Remember that yummy Green Goddess Salad I shared with you a couple of months ago?

Well, there is something I forgot to share…

Those nuts in the salad were a “cleaned up” version of my mom’s holiday cinnamon roasted nuts.

When It comes to salads, for me, the more toppings and mix-ins the better…especially when there is some crunch and sweetness involved.  While I absolutely LOVE candied nuts, many times they are SUPER sugary and not the healthiest option when it comes to salad toppings.  I decided to roll up my sleeves and get creative in the kitchen to lighten up my mom’s recipe by reducing the sugar and using something other than refined sugar.  After a couple of failed trials…I have a successful version to share with all of you!

Typically, cinnamon roasted nuts have a very sugary taste and texture to them but these nuts are a bit different.  They are super crunchy because they are roasted, but the flavor is almost a hint of sweetness…almost like they are just “dusted” with cinnamon and honey.  I promise these will add a yummy crunch and sweetness to your salad  🙂

Cinnamon Honey Roasted Nuts

Ingredients:

• 1 cup nuts (I used walnuts and almonds)
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp water
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 250.
2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking sheet.
3. In a mixing bowl, whip the egg white and water until frothy.  Add in the honey and whip a bit more to combine.
4. In a separate mixing bowl mix the salt and cinnamon.
5. Add the nuts to the egg white, water, honey mixture and stir thoroughly until all of the nuts are coated.
6. Add the cinnamon mixture to the nuts and make sure to cover each nut with all the ingredients.
7. Spread nuts on the lined baking sheet.
8. Bake at 250 for 1 hour stirring every 15 minutes.
9. Allow to cool thoroughly.

*I like to store my extra cinnamon honey roasted nuts in the freezer for use at a later date…if you can stand to have any leftover!

These are also great for a little after dinner snack, or for satisfying a raging sweet tooth 😉

Question:

• Have you ever tried to “healthify” a family recipe?  Were you successful?