German sugared cashews a holiday favorite, perfect hostess gift

These sugared cashews are easy to make if you follow the directions and pay attention. This is not a recipe where you can walk away and do other things while you are making it.   This will take 30-40 minutes, so be sure you have that time allotted before you begin.   The last 5 minutes are the most crucial.

This is an old-world European recipe taught to me by two men from Germany who are my neighbors in Charleston. They own an international candy company and showed me how to make these — they are incredible!

If you want to substitute another nut for whatever reason, pecans and walnuts or skinless almonds work the best.

The recipe uses two cups of nuts (salted or unsalted — up to you), so increase as needed for the amount you need.  This is not a recipe with a “serving size,” as most people eat them all!

Before you begin, line two cookie sheets with wax paper and set them nearby.

OK — to begin, place 3 cups of water in a large, heavy stock pot; no lid needed after the water begins to boil. 

After the water is boiling, add the 2 cups of nuts of your choice.

Add 2 cups of plain white sugar.

Add 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon.

Bring to a rolling boil; stirring constantly.

Continue to boil rapidly and stir.  You will watch as the water begins to evaporate.

About 10-15 minutes into it, add 2 capfuls of vanilla flavoring. The mixture will react accordingly; keep stirring. As the water continues to evaporate, add another 2 capfuls of vanilla flavoring and keep stirring.  Do not stop stirring until you see a concentrated, sugary, dry surface begin to appear on the nuts.

Turn off the heat when there is no water left.

Quickly dump the nut mixture onto the wax paper.

 Set the hot pot somewhere safe.

 Using a large plastic or wooden spoon, break the still-warm nuts down somewhat. There will be a lot of extra vanilla/cinnamon sugar left from this process.

Let the nuts cool completely before storing in dry containers.

Gather the extra loose vanilla/cinnamon sugar into a container — it is wonderful to use as a topping for a baked ham, ice cream or on top of a cake or cupcakes.

I hope you will try these — they are the best.  A few tries with the process will make you very competent at making something that originated in Germany, has been enjoyed throughout Europe for centuries and made its way to Charleston in the 1980s. It’s a true old-world taste we still love today.