Spicy Almonds — Something to Pass Around While the Pot Comes to Boil

Week 475. Year 10. Tommy is 43. The crawfish are running and the driveway is set up and the neighborhood knows because the steam carries the invitation. Rémy at the burner, 43-year-old Tommy at the table with a beer, watching the boy who became a cook become a man who cooks. Luc (19) at LSU studying engineering. Colette (16) in high school, painting. The spring is the same spring — crawfish and azaleas and the particular heat of March in Louisiana — and the sameness is the prayer.

Made crawfish boil this week — the kind of food that fills the house with the smell of Louisiana and the knowledge that whoever walks through the door is walking into a home where the stove is on and the food is ready and the welcome is unconditional. The meal was the day. The day was the meal. Both were good. C'est bon, cher.

While Rémy works the burner and the crawfish do their thing, there’s always that window — thirty, forty minutes where the smell is everywhere and the beer is cold and everybody’s standing around the driveway just waiting. That’s where these spicy almonds live. I started making them years ago to keep hungry hands out of the pot too early, and now they’re as much a part of the boil as the Old Bay and the corn. A little cayenne, a little heat — feels right at home in March in Louisiana.

Spicy Almonds

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw whole almonds
• 1 egg white
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat oven. Heat your oven to 325°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Make the spice mix. In a small bowl, combine the salt, cayenne, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, and sugar. Stir until evenly blended.
3. Coat the almonds. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg white and olive oil together until slightly frothy. Add the almonds and toss well to coat every nut.
4. Season. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the coated almonds and toss again until the spices are distributed evenly.
5. Spread and bake. Pour the almonds onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 20—25 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the coating is set and the nuts are deep golden.
6. Cool completely. Let the almonds cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes — the coating crisps up as they cool. Break apart any clusters before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 210 | Protein: 7g | Fat: 17g | Carbs: 9g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 145mg