I’ve been really getting into the pumpkin mood lately. I mean, it is almost Halloween!! That gigantic bag of almonds from Costco has also been staring me in the face and I needed to find something to do with them all! I want to make a quick note about the nuts at Costco. Most (not all) of them are made on shared lines. There are very clear allergy statements on the bags. I have found that some of the almonds and pistachios do not have the allergy warning so I choose to eat them. Surprisingly, there aren’t many companies out there that table their nuts gluten-free.
I don’t know why I thought to make these flavorful, candy-coated almonds, but it was on my mind for a while before I took the plunge and stood in front of the stove making a few batches of these. A few didn’t work out. 😉
My hubby likes spicy, so I thought that maybe the sweet/earthy/warm flavors of pumpkin pie would go great with a little kick..aka cayenne pepper! Pumpkin pie spice is very basic and includes cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger. The spice mix can be found already made in grocery stores. But if you’d rather make your own, then mix together ¼ cup cinnamon, 2 tablespoons ginger, 4 teaspoons nutmeg and 2 teaspoons cloves (all of these should be the ground version). This mixture makes much more than the 1 tablespoon you’ll need for this recipe, so store leftovers in an airtight container and bake a pie…make a spiced whipped cream…or add to your morning coffee!
Spicy Pumpkin Pie Candied Almonds
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Whole Raw Almonds
- 1/2 Cup Granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
- 1 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1/4 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
Instructions
- In a medium saute pan combine sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and cayenne pepper.
- Stir all ingredients together and heat over medium heat until the edges start to bubble and darken. Keep mixing until the sugar starts melting and clumping together.
- Add in almonds. Stir continuously until all the almonds are coated and the sugar starts to become liquid-y. Continue to stir over medium heat, about 4-5 minutes.
- Pour almond mixture on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Spread out with spatula and let cool.
- Break apart and serve! Store in an air-tight container.
It took a couple of tries to get this to work just right, so I hope I took out some of the trial and error for you. This recipe can easily be made on the stovetop in just a few minutes. Please be careful because the hot sugar mixture is hot.
I think this would be an absolutely perfect Halloween party treat or to serve at the appetizer table at Thanksgiving!! These almonds would also be a perfect fall bar snack while enjoying a beer and watching a football game!
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