Candied Cashews -- Something Sweet to Pass Around the Porch

My week with the kids. Detroit Jazz Festival next month. The Riverfront getting ready. Thursday Jerome and I took our breaks together and talked restaurant. The dream is closer than it was a year ago.

Pop's tireder. Sugar runs low some days. Mama monitors. Pop complains. The system holds. Sunday at Mama's. She made greens with hambone the way she has since 1985.

Corn on the cob in the husks on the smoker. Butter and salt after.

Aiden's 11. The youth basketball league. I'm coaching. He's the best player on the team and he knows it. Zaria's 8. Helps me cook on a step stool. Has opinions about the seasoning.

I sat on the back porch with a beer and looked at the smoker and thought about nothing for an hour.

The drive home Friday was the long way around. I took Outer Drive past the lake. The water was still. I do not always notice the water. I noticed Friday.

I made grocery lists on the back of envelopes the way Mama did. The list this week was short — onions, garlic, half-and-half, cornmeal, a pound of bacon. The list is the recipe of the week before it happens.

Drove past Jefferson North on Tuesday. The plant is still the plant. The trucks coming out. I waved at the gate guard out of habit. He waved back even though he didn't know me. The plant is its own neighborhood.

The grass came in fast this week. Cut it Saturday morning before the heat. The mower had been sitting all winter. Took three pulls to start. Once it ran, it ran. Some things just need patience.

I cleaned the smoker Sunday morning. Brushed the grates. Emptied the ash. Wiped down the body. The smoker repays attention. So does most everything that matters.

I took a walk around the block Sunday morning. The neighborhood was quiet. The trees were the trees. The light was good. I waved at three porches. The porches waved back. Brookline holds.

Mama left me a voicemail Wednesday. She said, "DeShawn. Don't forget Sunday." I had not forgotten Sunday. I have not forgotten Sunday in twenty years. The reminder is the love. I called her back.

Watched the Tigers Sunday afternoon. Lost in extras. Detroit reflex. I yelled at the TV the way Pop used to yell at the TV. The TV did not respond. The bullpen will probably not respond either.

A catering inquiry came in this week — fifty-person family reunion. Booked. Saturday after next.

Plant ran clean this week. The line ran. The body held. The paycheck is the paycheck.

Pop sat in the recliner Sunday. He fell asleep before the third quarter. We covered him with a blanket.

Mr. Williams across the street had a heart scare. He is okay. We are all watching each other now. I took him a plate of greens and chicken Wednesday. He said, "DeShawn. You're a good neighbor." I said, "We're even, Mr. Williams. You shoveled my walk in 2024." He laughed.

A reader wrote in about the smothered pork chops. Said her late husband loved them. I wrote back. I told her about Pop. We exchanged three emails. She's in Saginaw. She's coming to the city in the spring.

A neighbor down the street gave me a tomato plant Saturday. He grows them on his porch. Said he had extra. I put it next to the back step where it gets the afternoon sun. Detroit gardens are improvised victories.

A song came on the radio Tuesday — old Stevie Wonder — and I had to sit in the truck for the rest of it before I went into the store. Some songs do that. Detroit is a city of songs that do that.

Taking a plate to Mr. Williams, watching Zaria taste and adjust the seasoning on her step stool, Mama’s voicemail that is really just a form of love — this was a week about food as something you hand to another person. When that happens, I want something I can make in a batch and pass around without ceremony. Candied cashews are that thing: patient work, a short ingredient list, and a result that disappears fast because people keep reaching back. The smoker gets the glory, but these are what I set out in a bowl when somebody stops by the porch.

Candied Cashews

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw whole cashews
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)

Instructions

1. Prepare your surface. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat and set it near the stove. Have a wooden spoon or heat-safe spatula ready.
2. Combine sugar and water. In a medium heavy-bottomed skillet or saucepan, stir together the sugar and water over medium heat until the sugar begins to dissolve, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the cashews. Pour in the cashews and stir to coat. Continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently, as the liquid reduces and the sugar begins to crystallize around the nuts, about 8–10 minutes.
4. Watch the caramel turn. Keep stirring — the sugar will go from sandy and white to golden and glossy. This is the moment that requires patience. Do not walk away. Once the cashews are evenly coated in a deep amber caramel, about 3–4 more minutes, remove the pan from heat immediately.
5. Season and separate. Working quickly, stir in the salt, cinnamon, vanilla, and cayenne if using. Pour the cashews onto the prepared baking sheet and use your spatula to spread them into a single layer, separating any clusters.
6. Cool completely. Let the cashews sit undisturbed for at least 15 minutes until the coating is hard and glossy. They will crisp as they cool.
7. Store or serve. Transfer to an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week — though they rarely last that long.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 210 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 20g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 115mg