I had a half pound of walnut halves left from baking, so I pulled out a favorite recipe for honey walnuts. Walnuts get rancid quickly and I hate to waste them.
These are wonderful with cheese, salad and even in Asian stir-fries. Baked with just a light glaze of sugar and honey, they aren't nearly as sweet as store bought candied nuts. Walnuts are one of the very healthiest nuts, so why ruin them with gobs of sugar.
The recipe starts with an unusual step: boil the nuts for 5 minutes. Drain them in a colander, then set aside. In a larger saucepan, mix together 2 tbs. honey, 2 tbs. sugar and 2 tbs. water plus a big pinch of salt. Bring that mixture to a boil, then add the hot nuts. Stir constantly until they look dry-- this takes a few minutes.
A word about honey. Buy the good stuff. Back in 2011, we could still get this beautiful French honey in a tin. Maybe the French decided to keep it all for themselves (can't blame them) because it went off the market.
Well, the German bees also know a thing or two about making delicious honey! This was a great find, at Ross of all places, for about $8. I look for more whenever I go to that crazy store.
OK, back to the recipe. Once the liquid has evaporated and the nuts look dry, spread them on a sheet pan lined with foil. Bake in a 350 degree oven.
Turn them every few minutes until they turn rich, dark brown. Be careful, because they burn in the twinkling of an eye.
These babies won't last long.
I will certainly give this a try, it looks a good way to use walnuts which we have a plentiful supply.
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