cinnamon) and spicy (salt, chili powder and cayenne). After the almonds were thoroughly coated, I separated the last bit of egg white from the nuts and transferred them to a parchment lined baking sheet. Thirty-five minutes later at 300 degreesF, I had toasty brown almonds to serve my guests.
All shiny and covered with the spice mixture, the almonds are headed to my oven.
Fast forward to Tuesday evening. Picture the scene: we have our wine and have just settled down to deal with the appetizers. The first guest to go for the nuts was Steve Chase who hardly got one into his mouth before I said, “What do you think?”
“About what?” he asked.
“The nuts,” I replied. “Do you taste the sweet? The spicy?”
At this point, all conversation has stopped to hear Steve’s and my exchange. At this point, also, Steve is looking at me like I’m nuts. (He’s given me this look before so I’m unbothered by it.) By the way, during the conversation I am also clicking photos of Steve eating the almonds. His wife, Donna, jumps in to explain that ‘Mary made these and is blogging about them’.
Long story short, the two other husbands, Philip Salet and Don Wrigley, took a handful of nuts and the critiquing began: “some spice, not too much, however,” “festive,” “still salty but sweet,” “perfect with a light red,” and “I just like them.” Not to be outdone, Philip’s wife, Jessica, suggested, “How about profound? These nuts are profound.”
Brown and toasty. It’s time to cool off.
We all agreed, Dorie’s Sweet and Spicy Cocktail Nuts are “profound”. I’ll include photos and more about our dinner party in next week’s post when our recipe is Béatrix’s phenomenal Red Kuri Soup. In the meantime, if you would enjoy making these Profound Sweet & Spicy Cocktail Nuts, here’s the recipe:
Ingredients
- Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chile powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch cayenne
- 1 large egg white
- 2 cups nuts, whole or halves, but not small pieces, such as almonds, cashews, peanuts, pecans, or a mix
Instructions
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
- Spray a nonstick baking sheet with cooking spray or line it with a silicone baking mat.
- Mix the sugar and spices together in a small bowl.
- Beat the egg white lightly with a fork in a larger bowl – you’re not making a meringue, just breaking up the white so that it’s liquid.
- Toss in the nuts, stir to coat them with egg white, then add the sugar-and-spice mixture and continue to stir so that the nuts are evenly covered.
- Using your fingers, lift the nuts from the bowl, letting the excess egg white drip back into the bowl (you can run the dipped nuts against the side of the bowl to de-excess them), and transfer them to the baking sheet, separating them as best you can. Discard whatever sugar-egg mix is left in the bowl.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the nuts are browned and the coating is dry.
- Cool for 5 minutes, then transfer the nuts to another baking sheet, a cutting board or a piece of parchment paper, break them apart, and let them cool completely. The nuts crisp as they cool.
- Storing: Kept covered in a dry place, the nuts will hold for about 5 days at room temperature.
Notes
Bonne Idée: You can swap the spices at whim. For a change, omit the chile powder and go for 5-spice powder (you can keep the cinnamon, if you’d like), curry powder (I’d use just a smidgen of cinnamon with the curry) or even cardamom (in which case, I’d cut out the cinnamon). You can also make herb-flavored nuts using finely chopped fresh herbs or dried herbs (just make sure your dried herbs are brightly colored and still fragrant). Keep the sugar and salt, drop the chile powder and cinnamon, and try mixing the nuts with fresh rosemary or thyme or dried herbes de Provence.
You chose the perfect dish to serve these in, Mary. I make some version of these every year. Now is the perfect time of year to start making them. They get one into a holiday mood.
I’ve received some of the looks you’ve described, when everyone wants to dig in and I’m busy taking photos. I’ve also had to explain to people that I’m not asking for their opinion because I’m fishing for compliments, but because I’m writing about the recipe.
I think you celebrate Michael’s birthday in the best possible way, honouring his memory while surrounding yourself with good friends.
Profound. Must definitely try this and thanks so much for the recipe. What a wonderful way to celebrate.
What a sweet idea Mary. Michael would for sure approve. And thanks for the reminder about this recipe – I loved these, and they are perfect for Christmas!
Bill needs to take a lesson in critiquing from your friends! I’m tired of “great” and other dull adjectives. Glad these were a hit. And such a lovely way to celebrate Michael’s life. xo
I’d forgotten about these, but they were good. Thanks for bringing back the memories – must make them again for Christmas.
XO, Mary.
My family thinks I am nuts – whether cooking is involved or not…so the looks don’t bother me so much anymore. I just do what I am going to do and live with the fallout 🙂
P.S. It’s snowed here almost everyday; but I can still see my driveway, so we are all good!
Hugs to you, Mary.
For critiquing, we have long done that in my house just for any dish we make. I think it sometimes makes our guests (new ones who’ve yet to be initiated) feel like we’re asking for compliments. We always have to explain that it’s just what we do–try to figure out how to make the dish better for the next time. Anyway, it sounds like your dinner was a hit and I can’t wait to hear about the soup! (I made it last week as well.)
Mary, what a journey you have been on and you deal with it in an inspiring manner. Seriously, when I’m down I say to myself, “Look what Mary does and she’s dealing with a devastating loss” and I get myself moving with a smile (sometimes quavering) on my face! You are a wise lady and your friends are the lucky recipients of that and delicious food to boot!
On a different note, thank you for noticing the carving on my pork loin. Gary and I share carving duties and I handled that one and was rather proud of myself. Thank you for noticing!
My new favorite toast – Here’s to weathering the storm! I toast you Mary!
I love Jessica’s comment about the nuts being profound. I need to meet this woman who anthropomorphizes NUTS.
Love it. And please pass on my birthday wishes to Michael. We miss him.
TTR.
Happy Birthday to Michael!!!! These “profound” nuts are one of my favorite recipes in the book. I’m glad your guests approved. I might need to make them this weekend and bring a batch to my sister-in-law’s for Thanksgiving. Can’t wait to see your soup. I made a pot this morning. xox
I love how you always choose to celebrate life! I had forgotten how good these nuts were!
I am ashamed to say, I missed this recipe. I now have a good reason to make it!!!
Hi Mary, What a wonderful way to celebrate your husband, the nuts look delicious!
Such a wonderful way to celebrate Michael’s birthday, good for you Mary. I had forgotten that nutty recipe but I
do remember it was good, time to revisit. When you get around to making this recipe I think you will really like it, it is delicious
and will certainly be repeated. Happy Thanksgiving.
You really know how to put a positive spin on life. I am learning so much from you. Profound nuts… I can see them being sold in the New Yorker. You got quite a “Peanut Gallery” on your hands. Can’t wait to hear their critics of other FFWD dishes.
LOL, been there, done that 🙂 Mostly the people that come over for a meal at my house know whats going to wind up happening by now and are fully prepared to give me a critique! 🙂
Sounds like a lovely way to celebrate Michael’s birthday. My family is currently trying to get everyone together next year for what would be my grandmother’s 100th birthday. She unfortunately died too young for me to remember her, but I’ve of course heard many stories. Hopefully it works.
Thanks for the recommendation for the nut recipe. I will make these for my next dinner party. I love it when members do make ups, then I can see what else to make:) Good luck with the storzapretis when you make it. I also like to make things late so I can learn from others. Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
Hugs to you Mary!! And Happy Birthday to Michael!
I love your positive up-beat outlook on life!
These nuts were one of my favorites! I made them several times, and then forgot about them until now! I will have to make a batch to serve for Christmas!
Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving, Mary!
Warm greetings, thank you!
Nuts were made last night for a pre-thanksgiving feast and were a huge hit!
Profound was definitely the word of the evening for the prep and cooking process were a needed connection to my colorado community..
Best wishes for the holidays..and keep on dancing!
xxxbarbara
What a great celebration of life and friendship, Mary. Wear your lipstick should be a new motto – always be ready and up for cooking, finding, and sharing good food.
Dear Mary, what a delightful recipe to go back to – I love preparing nuts (mostly almonds – because that´s what people seem to like most) around the holidays, any holidays, actually…some just sweet, some with spices – as I always say, so many recipes and so little time. I really appreciated your comment last Friday – it has been one of those weeks – a lot of homework and studying with the kids, a lot of exams and tests before Christmas. So many goodies I would like ot recreate or try for the first time, not picture perfect weather for blogging purposes etc. you know the game. Then when I wrote my Stollen post and was so relieved that I had finished it and that the sale had gone so well, I tripped over “kitchen toys” that one of the young ladies left on the floor and strained my ankle rather badly but that had a funny moment because it was wooden kitchen tools and I was clutching a cookbook while falling….now what…well, time to slow down a bit I guess.
Hopefully, you willl have a very, very safe drive to see family and friends for Thanksgiving! Have a fabulous time there!
And although I never had the pleasure of meeting Michael, my thoughts are certainly with you…
If I do not get a chance to “talk” to you again before Thursday, I am sending you Happy Thanksgiving wishes now!!!
All the very best for now and hugs and kisses and safe travels,
Andrea & Co.