In my commercial kitchen, I used to make a salad that we sold under the name, “Mixed Berry Salad with Cinnamon Walnuts.” It happened that every time we made the salad, whoever was in the kitchen (me included) would devour the cinnamon walnuts before we had a chance to add them to the salads. I learned my lesson quickly and started making extras of what we now call, “Candied Walnuts.” This recipe is simple, but it tastes like you’ve gone to some real trouble, possibly using such advanced techniques as caramelizing sugar and baking on parchment paper in a just-right-temperature oven. The truth is, it takes about 3 minutes and one bowl.

Here’s the recipe:

To a small bowl, add 1 1/3 C walnuts or pecans, 1 1/2 T agave or honey, 1 tsp. cinnamon and a 1/4 tsp. salt. Mix well with your hands so you can lick your fingers when you’re done. Eat up (or add to your favorite fruity green salad or atop homemade ice cream)!

Also, as my daughter reminded me last night while assisting with a Raw Melissa dessert class, you can even make this using almonds. She knows, because she tried once at my commercial kitchen when I wasn’t looking. (She had them all eaten before I noticed anything was amiss).

One of my favorite ways to eat these is with a slew of greens, a handful of frozen mixed berries and a drizzling of honey, lemon and olive oil.

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