Okay, new rule: These Candied Almonds are NOT allowed in my house. I’m bringing them with me to work tomorrow. Hopefully, I can survive the night without eating them all. These are some dangerous little almonds… because once you start eating them it’s nearly impossible to stop. Their sweet, buttery, toasty nut flavor is totally addictive.
But say you need a gift to bring to a holiday party and wine isn’t up your alley. Making this candied almonds recipe would be the perfect alternative. Or, if you like to give homemade gifts for Christmas, these candied almonds will make everyone will love you. I mean really, really love you.
This recipe makes about 3 times what you would get in one of those little paper cones from the mall kiosk, all for about the same price. Now that you’ve unlocked their secret, the smell of sugar-coated roasting nuts wafting from their kiosk will no longer hold any power over you. You are free.
Ingredients for Candied Almonds
These candied almonds are incredibly easy to make. Here is what you’ll need to make your own homemade candied almonds:
- Raw Shelled Almonds: Make sure to get raw almonds because they will be roasted in the oven. If you buy pre-roasted almonds they may overcook. Hot tip: if you have an ALDI near you, they have the absolute best prices on nuts!
- Sugar: We use a combination of white and brown sugar for this recipe. The white sugar helps crystalize the coating on the nuts, giving them that crunchy finish, while the brown sugar gives them a deep, rich caramel-like flavor.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon gives these nuts a super cozy, Christmasy flavor.
- Salt: A little bit of salt goes a long way toward making these candied nuts extra flavorful. It really helps all those flavors POP.
- Egg White: Egg white acts as the binder, helping the sugar coating adhere to the nuts as it bakes and it creates an airy-texture in the crystalized sugar, making it extra crispy and crunchy instead of a glossy glaze.
- Vanilla: Vanilla adds warmth to the flavor of the nuts.
How to Store Candied Almonds
Make sure you let your almonds cool completely at room temperature before packing them into an air-tight container. This makes sure there is no residual moisture in the nuts that can cause them to get sticky or moldy during storage. Once cooled and packed in an air-tight container, they’ll keep for up to one week at room temperature.
You might also like our recipe for Candied Pecans!
Candied Almonds
Servings 15 ¼ cup eachIngredients
- 1 lb. raw shelled almonds ($5.99)
- 1/3 cup brown sugar ($0.11)
- 1/3 cup white sugar ($0.05)
- 1 tsp cinnamon ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 large egg white ($0.25)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract ($0.14)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300ºF. In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and salt until evenly mixed.
- Separate the egg white from the yolk. Place the white in a large glass or metal bowl and whisk until light and frothy, but it is not yet forming peaks (no clear liquid should remain in the bottom of the bowl). Add the vanilla extract and whisk again until incorporated.
- Add the almonds to the egg whites and stir to coat. Add the sugar spice mixture and stir to coat again.
- Spread the sugar coated almonds out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil coated with non-stick spray. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring once half way through. After baking, allow the almonds to cool, during which time coating will solidify into a crunchy candy shell.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Candied Almonds – Step By Step Photos
In a small bowl, stir together 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup white sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp salt until evenly mixed.
Separate one large egg and whisk the whites until they are light and fluffy, but not yet forming peaks. Make sure there is no clear, liquid white left on the bottom of the bowl. Add ½ tsp vanilla extract and whisk it into the egg whites.
Add the almonds to the egg whites and stir to coat. Pour the cinnamon sugar mixture over the nuts and stir until the almonds are evenly coated in sugar.
Spread the coated almonds out on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake in a preheated 300ºF oven for 30 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
After baking allow the almonds to cool so that the candy coating can harden and get nice and crunchy.
And now you have a whole pound of seriously addictive Candied Almonds. Oh boy. #sorrynotsorry
I made these and brought to two separate parties this weekend – everyone loved them! I took a previous poster’s suggestion and added about 1/2 tsp. cayenne, which gave them a little extra kick, but not too spicy. I also went up to a full tsp. of salt since I prefer my snacks on the salty side. So easy and yummy. Thanks, Beth!
Oops..I meant: “They look delicious!
The look delicious!
Have made two batches thus far – these are amazingly good and SOOO easy. Thank you!!!
FYI – after I mixed the sugars and whisked the egg whites I realized I didn’t have enough vanilla extract! I tripled the recipe and only had about 1/2 tsp. I substituted the additional 1 tsp with maple syrup and they turned out fabulously! Just thought I’d share!
Lyn – Hmm, I don’t imagine that the smoked flavor would work well with sweet cinnamon and sugar.
Hey Beth,
I have some leftover smoked whole almonds (the ones that come in a bag)…do you think the recipe would work with these?
I bought 3 large bags of nuts at Costco (Pecans, Walnuts, and Almonds) just to make these for gifts. Mixed them up, packaged in mason jars decorated with burlap and raffia, and was thrilled with the end result! Pretty, but most importantly, delicious! THANK YOU
These are delicious, positively sinful. I bought 3 lb bag at costco and for the recipe of 1 lb use about 3 cups is perfect.
Cari – I haven’t worked with splenda, so I’m not sure if it has the same physical properties as sugar (if it melts and crystalizes the same when heated). I know it’s fine for baked goods where it’s dissolved into batter, but it might act differently when cooked in low moisture preparations like this.
Do you think I could use Splenda in place of the white sugar?
I use Splenda Brown Sugar Blend (2/3rds of a Cup) when I make these. No “real” White or Brown Sugar, just Splenda Blend. And I’ve never been disappointed. I do sift it (via a hand-crank Sifter) when I do that, though.
This is perfect! I bought a big bag of almonds at costco on sale a while back, thinking I’d roast them or use them for trail mix/granola, but alas, I never did. This sounds delicious and simple, with ingredients we always have on hand!
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I have these in the oven right now! Starting to smell good. This was just the right effort/difficulty level for me :)
Omg, THANK YOU for posting this. I must try!!! And cannot wait! I love those roasted sweet almonds at the mall and the aroma is just amazing! Can’t wait to try this out!