There are more than a delicious sweet snack. Use these raw, maple-candied walnuts on a variety of desserts. These pair perfectly with slow roasted beets and cashew cream cheese.
Chef's notes
These maple spiced walnuts pair well with both sweet and savory dishes. They're a great addition to desserts, or sprinkled on your favorite salads.
Steps
1
Soaking the Walnuts
Ingredients
2 cups raw walnuts
3 to 4 cups water
To prepare the walnuts, in a medium bowl, soak the walnuts for 3 to 4 hours to soften. Strain, reserving the walnuts and discarding the liquid.
2
Preparing the Mixture for Dehydration
Ingredients
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp chipotle powder
1/2 cup maple sugar, finely ground
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
To prepare the mixture, place walnuts in a mixing bowl with the remaining ingredients and toss well.
3
Dehydrating the Walnuts
To finish the candied walnuts, set dehydrator at 115°F (45°C). Spread an even layer of walnuts on dehydrator trays, leaving room for air circulation. Continue to dehydrate for 7 to 10 hours or until crisp.
Store walnuts in a sealed container and refrigerate to retain crispness.
27 Comments
Bonnie D•
Can you tell us more about maple sugar? The recipe mentions ground maple sugar. What do I look for when shopping for maple sugar?
Maple sugar is a great ingredient when creating raw candied nuts since the sugars melt and crystalize, while giving a nice crunchy finished to the nuts—as opposed to using a wet sweetener such as date paste, syrups etc.
Maple sugar can be found in many health food shops in the baking isle. It occasionally comes in large crystals so you would need to blend for a powdered product. I love having this ingredient on hand for raw desserts, crusts, or just topping oatmeal in the morning, in replace of brown sugar. Hope that is helpful. Cheers.
You could use and oven, but it is trickier and less consistent. Use a warm oven set to very low (170F) and try for 45-60 minutes. Check and then see how much longer you want to let them "toast". The risk is in too much heat and scorching the nuts. ~Ken
For flavored/candied nuts, the process of soaking first gives the coasting a better chance of adhering and then creating a crunch after dehydrated. While soaking is not 100% necessary, it is a good method for candied nuts when using a dehydrator. ~Ken
It can be difficult to find maple sugar even in Quebec, Ontario or the maple producing states, Vermont, Main, New York etc. you can make your own easily from pure syrup. You boil syrup to between 32 - 40 degrees above boiling point of water. If anyone is interested in the steps to do this post a reply and I can walk you through the process. I make 70 pounds a year and it's the only sweetener I use except for fruit pastes.
Hi Jenna and thanks for your question! I would encourage you to definitely try using Coconut Sugar instead of Maple - I've attached the following link which outlines more goodness about Coconut Sugar! Enjoy and thanks for learning with Rouxbe Jenna! Chef Kirk
http://www.eatlivegrowpaleo.com/2012/05/in-praise-of-coconut-sugar.html
This looks great, I have never used a dehydrator before. I was thinking of using the above recipe of walnuts on top of a cashew cream will Walnuts stay crunchy or will they oxidize and lose their crunch, any idea ?
Vineeta, the nuts will lose their crunch with prolonged contact with moisture (they still taste really good, though!), so I recommend adding/garnishing/serving in that manner right at service time.
Hi Elyse! You could do either. I have tried both ways and usually just put these on the racks. I use the teflex sheets for messier/ stickier items like tortillas, fruit roll ups, coconut puree, etc. Happy dehydrating!
Hi Xiomara: From my own experience, I often interchange the date with maple sugar. Date sugar contains fiber and antioxidants, so there is that component. It works well, and has that nice caramel-like flavor. Good luck with your baking!
Hi Donna: yes, these nuts are delicious. Think of candied nuts that you see at the market, they are stored at room temp. If the nuts are stored in the refrigerator, there is moisture, which would take away the crunch of the nuts. Generally, make them when they will be served. If needed, store them in an air tight container, at room temp. They make great gifts, by the way. Hope this helps. Thanks, Char
Hello, Char: Thank you for your reply. That makes sense. However, I'm not quite sure which way to go as the last sentence of the recipe states "Store walnuts in a sealed container and refrigerate to retain crispness." Should the recipe be corrected?
Donna-- Thanks for writing, you are a recipe sleuth! I will take this to the recipe writers' attention. Thanks for getting back to me. Much appreciated. -Char
I just found out my oven has a dehydrate setting, now the question is do I need a special type of pan to allow for air circulation? Was planning on using a sheet pan with parchment, but just found an old broiler pan with some slits in it, I may try that. The dehydrator trays look almost like air filters. Thank you!
Chad S •Maple sugar is a great ingredient when creating raw candied nuts since the sugars melt and crystalize, while giving a nice crunchy finished to the nuts—as opposed to using a wet sweetener such as date paste, syrups etc. Maple sugar can be found in many health food shops in the baking isle. It occasionally comes in large crystals so you would need to blend for a powdered product. I love having this ingredient on hand for raw desserts, crusts, or just topping oatmeal in the morning, in replace of brown sugar. Hope that is helpful. Cheers.
Stefanie M •Could I use the oven instead of dehydrator? If so, at what temperature and for how long?
Ken R • Rouxbe Staff •You could use and oven, but it is trickier and less consistent. Use a warm oven set to very low (170F) and try for 45-60 minutes. Check and then see how much longer you want to let them "toast". The risk is in too much heat and scorching the nuts. ~Ken
Barb H •What's the benefit of soaking/softening the walnuts first? Is this true for other candied nuts as well?
Merna B •It can be difficult to find maple sugar even in Quebec, Ontario or the maple producing states, Vermont, Main, New York etc. you can make your own easily from pure syrup. You boil syrup to between 32 - 40 degrees above boiling point of water. If anyone is interested in the steps to do this post a reply and I can walk you through the process. I make 70 pounds a year and it's the only sweetener I use except for fruit pastes.
Kirk B •Hi Jenna and thanks for your question! I would encourage you to definitely try using Coconut Sugar instead of Maple - I've attached the following link which outlines more goodness about Coconut Sugar! Enjoy and thanks for learning with Rouxbe Jenna! Chef Kirk http://www.eatlivegrowpaleo.com/2012/05/in-praise-of-coconut-sugar.html
Susan B •I have a lot of pecans on hand and wonder if I could use then here instead of walnuts?
Elyse S •Thank goodness because I forgot it was walnuts and bought 4 pounds of pecans instead!
Vineeta G •This looks great, I have never used a dehydrator before. I was thinking of using the above recipe of walnuts on top of a cashew cream will Walnuts stay crunchy or will they oxidize and lose their crunch, any idea ?
Lauren L •Hi Elyse! You could do either. I have tried both ways and usually just put these on the racks. I use the teflex sheets for messier/ stickier items like tortillas, fruit roll ups, coconut puree, etc. Happy dehydrating!
Xiomara A •I have date sugar in my pantry, could I use it instead of maple sugar? I know it's less sweet but maybe it will work? Thanks!
Char N • Rouxbe Staff •Hi Xiomara: From my own experience, I often interchange the date with maple sugar. Date sugar contains fiber and antioxidants, so there is that component. It works well, and has that nice caramel-like flavor. Good luck with your baking!
Donna M •Fantastic recipe I look forward to making again. How long could I expect these walnuts to stay crisp in a sealed container in the refrigerator?
Julie Z •I just found out my oven has a dehydrate setting, now the question is do I need a special type of pan to allow for air circulation? Was planning on using a sheet pan with parchment, but just found an old broiler pan with some slits in it, I may try that. The dehydrator trays look almost like air filters. Thank you!