The first 20 recipes in nothing fancy fall under the “Snack Time” category, and this was the first one I’ve made. I love snacks, so why did it take me 3 months to dabble in this category? I think because my ideal snack and Alison’s ideal snack aren’t super aligned..
Alison likes fishy snacks like trout roe on toast and anchovies with potato chips. Alison reaches for bowls of fancy olives and sesame dips. She appreciates a good shrimp cocktail. While I’ll eventually have to try all of those things, and may even like some of them, they’re not what I crave when I want a tasty snack to perk up my afternoon. I like pickles and tortilla chips. I want a tangerine or a bowl of honey-mustard pretzels.
Another snack I can totally get behind are flavored, roasted nuts. Alison and I absolutely agree on that. So enter these slightly sticky walnuts!
These walnuts are a quick, easy, and super tasty snack that’s fancy enough to appear at a party and humble enough to be an ordinary day treat.
To make these tasty walnuts, toss 4 cups of raw walnut pieces in maple syrup, tahini, olive oil, raw sesame seeds, a pinch of cayenne, and salt and pepper. Bake the nuts on a baking sheet and parchment paper for 20 minutes at 325. As soon as they’re a golden brown and removed from the oven, sprinkle with flaky salt and ground sumac.
The result is a good balance of salty and sweet, and a fun crunch from the nuts and sesame seeds. They’re addicting. If these nuts are any indication of how I’ll like the other snack time recipes, then good times are yet to come.
50 (!) recipes cooked, 175 to go.
