I love pecans, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, cashews, and peanuts!  And not necessarily in that order.  I just love all kinds of nuts, the variety of things you can do with them, and the great flavor they bring to many dishes.  Though I have yet to experiment with it myself, I have had nut “hummus” and nut “taco meat” at a raw vegan cafe.  I am simply fascinated that nuts can take on so many different flavors and textures.

One way I love pecans is to have them lightly candied.  They’re perfect in salads, desserts, or on my pumpkin pancakes!  They are so simple to make yourself and take about 5 minutes from start to finish.

Candied Pecans Recipe serves 1-2

1/2C pecans

3-4T simple syrup or 6T water and 3T sugar

In a small saucepan on medium heat, toss the pecans and simple syrup in together and stir regularly.

If you are using sugar and water, dissolve the sugar and bring to a slight boil before adding the pecans, then stir until all the nuts are coated and the sugar water has thickened as a glaze around the pecans.  Bring nuts and syrup to a slow boil.

Once the simple syrup has fully covered the pecans and thickened, remove from heat and allow the pecans to cool on wax paper.  Serve in a salad, on breakfast, or in some blondie brownies!