Spicy walnuts - from FOK

I can see how these can be addictive.  They have a surprising amount of sugar for a FOK recipe - but I guess because it's maple sugar its ok.  I used coconut sugar because that's what I had, and cut the chipotle quite a bit, but I think I'll use a little more next time. 

This was meant to be prepared in a dehydrator, but if you don't have one, roast at 170 (or your oven's lowest temperature). 

My major mistake was using only 1 cup of walnuts for this first endeavor.  They'll be gone shortly!!

Ingredients:

1 cup walnuts

2 cups water

Soak the walnuts for 3-4 hours.  Drain and discard the water (I tasted it - quite bitter)

• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 
• 1/2 tsp chipotle powder 
• 1/2 cup maple sugar, finely ground 
• 1 1/2 tsp sea salt 

To prepare the mixture, place walnuts in a mixing bowl with the remaining ingredients and toss well.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Roast at the lowest oven temperature (usually 170) for 1-2 hours.  Check after an hour to be sure they are not burning. 

Remove them from the baking sheet when you take them out of the oven, so they stop cooking. 

Enjoy!

 

Sweet, salty, spicy pecans

From Once Upon A Chef cookbook by Jennifer Segal

These are great.  Jennifer writes that these nuts are addictive - perfect to serve with cocktails, toss over salads, give as a homemade gift, or just snack on.   The whole process takes about 15 minutes.

Ingredients: 
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
3/4 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (I usually use less)
2 cups whole pecans

Directions: 
1) Preheat the oven to 350 and set an oven rack in the middle position.  Line a rimmed 13x18" baking sheet with parchment paper.

2) In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt and cayenne.

3) Add the pecans to the sugar mixture, along with 4 teaspoons of water.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved into a sticky glaze and ll the nuts are evenly coated.  If the mixture is still too powdery after stirring for a while, add a few more drops of water - just don't add too much.

4) Transfer the pecans to the prepared baking sheet and arrange in a single layer.  Scrape every last bit of glaze from the bowl and drizzle over the nuts.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the pecans are crusty on top and caramelized and golden on the bottom.  Immediately slide the parchment off of the hot baking sheet and allow the pecans to cool completely on the countertop.  Once cool, remove the pecans from the parchment, breaking apart any clusters if necessary, and store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.  Do not freeze.

Date and Walnut Haroset Balls

https://jewishfoodexperience.com/recipes/date-and-walnut-haroset-balls/

Not a very tempting title but what could be bad about chocolate?!  Thanks to Shula for this one.  Made these to bring to NY for seder.  Because of family allergies, I used peanuts instead - not suitable for some on Passover.  I realized afterward, I should have put the peanuts in the food processor first and made a sort of peanut butter.  Then mix this with warm dates and cover with melted chocolate.  It would have been a special kind of Reese's peanut butter cup!

From the website:
My mother has been making these date and walnut balls, a variation on traditional Jewish-Iraqi haroset, which is made with chopped walnuts and silan (date honey), for years. They’re not only perfect for Passover and Tu b’Shevat, but are also healthy and tasty year round. Pressed baking dates are available in Middle Eastern and some kosher markets. To keep the recipe pareve, simply use pareve dark chocolate.

Ingredients
1 cup walnut pieces
1 13-ounce package pressed baking dates
8 ounces dark (semisweet or bittersweet) chocolate, chopped

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread walnuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 5 minutes. Shake the baking sheet, then toast for 5 to 7 minutes longer, until walnuts turn darker in color and are fragrant. Let cool completely.
Meanwhile, if the dates seem dry, place them in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Transfer to a small mixing bowl. Otherwise, soften an opened package of the dates for 15 seconds or so in the microwave.
Place the walnuts in the bowl of the food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped; reserve some of the more powdery nuts (a tablespoon or so). Add the remaining chopped nuts to the chopped or softened dates; use your hands to press the mixture together until the nuts are evenly incorporated. Pinch off pieces and roll them into 1-inch balls, placing them on a baking sheet.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Melt chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl in 30 seconds segments. Stir the chocolate until it is smooth. Let cool for about 1 minute.
Use a fork or skewer to dip each ball in the melted chocolate until completely coated. Return them to the baking sheet as you work; sprinkle the reserved chopped walnuts on top. Allow the chocolate to set before serving. You can put the date balls in the fridge for about 20 minutes to help the chocolate set, but keep in mind that this may cause the chocolate to lose its shine.

spiced nuts

Adapted from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/spiced-nuts-recipe-1952173

I was looking for a spiced nut recipe to match one we had recently at The Little Beet - slivered almonds with turmeric and pepper.  I couldn't find anything equivalent so I adapted this recipe.

I used all the nuts and seeds below, in similar proportions, but with overflowing measures, and threw in a handful of walnuts and hazelnuts (just because I could).   I wanted to see how the spices were taken up by the different nuts.  On the second attempt, I focused more on the slivered almonds and pumpkin seeds as they tasted best, and slightly increased the turmeric and cayenne.

The truth is, nuts with maple syrup and salt can't be bad.  But a prior attempt with turmeric and nuts were too heavily coated and somewhat bitter.  I'll try to use gradually more turmeric as we go.

Turmeric is a rhizome, a thinner, more orange version of ginger. Its active ingredient is curcumin, an anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory agent.  It has been used by traditional healers for thousands of years, for everything from digestive issues to wound healing to headaches and blood flow, even to slow tumor growth.  To date, it has not been proven in studies to be helpful for any of these purposes.  Cooking with turmeric is fine, but not using it as a supplement.  It can potentially interact with prescription and over-the-counter medications, be a problem in the setting of gallstones or kidney disease, and cause bleeding.

Ingredients :

1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/3 cup pistachios
1/3 cup cashews
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
1-2 Tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon curry powder (I prefer coriander)
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary and/or thyme - (good with 1 Tbsp fresh rosemary and 1 Tbsp thyme chopped finely)
1/2 teaspoon salt plus more to taste (used freshly ground salt from Peru)
Nonstick cooking spray

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2) Combine nuts and seeds in a medium-sized bowl. Add the maple syrup and spices and salt and toss to combine.
3) Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray, then transfer coated nuts to baking sheet and spread evenly in 1 layer. Bake 12-15 minutes, stirring once, until nuts are fragrant and lightly toasted.