Candied Cinnamon Peanuts
Candied Cinnamon Peanuts
I’m a huge fan of candied nuts, but they are kind of expensive for good quality. These candied cinnamon peanuts cost a fraction of the price. 2 quarts of the candied peanuts cost about $5 to make. You can easily pay $20 for that much. Candied peanuts (also known as groundnut sweet), are a popular street food snack all over West Africa. The candied peanuts are typically made with just 3 ingredients: peanuts, water, and sugar. This recipe has a few extra ingredients such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne, and vanilla to enhance the flavor.While the price and taste is right, you will have to work for it. Roasting is easy. But after that, you will have to constantly stir the peanuts for 25 minutes in the sugar water mix. It feels like forever…forever…forever…At some point, you will think that you have done something wrong. The peanuts are in this carmelly sugar syrup all stuck together and it’s not going away. But then it does. You have to keep stirring to avoid burning. The sugar eventually crystallizes. Once you pour them on a baking sheet, they all break apart. Now is the time to salt them. Let them cool. Then try not to overfill your mouth with these nuts.Try this recipe with cashews, almonds, pecans, or walnuts.
Ingredients
- 4 cups shelled peanuts
- 1 1/3 cup water
- 1 1/3 cup white sugar
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 3 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place the peanuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes, stirring and rotating the pan half way through to have even roasting.
- Let cool.
- Place the water in a wide skillet. Bring to a boil. Stir in the white and brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and cayenne pepper.
- Stir in the peanuts.
- Over high heat, constantly stir the peanuts for 20-25 minutes until all of the moisture is gone and the sugar crystallizes. Make sure to keep stirring so the sugar doesn’t burn.
- Put back on the baking sheet. Season with salt while still hot. Least cool before eating.
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