Login | Sign Up

News Satire People Food Other

Honey, Salt & Pepper Roasted Almonds

By Catherine Noonan on August 27, 2013 in Food

Photo: Catherine Noonan

Photo: Catherine Noonan

This recipe idea came to me whilst on a group holiday recently. It’s something I came up with when I had very few ingredients on hand but lots of hungry mouths to please. You see, we had gone BYO with most of our holiday food but toward the end of our stay the nibblies supply was drastically dwindling.

To alleviate the problem I roasted an otherwise utterly unappealing bag of raw almonds, adding some sea-salt for the beer-drinking men and some honey for the sweet and lovely ladies in our company. I also cracked in some black pepper to give them a bit of a kick and voila: my honey, salt and pepper almonds were born. Needless to say, they were then very quickly devoured during drinks that afternoon!

To make them extra healthy and significantly reduce the guilt factor, I’ve swapped regular cooking oil for coconut oil. Coconut oil is said to have many wonderful health benefits. Don’t worry if you don’t usually like it because you really can’t taste it on the end result.

For the honey, I recommend using Manuka honey, which also boasts many wonderful health benefits including antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, soothing and immune boosting properties – perfect for the cold and flu season that is currently upon us!

So give them a go and see what you think. They make a great snack for any time of day but also suit antipasto platters. And they’re the perfect accompaniment to those afternoon sundowners!

Makes: 2 cups
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
2 cups raw almonds
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp coconut oil

Method:
1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 160 degrees Celsius.
2. Line a baking tray with baking paper and set aside.
3. In a bowl, mix together the salt, pepper, honey and coconut oil.
4. Add the almonds to the bowl, mixing until the almonds are evenly coated.
5. Spread the almonds out on the lined baking tray.
6. Bake for 20 minutes, then taste and sprinkle with more sea-salt if desired.
7. Allow the nuts to cool completely before serving and storing*.

*It may be worth spreading the almonds on some paper towel after they have fully cooled, to absorb any excess oil. You will note that as they cool, they will become less sticky too.

Storage:
Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container. Refrigeration is not required.

The Beast.