These candied almonds are lightly naturally sweetened, flavored with cinnamon and vanilla and make excellent last-minute gifts! They’re also naturally paleo and vegan.
If you’re anything like me, you probably still haven’t bought all your Christmas gifts yet and the thought of going shopping at this point doesn’t sound all that fun.
So here’s a homemade treat that you can whip up in no time! You likely already even have everything you need in your pantry. Not only are these candied almonds a great last-minute present, but they’re seriously delicious and made a tad healthier!
A lot of candied nut recipes call for corn syrup and a huge amount of sugar. All the sweetener you need for this recipe is 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and 3 tablespoons of coconut sugar or granulated sugar.
The maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon add a lot of flavor and I can pretty much guarantee you – you won’t miss all the extra sugar found in other recipes!
Don’t like almonds? Feel free to use a different type of nut! These maple walnuts are another great choice. The only ingredients you need for those are walnuts and maple syrup. I think these candied almonds are tastier, though. :)
These almonds hold up very well so you can make them several days in advance. The only problem with them is that they’re so addictive.
If you’re making these as gifts, you’ll probably want to double or triple the recipe! These rosemary spiced nuts also look like a great gift option.
Just make sure your pan is large enough to handle all the nuts. You don’t want to be slopping the hot, cooking candy mixture all over.
I originally posted this recipe in 2012 but the pictures were so bad that I never shared the recipe anywhere. If you’ve made these before, don’t worry – it’s the same exact recipe.
And also, check out the reviews if you need any convincing to make these. I especially like this one: “I’ve been trying different candied almond recipes for several years now, and HANDS DOWN this is the BEST!!!”
Yay! By the way, I LOVE it when you all leave feedback on recipes. I really do appreciate it! And I know the other readers appreciate them, too.
Are you all ready for Christmas? I’m not, but at least I have a few bags of these candied almonds to hand out. :) I think this will be my last post for the year. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a great start to 2017!
Paleo Vegan Maple Cinnamon Candied Almonds
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 1 1/2 cups
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup (225 grams) almonds
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar or granulated sugar1
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil (or canola or vegetable oil)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (176 °C). Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Set this aside.
- On another baking sheet, spread the almonds and bake for 7-12 minutes, stirring halfway, or until they smell toasty. You should smell a nutty aroma coming from the oven when the almonds are ready. Remove the almonds from the oven and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the sugar and salt. Set the bowl aside. Combine the maple syrup, water, oil, vanilla and cinnamon in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and add the almonds.
- Cook until almost all of the liquid has evaporated, stirring frequently. This will take about 2-3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the nuts to the bowl with the sugar and toss to make sure that they’re well-coated.
- Pour the almonds evenly onto the parchment-lined pan and cool completely. The nuts will be soft while still warm but once completely cooled, the almonds and the coating become crunchy.
Notes
- I’ve made them with both types of sugar and the ones with coconut sugar were much better. They had a slight caramel-like taste and were crunchier than the ones with white sugar. I haven’t tried it with unrefined / raw / turbinado sugar, but since the crystals aren’t as fine as coconut sugar, I don’t know how well that would work out. If you use granulated sugar and they’re taking a long time to harden, stick them in the fridge.
Source: My post on Cee – The Blog From Cohen's: Easy Candied Almonds
Note: Pictures were updated in 12/2016.
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70 comments on “Candied Almonds (naturally paleo, vegan)” — Add one!
5 comments are awaiting moderation!
Make these, they’re delicious. Great as a gift.
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for your feedback. :)
Do you know how many calories these have?
I’m so sorry for just now seeing this! I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile. :)
These are very good. We traditionally give both of our daughters some cinnamon almonds for Christmas and one of my daughters became vegan so finding almonds that were vegan became challenging since most contain egg. I looked online for a recipe and most contained egg white. I found this one and gave it a try. I doubled the recipe but only had # tablespoons of maple syrup on hand and didn’t have time to go to the store to buy more. I made up the difference with agave so I used 3T of maple syrup + 1T of agave. I also did not have coconut sugar on hand so just used granulated. I would like to try coconut sugar. This recipe is saved and will be made again.
Hi Ken! I’m so glad that you enjoyed them and will be making them again. It’s also great to know that maple + agave works. Thanks for your tip! I hope that your daughters enjoyed the almonds, too. Thanks again and sorry for my slow reply! The last few weeks have been crazy.
Tripled recipe and followed exactly. Sooo good. Packaged in mason jars for Xmas presents. Thank you!!
You’re welcome! What a great idea to put them in mason jars. Thanks for the tip and your feedback! :)
Dumb question, but I use raw almonds, correct?
I’m so sorry for just now replying to your question. I was on vacation and just got back. Yes, you can use raw or even roasted! The kind without added ingredients – just roasted almonds. Sorry again for my slow reply!
Great recepie
Thanks! :)
I rarely write reviews, but this recipe is a keeper. I made them for Christmas and have continued to make them and send in care packages to my kid at college. Just the right amount of sweetness.
I’m happy that you liked them enough to write a review! Thank you. :) I’m glad to hear that they work nicely for your care packages! Thanks for your comment.
I can’t seem to make this right – why are my almonds chewy when I’m done cooking them?
I’m sorry for just now seeing your question! The almonds are always chewy when you’re done cooking them but crisp up as they cool. :)
These are fantastic. They are easy and really quick to make. I used maple sugar instead of coconut sugar and that worked really well. Thanks for a great recipe.
You’re welcome! I bet they’re delicious with maple sugar. Thanks for the tip and for your comment!
Great! Thank you so much! But please, now I need a detailed tutorial on how to stop eating them!
Haha. I have the same problem. ;) So happy you like them! Thanks for your comment.
Oh my….AMAZING! I added in some walnuts also. They roast a little quicker than the almonds, but they taste delish! Great recipe!!!
So happy you liked them! I bet they’re great with walnuts. :) Thanks for your comment!
Hi! These look amazing. Could I follow the same recipe but replace almonds with cashews? Thanks!
Hi there! I believe that’d be fine. I’d love to hear how they come out! :)
Okay, I just made a triple batch of these about two hours ago, and already a third of them are gone! GREAT recipe. I made them exactly per your instructions and they came out perfect. Obviously. Thank you!
Haha. I think you’re amazing for only eating a third of the batch. :D I’m so happy you liked them! Thanks for your comment.
Christmas may be over but I’m still going to be making these for presents! What a great little treat to make for someone!
Weihnachtsmarkt worthy! I only had a vanilla bean so used half of one and it was pretty pronounced but we both liked it a lot. Also, I only had unrefined sugar so ran it through the spice grinder. We also liked the combo of big and small sugar granules. These will make a great gift – next year. ; D
Woohoo! I’m happy to hear that it worked out well. And I like your idea of using a vanilla bean! Sounds great. :) Thanks a bunch for your comment and I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!
These really look delicious. I have never made cinnamon nuts. I need to fix that. HA!!
You definitely do! Merry Christmas, Charlotte! :D
This recipe is awesome! Just a note…this is great for pecans too! Roasted pecans are amazing. Also, I made this using erithrytol instead of sugar. I think it turned out great (if you’re used to the whole unrefined sugar thing)! Thank you for the recipe! I will be keeping this one :)
That’s great that these work with pecans! That’s great to know. Thanks for the tip! I’m so happy you liked them. :)
I make these all the time, with coconut sugar. They always come out perfectly. I even did them with cashews once, not as good as the almonds though! At Christmas time I swap colored red sanding sugar for the coconut sugar to make them festive.
Ooh! That’s a fun idea. I’m so happy that this recipe has worked out so well for you. Thanks for the tip on making them more festive and for your feedback! :)
I made these today doubling the recipe and used coconut oil and brown sugar . Delicious!
Doubling this recipe is always a good idea (if you have someone to share with, at least! ;)) I’m so happy that they came out well for you! Thanks for the feedback. :)
I just made these with almonds AND banana chips. SO delicious!! I even managed to get away with 2T of sugar too, which is nice.
Thanks for such a deliciously light recipe! :)
Your banana chip addition sounds great! And I love that you used even less sugar. :) I’ll have to try that next time. Thanks so much for your feedback!
I used olive oil and raw sugar for this recipe. Sooooo delicious!!! I shared some with my co-workers and they asked for the recipe.
I’m so happy that you and your co-workers liked the nuts! Thanks for the feedback. :) And olive oil sounds like a great change!
just made these they were great!!!!!! you were soooooo right about them being addickting! thank you sooo much for this ricipe!!!
Hehe. So true! I'm happy that you liked them. Thanks a ton for the feedback. :D
Love love live these …… OMG soo good!
I'm happy you enjoyed them! Thanks for letting me know. :)
I'm scared I'll binge on these but I'll try them, they sound delicious! Thanks for this alternative recipe – I will use the coconut sugar.
Sara :-)
Good! Coconut sugar is the way to go. :) And binging on these was a serious problem for me. Try to make these when you have people coming over and you HAVE to share. Hope you like them! :)
I've made double batches of this recipe twice now in the last month! I've been trying different candied almond recipes for several years now, and HANDS DOWN this is the BEST!!! My whole family loves them!! Thank you for continuing to post such yummy, healthy recipes!
Hi Wendy! Sorry for the slow reply. I somehow didn't see this comment until now. I'm so happy that you liked these! And wow, what a compliment. Thank you very much. :) And thanks for your feedback! I really appreciate it. Happy holiday baking to you! :)
Sam – Thank you so much for leaving feedback! I'm happy your family enjoyed them. Thanks again for letting me know. :)
I love these! I even doubled the recipe to make some last night, and my family still made them dissapear within minutes!
I had to laugh about your "gebrannte Mandeln" comment… hahaha… I love the idea of coconut sugar!! I admit I have never tried it before but it sounds delicious…
Lakshmi – I hope you enjoy them! With coconut sugar they're just out of the world. I'd love to hear what you come up as your version. :)
These are exactly what I'm craving for right now! Toasted almonds are great. With sugar…how much greater can they get? I have to make a batch of gluten-free, vegan sweets next week and I might build a recipe around these candied almonds. Thanks for the inspiration. Often the simplest things are the best.
I can imagine finishing a big container of these candied stuff. They look so delicious, I love snacking with nuts, healthy and tasty!
Nora – Oh Nora. As I was replying to the comments today, I decided it wasn't right that I had to keep coming back and look at that picture without having some of those almonds. So I made more about two hours ago and they're all gone. They're terrible. Don't make them unless you have a party or something! I just looked up how many calories are in 1.5 cups of almonds (not the sugar and other stuff) and… 1226! I'm not usually worried about calories but that's just horrible. I mean, I could go to Chili's, if they actually existed here, and get some chicken crispers and French fries for that amount of calories. These almonds could probably help explain why I've gained 6 pounds in about a month. No more almonds for me. :(
These look fantastic Erin! I love your use of maple syrup + coconut sugar — I love that combo! YUM!
These little candied jewels wouldn't last long AT ALL in my house…I would probably eat all of them in one sitting! No seriously, these wouldn't stand a chance with me around! :) XO
Baltic Maid – That's what gebrannte Mandeln are?! And I always pass them up at the Christmas markets?! Noooo! I've obviously never had them but I promise these are much less sugary. And with coconut sugar, they're much much tastier. :)
Are these like "Gebrannte Mandeln"? I LOOOVE those. I have never made them myself but eaten tons of them in Germany, especially on Christmas markets… I can see how it would be hard to take a picture… they are so tasty!!!
I love that you reduced the sugar…
Miryam – You definitely won't have that problem with these because there's very little sugar on them. :) What kind of sugar are you going to use? Coconut sugar is the best! It gives them a caramelish flavor that you don't get from white sugar. I think you should make one batch first to see if you like them and then make them again and double the batch. Maybe they're too sweet / not sweet or cinnamon-y enough and I'd hate for you to waste almonds. :)
Georgia – Thanks! What's funny is that I don't like almonds and I love these. :)
I absolutely love almonds and would love to prepare them this way next time I serve em up! Such a great recipe!
OMG, 1 1/2 cup of sugar? I don't see using that much sugar unless you have at least 4 times the amount of almonds. I have tried things like these at Gourmet stores and they taste awful because there is a huge sugar coating around the almond that makes the almond just taste like a big clump of hard sugar.
I am going to get some almonds tomorrow and make this :-) Maybe I will double or triple the batch though otherwise I am sure I will only get to eat one or two :-) NO JOKE!!
Heidi – Yeah, I hope other people also like the low sugar version but really, we already thought they were super sugary the way I made them. I can't imagine there being even more!
Amy – I hope you like them! :)
Becca – I hope you do! They're super quick and easy. :)
London Bakes – Thanks! And haha, don't you love that? 24 tablespoons of sugar for 1.5 cups of nuts. It's crazy.
Such a cute picture! These sound really delicious and I love that you cut down the sugar so much. I really don't need to eat 24 tablespoons of sugar!
Oh, oh! I love almonds! Almonds are one of my favorite nuts (I have yet to meet a nut I didn't like). I can't wait to try these!!!!
these sound delicious! i'll definitely be trying these (+ nomming the heck out of them) ASAP!
Yummy! As if I need nuts to be more addicting, because seriously, I can't get enough. I do love how little sugar there is in these compared to other recipes. Also, maple + cinnamon = delicious :D
Bianca – They're incredibly addicting! So I guess I'm kind of recommending you not to try them. Unless you have people to share with! Then you have to share. :)
Cassie – Thank you! I don't know what those little dishes are actually for so I put everything in there. Maybe they're for mini tarts or something.
Yum. I love these Erin! And your little dishes are adorable!
Candied nuts are one of my favorite things :) and i LOVE almonds, so i can't imagine how addicting these would be! I'm almost afraid to try them. Love your blog!