You Deserve Fancy Nuts: DIY Roasting Guide +5 recipes

There is something so decadent about reaching into your very own pile of freshly roasted nuts, redolent with their own earthiness and the sharp, medicinal nature of fresh rosemary. Why do we resist roasting nuts any time we use the oven for cooking a meal? Learn how to easily roast your own nuts and explore the range of tastes and scents you can create with 5 new roasted nut recipes.

What Kind of Nuts Should I Use?

During a recent drugstore outing, we didn’t see a single bag of raw, unsalted, and unflavored nuts. There was an entire side of an aisle of nuts, but not a drop to drink. Perhaps this will change. Grocery stores usually have more of a selection, but not uniformly.

Purchasing raw, completely unadulterated nuts is the thing that will change your mind about the role of nuts in cuisine. Roasting brings the essential oils out of nuts, making them incredibly fragrant. You roast what you want at any given time so that the fragrance of the nuts is most active. When you buy roasted nuts in the store, they are not roasted to the degree that would be optimal for immediate consumption in order to improve shelf life. The fragrances released in factories during roasting are also not released in your home.

It is much easier to find exactly what you want and likely for a better price online. As an Amazon Associate, Lavender and Spice may earn a commission from any purchases on Amazon. We are not compensated for any other links on this site.

We like these Terrasoul Organic Raw Whole Cashews. They are more expensive than non-organic competitors, but they get good ratings from customers for this product and for their entire line of nuts and dried fruits. Eating raw cashews is a joy in itself, so you can do that while you roast.

What about Salt?

We ran across a fantastic idea on how to get even salt distribution from the An Oregon Cottage blog. They suggest dissolving salt in hot water and then mixing this saline solution with the raw nuts prior to baking. The nuts will soak in some of the water and the rest will coat the exterior.

Sea salt contains about 2,000 mg of sodium per teaspoon. A pound of nuts is 16 oz, and a serving is one ounce. We want to reserve some of our salt budget for after the roasting. One half teaspoon of sea salt per pound then gives you 62 mg of salt against the 1,500 mg/day recommendation for many people. This is a lower level than roasted and salted nuts, but we will add some more still.

After the roasting is complete, add 1/4 teaspoon of Maldon sea salt flakes to the pound of nuts, which will add 580 mg of sodium, for a total of 98mg per serving or about 4% of the RDA. The oak-smoked Maldon flakes could be a nice touch for some recipes, particularly as a bar snack for a whiskey party.

Maldon salt flakes are a relatively unique product with a long history and dependable brand. Salt flakes like those from Maldon are often used as finishing salts because they retain a crunchy texture and taste saltier per volume due to lower trace mineral amounts. They also dissolve quickly due to their crystal structure. This means you can deliver a very salty hit to the palate with relatively low total salt in the dish when these flakes are used as a finishing salt.

How Do I Roast Nuts?

You can pan roast nuts (think of the giant roasting pans on street corners in New York and other cities). You get more even heat distribution and a dryer environment in the oven than you can achieve in a pan. The recommended temperatures vary, but there seems to be a consensus that 350F is a good starting point. You may have to adjust the setting on your oven depending on its performance, but roasting nuts is not a game of precision as much as attention.

There is much less consensus about the baking time. These times are on the conservative, don’t burn your nuts scale.

  • Roast for 8-10 minutes: Softer nuts like pistachios, pecans, and walnuts

  • Roast for 10-12 minutes: Denser nuts like almonds, macadamia, and hazelnuts

  • Roast for 15-20 minutes: Shelled peanuts

You will want to stir the nuts midway through the roasting time, during which time you can evaluate the color. You are looking for a few shades darker than the raw, but no very dark brown or black colors. The internal heat of the nuts will continue for a minute or so once removed, so you want to pull these just before you are happy with the color. After a few batches, you will have a good sense of the time and color that you are looking for to meet your preference.

Should I Roast Herbs and Other Condiments?

Yes! Maybe.

Hardy Herbs

Taking rosemary as the example, you could easily include freshly chopped and oiled Rosemary tossed with the nuts for the entire 10 minutes at 350F. The essential oils released during roasting will soak into the nuts in a way that adding them after the fact would not achieve. It is unlikely that an oiled mixture of rosemary would experience any detrimental effects for these oven times at this temperature. You may decide to add hardy herbs at some later point in the cooking process, such as the halfway point when you stir the nuts.

Spices and Glazes

The aromatic performance of spices will generally improve by dry roasting at this temperature for the 8-20 minutes discussed. Sugar can be added either in a liquid solution or sprinkled over the nuts at the beginning of the cooking time. Most glazes will perform well at this temperature and time, although you may have to increase cooking time due to evaporative cooling.

Zests and Other Freshies

Best to add anything that seems remarkably fresh after the roasting is done. Citrus zests should be zested and added just before serving.

Aromatic Roasted Nut Recipes

1) Lemon Rosemary Cashews

Ingredients

  • 1 lb raw, unsalted cashews

  • 2 tbsp olive oil

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water

  • 2 tbsp minced fresh rosemary

  • 1/4 tsp Maldon salt flakes

  • Zest from 1 lemon using a microplane. If you do not have a microplane, finely mince zest

  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F

  2. Toss raw cashews in 1/2 cup saline/sugar solution and let sit until oven reaches temperature

  3. Mix minced rosemary and olive oil. Toss with cashews prior to roasting

  4. Spread cashew mixture in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Include any remaining liquid and oil

  5. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Stir at 7 minutes and assess color. After 10 minutes, assess color every 2-3 minutes. You should achieve a golden color that does not go to brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool when desired color achieved

  6. Mix Maldon salt flakes, lemon zest, and ground pepper. Toss vigorously with nut mixture

  7. Garnish with fresh rosemary sprig and serve immediately

2) PFEFFERNUSSE (Peppernuts)

The Mennonite communities in the United States make these German holiday cookies, which are the size of small nuts (hence the name) and contain a personalized blend of warming spices that most often includes star anise, ginger, cinnamon, and then some combination of cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. This post from the Baker Bettie is a fun and informative read on the current culture of the Peppernut. Orange zest is used in southern Germany, and here provides a fresh burst to provide both a lift and counterpoint to the roasted spices and richness of the almond.

Ingredients

 

  • 1 lb blanched almonds

  • 3 tbsp butter, melted

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt and 2 tbsp granulated sugar dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water

  • 1/4 tsp anise powder

  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

  • 1/2 tsp ginger powder

  • 1/4 tsp allspice powder

  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg powder

  • 1/4 tsp Maldon salt flakes

  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

  • Zest from 1 orange using a microplane. If you do not have a microplane, finely mince zest

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F

  2. Toss almonds in 1/2 cup saline/sugar solution and let sit until oven reaches temperature

  3. Mix butter and spices and toss with almonds

  4. Spread almond mixture in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Include any remaining liquid and melted butter

  5. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Stir at 5 minutes and assess color. After 10 minutes, assess color every 2 minutes. You should achieve a golden color approaching light brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool when desired color achieved

  6. Mix Maldon salt flakes, orange zest, and ground pepper. Toss vigorously with nut mixture

  7. Garnish with orange peel and serve

3) Salt and Vinegar Peanuts

Ingredients

  • 1 lb raw, unsalted shelled peanuts

  • 1 tbsp peanut oil

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1 tbsp granulated sugar dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water

  • 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

  • 1/4 tsp Maldon salt flakes

  • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Mix vinegar 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1 tbsp sugar. Soak peanuts in vinegar solution for 1 hour stirring occasionally

  2. Preheat oven to 350F

  3. Mix peanut oil into marinating peanuts. Spread peanuts in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Include any remaining liquid and oil

  4. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir at 7 minutes and assess color. After 10 minutes, assess color every 2-3 minutes. You should achieve a golden color that does not go to brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool when desired color achieved

  5. Add 1 tbsp vinegar to peanuts in mixing bowl and stir. Mix Maldon salt flakes and ground pepper. Toss vigorously with nut mixture

  6. Serve warm

4) Spicy Honey Mustard Pecans

Ingredients

  • 1 lb raw, unsalted pecans

  • 1 tbsp peanut oil

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

  • 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper

  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder

  • 1/4 tsp dried thyme

  • 1/2 tsp paprika

  • 1 tsp +1/4 tsp mustard powder

  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

  • 1/4 cup honey

  • 1/4 tsp smoked Maldon salt flakes

  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F

  2. Mix sea salt, spices and vinegar (reserving 1/4 tsp mustard and smoked Maldon salt until after roasting)

  3. Spread pecans in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Include any remaining liquid and oil

  4. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Stir at 5 minutes and assess color. After 8 minutes, assess color every 2-3 minutes. You should get a brown that is a few shades darker than when you started, noting that the glaze will also darken the nut. Remove from oven and set aside to cool when desired color achieved

  5. Mix smoked Maldon salt flakes, 1/4 tsp mustard powder, and ground pepper. Toss vigorously with nut mixture

  6. Serve warm

5) Membrillo Glazed Marcona Almonds

 

Ingredients

  • 1 lb blanched, unsalted marcona almonds

  • 1 tbsp olive oil

  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder

  • 1/2 tsp paprika

  • 1/4 cup sherry vinegar

  • 1/4 cup boiling water

  • 1/2 cup membrillo paste

  • 1/4 tsp Maldon salt flakes

  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

  • Zest from 1 orange using a microplane. If you do not have a microplane, finely mince zest

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F

  2. Mix sea salt, spices, olive oil, membrillo, and boiling water (which will help break down the membrillo pieces into a sauce). Depending on how dry the membrillo paste is, you may need to add more or less water. Add the vinegar once the mixture is integrated. Mix glaze with almonds

  3. Spread almonds in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Include any remaining glaze

  4. Bake for 10 minutes. Stir at 5 minutes and assess color. After 10 minutes, assess color every 2 minutes. You should get a a golden color that does not go towards brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool when desired color achieved

  5. Mix Maldon salt flakes, orange zest, and ground pepper. Toss vigorously with nut mixture

  6. Serve warm

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