7 Holiday Spiced Nuts Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What are the most popular nuts at Christmas? ›

Walnuts, with their rich, buttery flavour, are a must-have. Hazelnuts, too, are popular, bringing a sweet, mellow taste that's perfect for festive recipes. Almonds add a delightful crunch to our Christmas cakes, while Brazil nuts offer a decadent treat, especially when covered in chocolate!

How do you get spices to stick to nuts? While some recipes rely on added oil or syrup to do the job, we utilize the binding power of egg white to adhere our spiced sugar to the cashews and almonds.

Pistachio – Pistachios are the Christmas Nut. In my home growing up, the only time we ever saw the pistachio was at Christmas time. It was always exciting to see the special treat, and the many sweet and delightful combinations of treats made with them. They are said to bring good luck to the holiday.

Spiced nuts freeze well and thaw quickly, so keep some on hand for last minute gatherings. To freeze, put them on a parchment-lined baking sheet in one layer and place in the freezer. Once they harden, transfer them to an airtight container.

Appearing on the list of popular Christmas nuts is walnuts, pecans, Macadamias, filberts, peanuts, Brazil nuts and cashews. As the holidays approach, buying Christmas nuts in bulk is a time-saving, budget-friendly task to add to your holiday preparation list.

Peanuts, almonds, pecans, and walnuts top the list of the most consumed nut varieties in the United States, showing up most often in sweeter items.

Nutmeg is a spice derived from the genus Myristica plant native to both Africa and Eastern Indonesia. Myristica fragrans (fragrant nutmeg) comes from the Indonesian Banda Islands, also known as the Spice Islands, and is among the earliest spices traded in history.

Sally Fallon (founding president of the Weston A. Price Foundation) explains that using salt to soak nuts “… helps activate enzymes that de-activate the enzyme inhibitors. For grains, we soak in an acidic solution to get rid of phytic acid.

Nuts can be roasted either with or without oil – producing 'oil-roasted' or 'dry-roasted' nuts, respectively.

Nutcracker dolls, also known as Christmas nutcrackers, are decorative nutcracker figurines most commonly made to resemble a toy soldier. In German tradition, the dolls are symbols of good luck, frightening away malevolent spirits.

Why is it called a nutcracker? ›

Why are they called wooden toy soldier nutcrackers? Because the first nutcrackers were made as replicas of soldiers and other figures of authority. The common folk took great enjoyment in having the ruling people working for them, cracking their "hard nuts of life".

Mix Your Christmas Nuts

Mix salted and unsalted nuts such as pecans, almonds, cashews, peanuts, and hazelnuts. You and your guests will also love a honey roasted mix that includes pecans, almonds, and cashews along with some sesame sticks.

There might be a risk associated with regularly eating fistfuls of oxidized nuts, though. Some emerging research suggests a potential link between long-term exposure to oxidized fats and negative health effects, like inflammation and increased cancer risk—but the connection is still unclear.

Whole raw nuts can be stored in the freezer for up to one year. Chopped nuts, ground nuts, or nut flours — all of which contain more surface area for oxidation — are quicker to spoil and should only be stored for up to six months.

A: Nuts can't expire; however, they can change in taste or go rancid. Nuts contain much-unsaturated fat, an oil that makes nuts likely to go rancid. Nuts spoil faster when exposed to light, air, or heat. No fuss; cool, dark, and air-sealed are the three trifectas to storing nuts properly.

When it comes to holiday nuts, roasted almonds reign supreme, offering a timeless appeal. Their toasty aroma and delightfully crunchy texture create an irresistible combination. Whether enjoyed by themselves or used in savory dishes, these versatile nuts provide a comforting and satisfying experience.

Walnuts are one of the world's most popular nuts. The world is consuming more groundnuts and tree nuts than ever before due to the health benefits associated with these nuts. Peanuts are the most consumed groundnut while almond is the most consumed tree nut.

These include common, widely known types of nuts such as almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, hazelnuts, peanuts, macadamia nuts, pine nuts, Brazil nuts, pistachios, and butternuts, among others. Some lesser-known nuts are also edible, such as saba nuts, paradise nuts, pili nuts, baru nuts, mongongo nuts, and more.