Another Yummy Recipe - Spiced Pecans!!!

I'm on facebook (who isn't these days, right? well...if you're not, you kind of should be! and be sure to add me as a friend once you get on there!), and I'm part a group that a friend created for those of us that love to bake (that friend being the one that gave out the recipe for the Red Velvet Bon Bons). Someone posted the recipe for those yummy spiced pecans/almonds. You know, the ones that they sell around Christmastime at the mall - you can smell them as you walk around and almost can't help but buy some of them, even though they are ridiculously overpriced. Well, now you can smell them cooking in your own kitchen. And they are far from overpriced. And very, very easy!! You probably have all the ingredients already. I just had to restock on pecans, which I usually have.

Spiced Pecans/Almonds

Ingredients:
1 egg white, lightly beaten
1 T water
1 t vanilla
3 c pecan halves (or almonds)
1/2 c white sugar
1/4 t salt
1 t ground cinnamon

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil sprayed lightly with cooking oil.
2. In a small bowl, beat the egg white with the water and vanilla. Stir in the pecans, mixing until well moistened.
3. In a small bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Sprinkle over the moistened nuts, toss to coat evenly. Spread nuts on prepared pan.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Be careful not to overcook and burn the nuts. If using almonds, cook an extra 10-15 minutes until crisp.

Ok - so here's my experience. First, I used a silicon exopat baking mat instead of foil. If you don't have a couple of these babies, you are missing out. They're inexpensive and indispensable!! And I always use really good quality vanilla - another must, in my opinion. Most of what I use, I got in Mexico when I went a while back (I stocked up!!) b/c I've been told the kind I got is one of the best. But I got some bourbon vanilla at Trader Joe's recently, and that's what I used with these. Good stuff. Also, when mixing the liquid ingredients with the pecans, I used a mixing bowl with a lid, popped the lid on, and just shook it around. Did the same thing when I added the sugar mixture. Made it easier - an a bit more fun, too. ;)

The wet mixture after shaking in the bowl

On the exopat mat, ready to go in the oven!!

These things are just too easy to make!! You will never be tempted to buy them at the mall again. They really are RIDICULOUSLY overpriced, esp with them being so easy to bake up. I want to try them with walnuts to kick up the healthy part next time.

They taste even better than they look!! I need to give some away quickly before I eat them all.

Thanks for the recipe, Carrie!!!