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Cinnamon Almonds
Do you know those delicious cinnamon almonds at the mall? Well these are SO much better! And you can make them for about the same price you pay for one of those tiny bags. I LOVED the way this made my house smell! It seriously makes me want to make a batch daily. The brown sugar and cinnamon mixture gives an AMAZING flavor and the perfect crunchiness…. I almost think that the ones at the mall are a little too crunchy. And how perfect are these for gifts for the holidays? I feel like I have to spread the deliciousness of these and give them to all my friends and family!
These are super easy to throw together and let the slow cooker work it’s magic. You do have to stir the almonds every 20 min or so, so don’t set it and forget it. But it’ll be so worth it as you eat these cinnamony little devils. Be careful not to eat them all in one sitting, it’ll be tempting. Trust me.
Cinnamon and Sugar Almond Ingredients
Simple ingredients come together to make a easy treat! These are a MUST make!
- Sugar: White sugar
- Brown Sugar: Helps with caramelization and deep rich flavor.
- Salt: Balances out the sweet.
- Almonds: Raw unsalted plain almonds.
- Cinnamon: The star in the spice combo
- Egg White: Helps the cinnamon and sugar stick and creates crunch
- Vanilla: Flavor enhancer
- Water: Creates the caramelization at the end.
How to Make Cinnamon and Sugared Almonds
Despite it being the slow cooker you don’t want to necessarily walk away! It will need stirring.
- Mix: In a large bowl mix together the cinnamon, sugars and salt
- Whisk: In a separate bowl whisk the vanilla and egg white together till good and frothy.
- Stir: Pour the almonds into the egg white mixture and stir to coat thoroughly.
- Coat: Dump the cinnamon and sugar mixture over the almonds and stir to coat.
- Slow Cook: Spray your crockpot with cooking spray. Place the almonds inside and stir again to make sure all the almonds are covered. Cook on low for 3-4 hours stirring every 20 minutes
- Water: Drizzle the water over the almonds and stir. Cook for another 30 min.
- Cool: Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment or wax paper. Pour the almonds on the cookie sheet and spread out evenly. Allow to cool completely before storing.
Why Egg Whites and Water Work
You might be wondering why you need egg whites and water for roasted almonds.
- Egg Whites: The egg white acts as a binder for the flavor to the nuts. It also acts similar to merguine when it hits the heat, creating a fine crunchy coating. It helps prevent an oily vibe from the nuts as well.
- Water: The water creates another binder as well as a sticky shiny coating at the end. You can actually leave out the water if you desire. They’ll still be crunchy, but the coating will be more powdery then sticky.
Tips and Variations
- Nuts: You can substitute out the almonds and use pecans, cashews, walnuts or other nut of choice.
- Add ins: Try adding in flaked coconut, sprinkles, crushed candy cane or anything else that tickles your fancy. Add these right after you’ve removed them from the slow cooker so they’re still warm and it’ll stick.
- Cooling: The longer you let the almonds cool before bagging or storing the crunchier they’ll stay. Don’t bag or store while warm, they’ll sweat ruining the crunchy cinnamon coating
- Stir: Remember you need to stir these every 20-30 minutes. Keep covered during cooking process
- Leftovers: Chop up leftovers for granola, yogurt, and dessert topping. YUM!
Storing and Gifting!
These are so easy to store and keep, if you can! They are so fun to snack on and munch on while wrapping gifts or enjoying family and friends over. This year give the gift of almonds to all your friends, family and neighbors. It is the perfect treat to share and easy to drop off on a doorstep or add to a gift basket. So many options for these easy cinnamon almonds.
- Giving: Pick up some fun gift giving bags to use for gifting for family and friends. About 1 to 2 cups per bag will make everyone holidays better!
- Storing: It is best to keep them in an air tight bin or bag that is stored in a cool, dry place.
More Slow Cooker Recipes to Try
From dessert to main dishes you can do so much in a slow cooker.
- Slow Cooker Cherry Chocolate Hot Fudge Cake
- Slow Cooker Pumpkin Chili
- Crack Chicken in a Slow Cooker
- Slow Cooker Peach Cobbler
- Mongolian Beef in a Slow Cooker
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Slow Cooker Cinnamon Almonds
Ingredients
Instructions
- Mix together in a large bowl sugars, cinnamon, and salt.
- In another bowl with a whisk, mix together the egg white and vanilla until it is frothy. Add the almonds and coat thoroughly. This will help the mixture stick to the almonds during the cooking process.
- Prepare your slow cooker by spraying it with cooking spray. I used a 4 quart. Add the cinnamon almond mixture to the almonds and turn it to low. Stir until the cinnamon sugar mixture is coated well on the almonds. Be prepared for your house to smell amazing!
- You want to cook for about 3-4 hours. Mine took about 3. Stirring every 20 minutes. In the very last hour, add 1/8 cup water and stir well. This will ensure a crunchy coating and help the mixture to harden.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the almonds onto the sheet to cool. The almonds should be pretty sticky so be sure to separate them the best that you can and let them cool!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
So did you ever get back to experimenting with this cinnamon almond recipe, Alyssa? You had a note at the bottom that you were going to try less sugar and less water. How did that turn out for you. Want to make these today but with so many different ideas of what to do I’m a bit hesitant.
Yes! If you search slow cooker cinnamon pecans on my site I changed some of the measurements. 🙂
I just made these and they are a big goopy mess! They look nothing like the picture. They actually were better looking until I added the water. They ended up very runny so when I placed on the parchment paper to dry, it’s like almond brittle. What did I do wrong? I followed recipe to a T. HELP! I have already purchased tons of almonds to make these as gifts…
These are in my crock pot as we speak! They are one of my husband’s favorite treats, and he was stunned to find that I could make them at home. He has been standing over them sniffing and volunteering to stir. I have a feeling they’re going to be very popular around here.
I tried these the other night and they are amazing! I used 4 c. of almonds and 2 tbsp. cinnamon/1 tbsp. nutmeg. Delicious!
I’m making these today for Christmas goodies. I just made a bunch pumpkin pie spice and was thinkin that the pumpkin pie spice might make a nice variation to this. I think I’ll do a small test batch, since I don’t want to waste a bunch of nuts. Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
QUESTUON? Do you put lid on crockpot while cooking?
Yes.
Hi – I made these last Christmas to give away as gifts, and I followed the recipe exactly – they turned out amazing! I made a double batch last night, and I think I added too much water. I let them cook in slow cooker for another hour and then laid them out onto parchment paper and they were runny and not at all like last year. I thought if they cooled they may turn out – but no…I was wrong. The sugar is still grainy and they just don’t look anything like they did last year.
Is there anyway to resurrect these almonds? Would either putting them back into the crockpot or put them on the stove or in the oven fix this issue?
Please help!
I just tried these with a mixture of almonds, pecans, cashews and walnuts. Mine have been out of the crockpot for over and hour, and when I taste them the coating is crispy, but the nuts are soft. Are they going to harden up eventually, or did I ruin them somehow?
I just made these and they are divine! I reduced the sugars to 1 1/4 c and increased the almonds to 5 cups and the ratios were perfect! No “extra” sugar in the bottom of the slow cooker:) Thank you so much for sharing this recipe-it’s one I plan on using for a long time to come!!!
Have you done this without the water? Just wondering…since thats where a lot of individuals comment about it not looking as great! I did these last year with this recipe and they were awesome…just did today; same recipe and they too look burnt after adding the water and letting it go the last hour. I can’t remember what I did different a year ago. Wondering if they turn out w/out the water added….bc they do taste a bit burnt unfortunately. As expensive as nuts, especially almonds, are I hate that these may get tossed 🙁 I did shorten the amount of sugars like suggested…but thinking the 1/4 C water was what I did different this year vs 1/8 C water last year.
They definitely should not be tasting burnt. They are probably being cooked too long. I always add the water because it makes the cinnamon sugar sticky and stick better to the almonds.
I am in the process of making them now…..already did one batch and I followed the 1 cup recipe of the sugars with the 1/8 cup of water…it was perfect!!! Mine weren’t sticky at all……much easier to take them out of the pot and no mess….and I used pecans instead. All the ingredients stuck to the pecans and dryed fast. Perfection!!!!!!!!!!!! ♥
I used a crock pot liner, easy mixing and clean up.
I am making these right now. I followed the recipe until I got to the instructions for the egg whites. I doubled those, doubled the vanilla, and doubled the nuts. I used walnuts. They are into their 3rd hour of cooking and I am glad I doubled where I did. There is a TON of sugar in this recipe and I can tell that I would have had clumps of extra goo if I had not doubled the nuts.
Now, how do I know when they are “done,” please? There is a big difference between three and four hours and I am not sure how to tell when I should add the water.
xo
Can anyone tell me how many lbs of almonds this would be? I’m thinking about making these as gifts but am trying to figure out how many pounds of almonds to purchase. Also, anyone know of a cheap place to buy the almonds 🙂 Online or wherever? Thanks!
3 Cups of almonds is 24oz….so 1.5 lbs of almonds. Wholesale clubs like Costco or Sams will probably be cheapest but will be in bulk.
I love this recipe and just wanted to share a slight modification that works well for me. I use 1 cup of each sugar and 6 cups of nuts, these proportions work perfectly! Also, instead of spreading on a cookie sheet right away, I dump them (3 cups at a time) into a gallon Ziploc baggie with about 1/4 cup of turbinado sugar. Knead the baggie for a few minutes until the nuts are fully coated and then dump them out into the cookie sheet. They are much easier to spread out, it gives them an added crunch, and the sugar crystals also add to the visual appeal. I make them this way every Christmas!
how do you know when they are done? 2 hours or 3? What am i looking for?
I’ll be trying this out next week when the hubby is home. They look just like the candied almonds we spend $12 a bag for at the annual Renaissance Faire! We gobble them up so fast and it’d be great to be able to make this treat at home and eat them warm.
I made these last night and they were awesome. I used pecans and could have added more pecans or reduced the sugars as suggested. I had a little mix left over. We sprayed a cooling rack and poured the mix over it–catching the overage on a piece of sprayed foil below. I had to spread them out as best I could and then break them apart. But they look homemade and taste amazing!!! Thank you for the recipe!!