pie-spiced pecans and pepitas

Everything is pumpkin-pie-spiced now. EVERYTHING. JEEEZ.

So here's another for your pumpkin pie pinterest board...Pecans! I find pecan to be a superior pie to pumpkin *ducks*, but I do love the blend of warm spices typically found in pumpkin pie. What if I married the two? I also added some pepitas to the mix... because they are pumpkin seeds... see what I did there?



These would make a great gift for the holidays... the tastes of every one's favorite pies in a form you can eat anytime, anywhere. These really are reminiscent of a decadent pie... you will not want to stop eating them!

Pie-Spiced Nuts 

-2 cups nuts (I used pecans and pepitas... mostly pecans. walnuts & hazelnuts would be great, too!)
-1/3 cup turbinado (raw) sugar (or a mix of white & brown sugar)
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
-1/2 teaspoon cardamom
-1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
-1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
-1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 Tablespoon water
-1 Tablespoon Honey
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Toast the nuts on a parchment-lined cookie sheet in a 300ºF oven for about 20 minutes, until slightly browned and toasty tasting. Meanwhile, mix the sugar and spices and salt together in a big bowl. 

Once the nuts are toasted, heat the water, honey and vanilla in a large skillet until heated through, stirring or whisking to combine. Turn off the heat, add the nuts and toss to coat them thoroughly. 

Dump the sticky toasted nuts into the bowl with the sugar and spices and toss to coat well. Pour them back onto the parchment-lined cookie sheet and let dry at least 30 minutes. They will store for a couple weeks just fine (if they last that long!).