Sweet & Salty Rosemary Roasted Mixed Nuts Recipe
You’re going to love this delicious rosemary roasted mixed nuts recipe. It’s easy to make, and strikes the perfect balance of crunchy, savory, sweet and salty. It’s also really flexible – use any combination and kind of nuts you fancy, or even spice things up with a little chili powder if you’d like.
I make a batch of these rosemary roasted mixed nuts to snack on every holiday season, though they could (and should) be enjoyed any time of year! I also love to put them in mason jars to share as a sweet little homemade gift for friends, family, and neighbors.
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RELATED: Looking for more DIY gift ideas? Pop over to this Homemade Holiday Gift Guide for over 27 fun and easy eco-friendly crafts, edible gift ideas, mason jar gifts, and more. You may also like our easy homemade rosemary salt recipe.
Supplies Needed
- Mixing bowl
- Measuring cups/spoons
- Baking sheet (and parchment paper recommended)
- Air-tight storage container(s)
Ingredients
YEILD: This recipe makes about 3 to 4 pint jars (6 to 8 cups) of rosemary roasted mixed nuts.
- 1.5 pounds total of raw, unsalted nuts of choice. I typically like to use a mix of raw pecans, walnuts and almonds, though I’ve made this recipe with cashews and pumpkin seeds too.
- 2 tbsp “cooking fat” of choice, such as coconut oil, butter, vegan butter, or olive oil. Coconut oil is my top choice!
- 2 tsp coarse sea salt
- 3 tbsp real maple syrup
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, de-stemmed and finely chopped.
- Optional: a sprinkle of chili powder or chipotle powder
- 2024 UPDATE: I’ve been adding 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract lately and it’s divine!
PRO TIP: While fresh is best, you can also make this recipe using 1 tbsp dried rosemary instead. However, I suggest tossing it with the nuts after they’re finished roasting (but before they fully cool) to avoid burning the rosemary.
Instructions
1) Mix
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Combine the mixed nuts in a large mixing bowl.
- In a smaller bowl, melt your oil or butter of choice. Then stir in the maple syrup and minced fresh rosemary. Pour this mixture over the nuts, stirring as you go to evenly coat them.
- Next, sprinkle the brown sugar, salt, and optional chili powder over the bowl of glazed nuts. Again, stir and toss to evenly coat them as you go.
2) Bake
- Spread the coated mixed nuts out evenly on either a greased (e.g. olive oil) or parchment-paper lined baking sheet.
- Bake the nuts for approximately 17 to 20 minutes – until they become toasty and golden brown. I like to stop to stir and rotate the nuts once halfway through baking to ensure even roasting.
- Note that the nuts will NOT seem super-crunchy until they’ve cooled, so don’t accidentally over-roast or burn them!
- Once they’re finished baking, set the roasted mixed nuts out at room temperature and continue to toss and stir periodically as they cool to prevent them from sticking together (or to the pan). During this time, taste-test the roasted nuts and add more salt if desired.
- Serve warm or cool and enjoy!
Storage and Shelf Life
Once they’re completely cooled, transfer the finished rosemary roasted mixed nuts into an air-tight container for storage – such as ziplock bag or glass jar with a lid. Store in a cool, dry location such as your pantry or cupboard.
These homemade mixed nuts will stay good for up to a month or longer, though they’ll have the best flavor and crunch if enjoyed within one to two weeks.
Enjoy!
Well folks, I hope you enjoy these delicious rosemary roasted mixed nuts just as much as we do! Please let us know and leave a review below.
Looking for more holiday party appetizer ideas, or “just-because” tasty snacks? Check out our easy stuffed dates with goat cheese, nuts, honey and thyme. Or, these two-bite garlic and herb roasted smashed potatoes with optional cheese. See a list of over 20 vegan and vegetarian holiday dish ideas here.
Sweet and Salty Rosemary Roasted Mixed Nuts
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Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds Mixed raw unsalted mixed nuts of choice (e.g. cashews, walnuts, almonds and/or pecans)
- 2 Tbsp Oil or butter. Coconut oil suggested. Other options include butter, vegan butter or olive oil
- 3 Tbsp Real maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp Brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp Fresh rosemary, finely minced (If attempting to use dry rosemary, use only 1 tbsp and toss with nuts after roasting is complete. )
- 2 tsp Sea salt, coarsely-ground preferred
- Optional: a sprinkle of chili powder or chipotle powder
- 2024 update: I've found that adding 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract is delicious!
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Combine the mixed nuts in a large mixing bowl.
- In a smaller bowl, melt your oil or butter of choice. Stir in maple syrup and rosemary. Pour the mixture over the nuts, stirring as you go to evenly coat them.
- Sprinkle the brown sugar, salt, and optional chili powder over the bowl of glazed nuts. Stir and toss to evenly coat the nuts.
- Spread the coated mixed nuts out evenly on a greased baking sheet (e.g. olive oil) or line it with parchment paper.
- Bake the nuts for approximately 17 to 20 minutes – until they become toasty and golden brown. Stir and toss the nuts once halfway through baking to ensure even roasting. *Note that the nuts will not seem super crunchy until they’ve cooled. Avoid burning!
- Once they’re finished baking, set the roasted mixed nuts out at room temperature and continue to toss and stir periodically to prevent them from sticking together (or to the pan) while cooling. During this time, taste-test the roasted nuts and add more salt if desired.
- Serve warm or cool and enjoy!
- Store fully-cooled nuts in an air-tight container. They'll stay good for up to a month or longer, but will have the best flavor and crunch if enjoyed within one to two weeks.
61 Comments
Bonnie
I’ve been roasting nuts with different spices and love rosemary. This mix will be on my Thanksgiving table, and I plan to make enough for everyone to take home! Thank you!
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Amazing to hear Bonnie, we hope your friend and family enjoy the nuts!
Eleonora
Sounds yuuuumm!!! 1 question: can I use honey instead of maple syrup?
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Eleonora, absolutely you can use honey instead of maple syrup.
Anna
These will become an annual thing for us, so good and everyone loves ’em!
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
So great to hear Anna!
Jasalyn
Delicious! Clear and easy to follow recipe
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
So glad you enjoyed them!
Mary Overton
Really easy to make. A great way to use up some of our walnuts.
Rebecca Stricklin
Deanna isn’t kidding when she says these are highly addicting! These turned out soo good. The recipe is so easy, this will definitely be in my regular bake list.
Susan Wright
Have you tested how long these will keep in an air tight container? Thanks! 😀
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Susan, they should last at least a few weeks for the best flavor, however, they will last much longer than that, they may just become less crunchy but they won’t go bad. Good luck and enjoy, we will be making a batch this weekend as well!
Wendy Taylor
Wow! This sounds amazing and I love how simple you’ve made the recipe- thank you for sharing it and the beautiful photos / gift ideas!
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Wendy, it really does make for a great gift around the holidays, we always make at least a few batches every year.
Liz
Really great recipe – mine turned out SO good and I sold a bunch at our homeschool holiday faire and they were loved by all! I also ALWAYS make your sourdough pumpkin bread/muffin recipe and it is just amazing! Thanks for all the goodness!
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Liz, so glad the recipe worked out so well for your school faire! We love the sourdough pumpkin bread as well and it’s great to hear it’s a favorite or yours, enjoy!
Marisa
These are soooo tasty! I got ahead of myself and mixed all the non-nut ingredients together first, THEN looked at the directions and realized the brown sugar and salt were supposed to go on later. Oop! I took a chance, mixed in the nuts, and baked. All worked out fine, but I’ll try again and follow the directions next time. The salty sweet + rosemary goodness is inspiring me to add oats and make granola, too! These will be a year-round treat in our house, for sure.
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Marisa, adding oats and making granola sounds like a great idea!
Susan Wright
I just made these for the first time and they’re delicious!!! Great gifts! (If they make it that long haha)
Dubious Pleasure
Hi. This recipe is great! I only had a little over 1# of nuts but I didn’t reduce the other ingredients to componsate for the 1/3 reduction and the recipe was still yummy. I like mine estra crispy but followed the instrucions to the letter and this batch came out perfectly (without burning)! Thank you for creating and sharing.
Michael Marvosh
Oh, man! Be really REALLY careful with the cook time. Even 18 minutes was too much for mine and they burned. Big disappointment 🙁
Watch these like a hawk and don’t have a fussy baby at the same you’re making them (maybe that goes without saying but options are limited these days).
I’ll try again, because what else to do with 6 pound of nuts?
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Michael, we are sorry to hear your mixed nuts got overly cooked in the oven. Unfortunately, different ovens can often vary in how well or hot they heat things, our previous oven in our old house ran much hotter than the oven we currently use. I would reduce your cook time to at most 14 minutes total while mixing everything up halfway through. Hope that helps and good luck with your next batch!
Michael
I figured out what I did wrong. I don’t think it was oven temp. It was the way I read the recipe (which apparently is different than most people do).
So: in case any other overly-literal minded folks try this recipe, here’s how to cook them. 18 minutes doesn’t mean cook the nuts for 18 minutes. It means set a single timer for 18 minutes, during which time you will remove the nuts from the oven twice to stir them. So total cook time is probably close to 14 minutes, and they get a couple chances to cool off slightly during the duration.
They’re delicious if you don’t burn them 🙂
Danielle
I’m going to try separating the batches, one using maple syrup and the other using a spruce tip syrup I found from Finland. I’ll update my review once I try them! Btw, if you use spruce tip syrup, it goes amazingllyyyy on a shredded cabbage salad mixed with a mustard vinaigrette!
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Thanks for sharing Danielle!