CINNAMON GLAZED ALMONDS

If you live in the Idaho Falls area, then you know that wonderful smell that lingers through the Grand Teton Mall, towards Christmas time. It’s that hint of Cinnamon & Vanilla that is very difficult to ignore. You can feel your nose & your foot steps inching closer and closer to the little store with the Cinnamon Glazed Almonds. Our family loves these delicious, fattening nuts! They are quite expensive to buy, and so I’m always trying new recipes, to duplicate that crunchy, sweet coating. I made these over the weekend, and while they aren’t quite like the mall variety, they are still very delicious. I haven’t been able to stay out of them yet! Try them soon, you won’t be able to resist eating them.

1/3 cup butter

2 egg whites, at room temperature

Pinch of Salt

1 cup sugar

4 cups whole raw almonds

4 teaspoons cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place butter in a 13″ x 9″ glass pan; place in oven to melt butter, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, beat egg whites with salt until frothy; gradually add the sugar, beating till stiff peaks form. (Add sugar very slowly) Gently fold in almonds and cinnamon. Pour almond mixture onto pan; toss with butter. Bake about 40 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes, until almonds are crisp. Serve warm or at room temperature. Store cooled almonds in airtight container up to 2 weeks. (They won’t last that long)

Make sure that you don’t over stir while baking. Do it every 10 minutes. They look quite odd as they bake. It will resemble a lumpy cake! Towards the end, toss very gently, and don’t over bake, as the glaze will become too hard. I baked 40 minutes stirring only 4 times. Remove from oven while still sticky, and let dry before breaking apart. YUM!