Honey Spiced Nuts Recipe

By
Anita Schecter
Anita Schecter_BW
Anita Schecter
Professional recipe developer, food photographer, and blogger with more than a decade of experience creating Middle Eastern recipes.
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Updated on 06/1/22
Honey-spiced nuts

​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 12 mins
Total: 27 mins
Servings: 3 to 4 servings

Let's talk about appetizers and snacks. Do you think more about what to serve with drinks when people come over than the actual Thanksgiving meal? The bird and fixings are long planned, of course, but the snacks beforehand always require more thought.

People will be here for quite a while before the dinner is ready. They will have a pitcher of cocktails and they will want to snack. Cheese and crackers, of course. Cut up vegetables with hummus is a long-standing house favorite. Crunchy roasted cumin chickpeas are a welcome addition. But we will also need nuts.

It's tempting to just buy a jar of roasted mixed nuts from the store, but there's nothing especially holiday about it and there's never the correct amount of whichever nut happens to be your favorite. Plus, nothing beats the smell of freshly roasted nuts coming out of your oven.

Fortunately, making your own blend is wonderfully quick and simple. You can, of course, choose whichever nuts you like, although walnuts, almonds, and pistachios are the ones found most often on a Middle Eastern table. As for the spices, go full holiday here with lots of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, just a teeny bit of cloves, and the wonderfully fragrant cardamom. Middle Eastern inspired holiday tastes and smells and your guests will be wooed as soon as they walk in. And, as a bonus, these nuts are also great for snacking even after the holidays. Football Sundays come to mind. Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon cardamom
  • Tiny pinch of ground cloves (or to taste)
  • 1/4 cup raw walnuts
  • 1/4 cup raw almonds
  • 1/4 cup raw shelled pistachios
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt for finishing

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 400 F.

    Ingredients for honey spiced nuts
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

  2. Add the butter to a pot and melt on the stovetop on low heat. Stir in the honey, sugar, water, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and ground cloves. Continue stirring until melted and fully combined.

    Add butter
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

  3. Stir in the walnuts, almonds, and pistachios and spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

    Add nuts
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

  4. Roast in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, being careful not to burn the nuts.

    Roast
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

  5. Sprinkle with the sea salt.

    Sprinkle
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel

  6. Serve and enjoy!

    Serve and enjoy
    ​The Spruce Eats / Teena Agnel
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
229 Calories
19g Fat
14g Carbs
5g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 3 to 4
Amount per serving
Calories 229
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 19g 24%
Saturated Fat 5g 25%
Cholesterol 15mg 5%
Sodium 297mg 13%
Total Carbohydrate 14g 5%
Dietary Fiber 3g 11%
Protein 5g
Calcium 53mg 4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)