Chai Maple Coco Nut Mix
A nutritious blend of nuts and coconut, deliciously flavored with Chai Spice and Maple Syrup, this Chai Maple Coco Nut Mix makes for a perfect little afternoon pick-me-upper or awesome munchies for your guests…
The first time I ever attempted making “flavored” nuts, it was this Maple Chai Coco Nut Mix that I’d come up with. I’d made the nut mix just before leaving for Cuba because I wanted to have something to take with me to munch on while waiting for — and while actually on — the plane. Now I will be hosting a workshop on the art of making your own Kombucha at home this weekend and I wanted to have a little something for the attendees to munch on during the class.
This nut mix immediately came to mind — really, can you think of anything better? — and I decided that, since I was going to be making a brand new batch, I’d take the opportunity to revamp the post and pictures…
The combination of flavors in this nut mix, from the chai spice, maple syrup and coconut, is absolutely splendid, I wouldn’t recommend leaving any of those out. If you couldn’t get your hands on ready-made chai spice, fear not… I’ll even give you a recipe so you can make your own mix!
As for the varieties of nuts that I chose to use, you don’t have to go the exact same route… don’t get out of your way to get something that’s hard to come across or not available in your area. You could actually use any combination of nuts you like; so long as you keep the ratio fairly similar, you should be just fine.
And honestly, if you’re new to making your own nut mixes, I get the feeling that this won’t be the last time…
Your first course of action would be to preheat your oven to 300°F; then, place the nuts and shredded coconut in a large mixing bowl. Like I said, I used a combination of hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, cashews and almonds, but you could use any nuts you actually prefer, so long as you keep the ratio fairly similar. We’re talking about 4 cups of nuts, total.
Add the chai spice, salt, melted coconut oil and maple syrup to the lot.
Give the whole thing a gentle stir, until the nuts are evenly coated.
Now spread the nuts in a single layer onto a large baking sheet; place the sheet in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the coconut is nicely toasted.
Be certain to keep a close eye on thing because that coconut can go from toasted to burnt in no time at all!
Remove the nuts from the oven, stir in a little bit more shredded coconut if desired (I’m a fan of the contrast in flavor and texture that the un-toasted coconut shreds contribute to the mix) and let the nuts cool completely before indulging, serving, or transferring to an airtight container for storage.
Seriously… while you may think that these must be absolutely awesome fresh out of the oven, the fact is they are soft and pretty much tasteless when warm. Give them time to cool, you’ll see… I’ve no doubt that you will agree with me!
Stored properly, in an airtight container and in a cool dry place, these nuts will keep well for several weeks. IF you can resist eating them all before then…
Chai Maple Coco Nut Mix
Ingredients
- 1 cup roasted cashews
- 1 cup Brazil nuts
- 1 cup hazelnuts
- 1 cup almonds
- 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 3 tbsp pure maple syrup, grade B or medium
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 2 tbsp chai spice, (see chai spice mix recipe below)
- ½ tsp salt
Chai Spice Mix
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp ground cardamom
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp ground five spice
- 1 ts- ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp ground clove
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp vanilla powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F
- Place the nuts and coconut in a large mixing bowl. Add chai spice, salt, melted coconut oil and maple syrup and mix well until the nuts are evenly coated.
- Spread the nuts in a single layer onto a large baking sheet; place the sheet in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the coconut is nicely toasted.
- Remove the nuts from the oven, stir in a little bit more shredded coconut if desired and let the nuts cool completely before transferring to an airtight container.
Nutrition
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One Comment on “Chai Maple Coco Nut Mix”
i’d be lying if i said i wasn’t freaking out about this recipe – i LOVE the nut mixes you can buy at the store but they have so much garbage in them. this recipe is soooo much cleaner and sounds delicious! thanks for sharing 🙂