What I miss most while doing this Whole 30 thing is crunchy. I mean something really crunchy and delicious, so celery and hard apples don't count. My mouth and ears want something to bite and hear at the same time that delicious crunch that certain treats bring. (Honestly, right now I would even settle for a piece of unbuttered toast.)
Since nuts are whole30 compliant I have been eating them, but I am tired of raw nuts. Knowing a cracker or toast is not going to happen I tried doing a little something different with those blasted nuts.
For Christmas Mom gave me one of those copper ceramic pans (best non-stick pan ever!) so I put about a cup of assorted raw nuts (pecan pieces, cashews and almonds) in the pan and whirled them around with a wooden spoon over medium high heat, until they smelled nice and toasty. (5 minutes maybe) I have one of those Misto oil sprayers I keep filled with olive oil so I gave then a couple of squirts with that then sprinkled them with my double secret sweet potato seasoning blend.(equal parts of ground cumin, chili powder, and ground coriander, a dash of oregano and 1/2 the amount of garlic salt. I used 1 tablespoon of the 3 ground spices to 1/2 tablespoon of the garlic salt for my measures because I am eating baked sweet potatoes often and I wanted to have it made ahead of time to grab and shake.)
I have to admit the hot nuts did add a little crunch and a whole lot of deliciousness to what had been just plain old boring nuts. I have no idea why I didn't think of doing this a little sooner. I ate a few and stored the rest in a jar. Next time I need a snack I am going to pour a few in a ramekin and pop them in the microwave to heat them, because they taste really good and right now I need/want flavor . . . and texture . . . and something chocolate!
p.s. next time I make these I will probably bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 7 minutes for more even roasting. I will also use pecan halves instead of pieces, but I only had pieces today.
Since nuts are whole30 compliant I have been eating them, but I am tired of raw nuts. Knowing a cracker or toast is not going to happen I tried doing a little something different with those blasted nuts.
I have to admit the hot nuts did add a little crunch and a whole lot of deliciousness to what had been just plain old boring nuts. I have no idea why I didn't think of doing this a little sooner. I ate a few and stored the rest in a jar. Next time I need a snack I am going to pour a few in a ramekin and pop them in the microwave to heat them, because they taste really good and right now I need/want flavor . . . and texture . . . and something chocolate!
p.s. next time I make these I will probably bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 7 minutes for more even roasting. I will also use pecan halves instead of pieces, but I only had pieces today.
They sound lovely. I must admit I had a bit of a thing going for the chili nuts on sale at my local supermarket until I started looking up calories in my bid to lose weight and nearly fainted when I saw the calories in a few nuts. So enjoy a few for me. Anna
ReplyDeleteI will!
DeleteYum! Before I developed a nut allergy, I looked forward to roasted pecans. My mama always made them for Christmas and for any "party" type meal.
ReplyDeleteWe had roasted pecans a lot as a kid also. I am glad I have no issues with nuts, other than knowing when to stop eating them.
DeleteThose look and sound delicious! I love spiced nuts, although I think most of the recipes I have call for a little sugar, too. Your sweet potato seasoning sounds really tasty, though.
ReplyDeleteThe sweet potato seasoning is fantastic! A sprinkle on my baked sweet potato and I am good to go!
DeleteYum! Your spice blend sounds good! I generally use chili powder and salt. I've roasted cashews in the microwave, too.
ReplyDeleteThe spice blend is very tasty, but I love the Tex/Mex flavor pallette
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