Here’s a fun thing to do! ย Take a few minutes to close your eyes and imagine yourself as an old person. ย I’m not talking about late sixties. ย That’s not old yet. ย I’m talking about great great grandmother old.. pushing the mid-nineties.
Sounds crazy? ย Why would you spend time picturing white hair in bobby pins, shuffling feet and rocking chairs? ย I feel like getting old is a luxury. ย Not everyone gets to do it, so why not sit and enjoy the thought a bit?
I imagine that I’m the kind of old lady that talks to her over fed cats, and yells across the house to her practically deaf husband. ย I hope I’m the kind of old lady who has a piano in the house just so my grandchildren can come over and practice their scales while I shuffle around the kitchen baking them cookies.
I want to be the kind of old lady that always thinks a glass of champagne is a good idea.
I want to be the kind of old lady who always has something out on the living room table for that unexpected guest. ย Maybe it’s those soft chalky mints. ย Maybe a freshly baked pie. ย Maybe it’s these Sweet and Spicy Baked Almonds. ย These nuts, my friends, have me daydreaming of old lady timesย somehow… with a smile on my face.
So, you might be thinking… really Joy? ย Nuts? ย That’s all you’ve got for me today? ย My answer to that… yes. ย Nuts. ย Live a little.
These nuts are simply almonds sprinkled in magic, aka fennel seeds. ย They’re sweet. ย They’re spicy. ย They’re salty and crunchy. ย They make a super yumtastic snack to have around the house, a snazzy hostess gift, or they’re great to bring to a cocktail party. ย All around winners, that’s what these almonds are.
Sweet and Spicy Baked Almonds
from Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 cups raw almonds
2 Tablespoons water
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. ย Line a baking sheet with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.
Mix sugar, fennel, salt and pepper flakes in a medium sized bowl. ย Add the almonds and water and stir until coated. ย Pour onto the foil lined baking sheet and spread out evenly.
Bake the almonds for 5 minutes. ย Remove from the oven and stir almonds around. ย Return to the oven and bake for another 17 minutes, checking and stirring the almonds 2 to 3 more times. ย Almonds will turn beautifully dark brown. ย Remove from the oven and separate with a fork. ย Cool and remove from the pan to a serving bowl or an airtight container for storage.
49 Responses
These are so delicious and simple!! When ever I get a hankering to make something snack-y these are the first items on my list!! I love the spice with the red pepper and the fantastic licorice quality of the fennel…amazing!! Thank you so much for finding these extremely addicting almonds.
I just made these beauties. Yum yum yum ….
just wanted you to know that i found this page through elana’s pantry, and made these for a christmas dinner hostess present. they were such a hit! i gladly took the compliments but silently, i was thanking you and elana. :)
Just wanted to tell you that I ALWAYS come back to these. They are so good as a snack, an appetizer and I’ll make them for all my foodies’ Christmas gifts for the second year running. In fact, I’m making them today for my manfriend’s birthday party. BIG win. Thanks!
I’m addicted to these now, and so are the many friends I’ve shared them with…BUT: I’m having a problem lately with them always turning out STICKY (which is so icky and unattractive, erggg!) — anyone have an idea what to do about this? Thanks!
Yum! However, I would have to leave out the fennel I can’t stand it for some reason. Great photos too.
These look great, I am going to make some and take them to a party this weekend! Thanks for the recipe.
Oh Joy! I made these for a new Girls Night Out crew and everyone loved them. I failed to mention that I thought I had red pepper flakes but didn’t. I subbed cayenne and it was delicious- just not as interesting looking. Thanks for all of your love.
I will be trying this tonight! Almonds and feenl how could you go wrong. thanks
Those sound great! I have no trouble picturing myself as an old lady, i invariably come down the stairs with a tray of cookies to a house full of children … it’s the time in between now and then that scares the shit out of me! ;)
Mmm, old lady nuts sound great. I love a nice snack that evokes nice little day dreams of pianos, grandkids and cookies. Reading your posts is always such a pleasure!! (Not to mention, looking at your pictures always makes my mouth water.)
Yum! What a healty treat.
I love almonds and great idea to bake them like this and garnish them with fennel seeds. Almonds takes your exhaustion. Thanx 4 sharing.
Almonds have been hailed by many people to help with acid reflux….
Hey I love nuts, great idea to bake them this way :-) .. have a great weekend, XOXO