Homemade Maple Candied Pecans
Simple homemade maple candied pecans are so easy! Just 10 minutes and 4 common ingredients and you have these delicious autumn treats to enjoy in salads or as a sweet snack by themselves.
Candied nuts are my weakness. Worse than chocolate.
The minute it starts getting cold in NY, all the little roast nut stands appear on the sidewalk.
These little treats also appear on grocery shelves right around October. They’re truly unavoidable. Much to the detriment of my wallet and my health!
Jump to RecipeTL;DR
- Pour pecans into a nonstick sautépan.
- Heat over medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring often.
- Add maple syrup, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Stir to coat.
- Heat slowly while stirring until the maple syrup begins to crystalize onto your pecans.
- Remove from the heat. Pour pecans on parchment paper.
- Allow 15 minutes to cool and set.
- Eat them all at once.
They’re just so munchable and full of cozy fall flavors. I find myself eating them as a quick snack (and usually demolishing the entire batch at once.)
Sprinkle them on salads like my Winter Pear and Kale Salad with homemade cranberry balsamic dressing. Or use them to garnish roast squash, like cardamom roast butternut cubes. They even make great toppings to fall desserts like sherry poached apples. And don’t forget about toppings on ice cream!
But great news for anyone like me who suffers from candied-nut-madness, you can actually make them at home with ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen! Better for your health and your wallet.
Don’t forget roast squash seeds make another great fall snack, and one you can choose between savory or sweet!
Making Maple Candied Pecans
For something that’s so dangerously good, these little treats are also dangerously easy to make!
All you need is some pecans, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt.
Toasting the Pecans
I always toast my pecans first. Toasting them brings out a much richer, nutty flavor that’s perfect for fall. Toasting also dried them out a bit so they’ll be just a bit crunchier.
You can do this in the oven at around 225°F for 7 minutes. Or you can just toss them into your sautépan and keep a watchful eye over them for 3 minutes!
Be careful! They absolutely will burn if you leave them a second too long.
Maple Syrup and Spices
The traditional version of candied nuts uses egg whites and sugar to make them super crisp and coated with sticky goodness.
But maple syrup is such a classic fall flavor. It pairs with just about everything you’ll be eating this season: apples, pears, figs, squash, and even kale.
Not to mention using a natural sugar like maple syrup makes this recipe so easy! No egg white whipping required. All you need to do is heat away all the water in your syrup.
Don’t forget to add some cozy fall spices! Cinnamon and nutmeg are my two favorites for this recipe. They add a nice warm flavor that’s so addictive.
Variations:
Out of maple syrup? Try using brown sugar and water instead. You’ll just go through the same process of boiling off the water.
Not a fan of nutmeg or cinnamon? Change up your seasonal-spice-of-choice with other options like cloves, allspice, ginger, or cardamom!
Evaporating the Water
Phase 2 
Phase 3
The process is fairly simple. You just want to remove the water from your syrup so it crystalizes and sticks to your pecans.
*Note: Because you’re using an unrefined sugar and no egg whites, these nuts won’t harden quite as much as the store bought variety. They’ll be slightly softer, though still very crisp if you make sure to cook them to the end. This is also a good reason to toast them before hand!
Boiling off the water happens in stages:
- Stage 1: The maple syrup will be thin, runny, and full of rapid small bubbles.
- Stage 2: The maple syrup will start to thicken, and the bubbles will be slow and thick.
- Stage 3: You’ll notice the maple syrup will lose its liquid appearance, start to crystalize into tiny granules, and stick to the nuts. No more bubbles.
You can stop early at stage 2 if you prefer softer, glossier nuts. They’ll look very pretty, but this version will be much stickier and chewier!
I prefer taking them all the way to stage 3. They’re easier to snack on (almost too easy.) And once they’re thoroughly cooled and hardened, they make great DIY presents or fall party favors for your Thanksgiving or Christmas guests.
Just remember you really need to watch these guys as they do burn very quickly if you leave them too long. Save the Netflix watching for after you’ve made your candied nuts!
Serving Maple Candied Pecans
They may be a sweet treat, but these little guys are so versatile!
- Add them to a lovely fall or winter salad for a bit of flavorful crunch.
- Garnish your roast squash dishes. Pecans and maple syrup pair so well with squash!
- Sprinkle them over ice cream to dress up a classic for the holidays
- Use them as a topping for your fall desserts like sherry-poached apples
- Toss them in a baking recipe to add a little crunch to your cranberry orange coffee cake!
- Stuff them inside some fig and goat cheese-stuffed quail for a unique fall dinner
Simple homemade maple candied pecans are so easy! Just 10 minutes and 4 common ingredients and you have these delicious autumn treats to enjoy in salads or as a sweet snack themselves!
- 1 cup Pecan Halves
- 1/4 cup Maple Syrup
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
- Pinch of Salt
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Place pecans into a non-stick sauté pan. *Toast over medium heat for about 3 minutes, stirring often.
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Add in the maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt . Stir to combine.
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Cook over medium heat and stir often to keep from burning. You're trying to evaporate the water out of the maple syrup.
You'll pass three stages. First, the maple syrup will look glossy and thin with rapid bubbles. **Second, the maple syrup will start to thicken and the bubbles will be slower. Third, the maple syrup will start to crystalize and stick to the pecans. (It will look like your pecans are covered with brown sugar.)
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Remove from the heat and pour your pecans out onto some parchment paper. Allow to cool for 15 minutes.
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Enjoy your cozy fall snack! You can also use maple candied pecans as toppers for salads, soups, ice cream, fruit, desserts…almost anything! Store in an airtight container for about 2 weeks.
*Toasting the pecans is optional, but I find the extra warm, nutty flavors add to the cozy factor.
**You can stop during the second phase. But you’ll end up with sticky pecans. If you prefer sugared pecans rather than the glossy, sticky variety, hold out to phase 3!
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