V’s Nuts
If you spend any real time in the kitchen, you already know nuts are more than just a snack. You toast them for salads, grind them into pesto, fold them into cakes. Maybe you even have a nut of choice—the one you reach for first. But whether you cook for the love of it or just appreciate their protein and healthy fats, nuts deserve more attention than they usually get. They're one of the few ingredients that can be virtuous and indulgent at the same time, that move effortlessly between savory and sweet, between whole and ground. These spiced, sweet-and-salty nuts are my version—the ones I always keep around for snacking, entertaining, or tossing into whatever needs a little extra something.
HERE’S WHAT’S IMPORTANT
The V’s Nuts recipe calls for pecans because pecans have long been the nut of my kitchen. But if you march to the beat of another nut, know that almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, and macadamias work well too.
Lots of times I tell you it’s okay to play with the combination of spices or fudge on their measurements. Not here. Not for the purpose of the recipes that follow. V’s Nuts should be a precise degree of spicy and sweet, so don’t take liberties unless you’re just looking to them for a snack.
Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies. To make these nuts vegetarian, swap out the Worcestershire for the soy sauce of your preference
Be aware that different nuts bring varying amounts of fat and freshness and will therefore roast differently. So don’t measure their doneness by the number of minutes they spend in the oven. Rather, to tell whether or not they are properly roasted, tap them with a wooden spoon. If they sound flat and hollow, they are ready to come out and cool. If your tapping makes a muffled, full sound, roast them a bit longer.
V’s Nuts will keep in a sealed container in your pantry for for a month. I don’t recommend storing them in the fridge because the moist nature of that environment can alter their quality.
INGREDIENTS
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons cayenne
2 tablespoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
4 cups pecan halves or pieces
PREPARATIONS
Preheat your oven to 350°F. In a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients, whisk the egg whites with all your might until they form soft peaks. You can of course use an electric mixer for this, but the volume of egg whites here is small, and I usually save that gadget for larger batches.
In a smaller bowl, stir the sugar, cayenne, paprika, and salt to combine. Whisk the spice mix plus the Worcestershire into the egg whites. Then stir in the pecans, making sure the egg white mixture coats every nook and cranny of every nut. Line “a large baking sheet with parchment, foil, or, in the best of scenarios, a Silpat silicone mat, and spread the nuts in a single layer overtop.
Slide the baking sheet onto the middle rack of your oven and bake for 10 minutes. Bring the baking sheet out and stir the nuts over and around. Spread them back into a single layer and put them back in the oven for an additional 10 to 13 minutes. When the egg white mixture has dried and is no longer sticky and your nuts make a flat sound when tapped with a wooden spoon, V’s Nuts are ready to come out of the oven.
Allow the nuts to cool on the baking sheet for about an hour, then put them in a sealed container for storage. They will keep there at room temperature for 1 month.