Gone a Little Nutty: Honey-Sesame-Covered Cashews

 This past Christmas, The Bat received a 1-lb bag of delightful Trader Joe's cashew treats as a gift, from one of our extended family members. Within 48 hours of her having opened them, they had vanished. I got none of them. The Bat got some of them. Pop liked them. A. Lot.

Knowing how difficult it is to purchase said items locally (the nearest Trader Joe's is, IIRC, roughly 190 miles from our front door), I did a little research, and found a couple of recipes I could combine to make my own version. They're fairly simple, and not too sweet.

You'll need a 2-quart saucepan, a 1-gallon zipper bag, non-stick parchment or foil, and a jelly roll pan (sided sheet pan) at least 9x14 inches. You'll also need both the stovetop and the oven, plus a cooling rack.

The ingredients list is also simple.

Honey-Sesame-Covered Cashews

ingredients:

3/4 cup sesame seeds without hulls

2 teaspoons granulated sugar

pinch salt

2 cups unsalted cashews

1 Tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

directions:

Preheat oven to 250º F

Combine sesame seeds, sugar, and salt in zipper bag, shake well. Fold opening down to make a wide, stable opening. Set aside.

Line your jelly roll pan with non-stick parchment or nonstick foil. Spread your cashews out on it, and place on center rack of warm oven.

On medium-high heat, melt butter and honey together, and bring to a boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Moving quickly, remove cashews from oven, add to honey/butter mix in pan, stir until completely covered. Pour hot-ish mixture into bag of sesame seeds. Seal bag and shake gently but well, aiming for maximum coverage.

Pour contents back onto lined jelly roll pan, spreading it out so very few – if any – pieces are touching. Return to oven, bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

Allow to cool completely, in pan on rack, before handling them. 

Store in an airtight container.* 

*I'm led to believe these will last for several weeks in a decent container, but my evidence indicates they evaporate into thin air fairly swiftly.