Holiday spiced nuts.

I just finished making up a few batches of spiced nuts to give the adults tomorrow, and I thought I’d share the recipe. My sister Sarah gave it to me a few years ago (I replaced the honey in the original with agave), and they’re impossible to screw up. Super easy, and really yummy—sweet and crunchy, with a bite of spice at the end.

Holiday Spiced Nuts (vegan)
Makes 1 1/2 cups

2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp agave nectar
3/4 cup walnut halves
3/4 cup pecan halves
Fine sea salt

Line a cookie sheet with foil, and lightly oil the foil.

Heat the olive oil in a large, non-stick pan over medium heat. Add ginger, curry and cayenne; stir, then add sugar and agave and combine. Add nuts and toss gently to coat. Stir occasionally for 5-6 minutes until nuts are toasted and agave has darkened.

Transfer nuts to prepared cookie sheet. Immediately use spoon to separate nuts and spread into a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and let cool completely.

It’s a busy night here in Newburgh as we prepare for Christmas! A couple of hours ago, I got a call from my mother, who informed me that her oven stopped working in the middle of a batch of cookies. This wouldn’t be a big deal if it were just about the cookies, but my mother was also preparing to cook Christmas dinner…for 16 people. Yikes!

Fortunately, we live about 10 minutes away, so we’ve decided to reroute everyone to our place instead! My mother will drive all of the uncooked food over tomorrow morning, and everything will be just fine. I’m trying not to let myself get anxious. I tend to get a little obsessive about how the house looks when people come over, and I just don’t know how much I’ll be able to get done in the next 16 hours (provided I sleep at some point).

I just need to keep reminding myself that my family won’t care if everything isn’t perfect. Right? And I have to let them help me wash dishes.