How to Make Candied Walnuts (2024)

March 7, 2018 Updated February 11, 2020 BySam 29 Comments

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Have you ever wanted to make your own Candied Walnuts at home? Skip the high price tags and make them yourself with a handful of ingredients you probably already have in your pantry. You can also choose to substitute a different type of nut for the walnuts, if you prefer. These are great for adding to your favorite salads, are perfect for snacking, and they also make a great edible gift!

Considering the high price tag that candied walnuts typically tout at fairs, expos, and carnivals, you would think that this delectable snack was difficult, time-consuming, and ridiculously expensive to make.Spoiler alert: It’s not. Like, not at all.

You only need 7 simple ingredients (8 if you count water) and literally less than 10 minutes to prepare.

What You Need:

1 egg. Rather, you need one single egg white only.
Water (again, do we count water as an ingredient?)
Vanilla extract
Walnuts — you’ll want to buy halved shelled walnuts.
Sugar — I use a blend of regular granulated and light brown sugar for the best flavor.
Ground cinnamon — for cinnamon candied walnuts
And just a pinch ofsalt for the best possible flavor.

How to Make Candied Walnuts:

We start with a single egg white combined with water and vanilla extract (or Madagascar bourbon vanilla, if you have it — yum!) which we’ll whisk vigorously until foamy. This gives us the liquid that will be necessary for our cinnamon/sugar mixture to fully coat each walnut. Then we’ll add our halved walnuts (see photo above) before tossing them with the cinnamon/sugar mixture (see photo below).

They’ll then be baked for 45 minutes, but you’ll scrape the pan with a spatula to turn the walnuts every 15 minutes so that nothing can burn and so that they’ll be evenly baked with perfectly crisp (not burnt) exteriors when finished. Very similar to how you prepare my homemade granola, though maybe a bit less healthy…

Like my caramel popcorn and funnel cakes, these candied walnuts are just not only less expensive when made at home, they’re also so much cheaper.

Tips for Making Candied Walnuts

Make sure you turn your walnuts frequently (every 15 minutes) with a spatula while they are baking in the oven! This ensures that the nuts are evenly distributed and that no burning occurs.
Line your baking sheet with parchment paper so that the nuts can be easily turned during baking without sticking to the pan. Don’t use wax paper as it could melt and burn in the oven, and I don’t recommend using foil as the nuts tend to stick to that and the foil tends to tear.
My candied walnuts have always finished baking within 45-50 minutes, but keep an eye on yours. If your oven runs hotter they may finish baking sooner, and the last thing you want is to accidentally burn them and have to throw them out. You can tell that the walnuts are done when they look dry when you remove them from the oven and there’s no liquid left on the pan.

Can I substitute another nut instead of walnuts?

Absolutely! I’ve made this recipe with pecans (see my candied pecans recipe) and almonds and think that it would work great with cashews, too!

How long will they keep?

They will keep for about two weeks if stored in an airtight container. Store them at room temperature in a cool, dry place.

Enjoy, and watch my video below to see exactly how I make candied walnuts at home!

More Recipes You Might Like:

Lace Cookies
Candied Pretzels
Toffee
Peanut Brittle

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Candied Walnuts

A simple and fool-proof recipe for candied walnuts! These are delicious and make a great edible gift!

4.91 from 11 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Candy, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 2 cups

Calories: 1050kcal

Author: Sam Merritt

Ingredients

▢ 1 large egg white
▢ 1 teaspoon water
▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
▢ 2 cups (225 g) halved shelled walnuts
▢ ⅓ cup (70 g) sugar
▢ ⅓ cup (70 g) light brown sugar tightly packed
▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
▢ ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 250F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Combine egg white, water and vanilla in a large bowl and whisk vigorously for 30 seconds (mixture should be foamy/frothy).
1 large egg white, 1 teaspoon water, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add walnuts and stir until all walnuts are coated in egg white.
2 cups (225 g) halved shelled walnuts
In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugars, cinnamon, and salt.
⅓ cup (70 g) sugar, ⅓ cup (70 g) light brown sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt
Pour the sugar mixture over the walnuts and stir until completely combined.
Spread nuts in an even layer onto prepared cookie sheet.
Bake on 250f for 45-50 minutes, removing cookie sheet from oven every 15 minutes and using a spatula to stir/flip the walnuts (be sure to stir ALL of the sugar mixture as well, or it may burn to the pan).
See Also
Bourbon Caramel Sauce Recipe Recipe - Rachel Cooks®Sticky Toffee Pudding Rum Balls - A No Bake recipe for Easy Entertaining Eggnog Fudge - Hoosier Homemade
Candied walnuts are done when they appear dry and there is no liquid left on the nuts or on the pan.
After baking, allow to cool at least 15 minutes before enjoying.
Store uneaten candied walnuts in an airtight container at room temperature.

Notes

You may substitute other nuts for the walnuts. Almonds, pecans, and cashews all work well.

Nutrition

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

Maureen
October 26, 2022 at 2:36 pm

Excellent recipe but what too much cinnamon for my taste. 1/4 or 1/2 tsp. would be more than enough. Thank you for the recipe. The other ingredients and cooking time was perfect.
Reply
Barbara Gravante
December 29, 2021 at 5:52 pm
Oh my, my, my Sam these nuts were Absolutely the BEST. I made Christmas Salad and served these nuts with it. Everyone loved them. I’m getting ready to make many more batches. Thank you for so much for sharing.
Reply
- Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
  December 30, 2021 at 9:43 am
  That’s wonderful to hear, Barbara! Thanks so much for giving our recipe a shot and letting us know how it went for you. 🙂
  Reply
SusanB
December 16, 2020 at 9:39 pm

My only complaint about this recipe is that the final product does not last long! I’ve not had a storage problem because they disappear too fast. Other versions have too much cinnamon. They also cook at 300 and I prefer the longer slower product. I like that this uses both kinds of sugar …. absolutely delicious. Thank you.
Reply
- Sam
  December 16, 2020 at 9:56 pm
  I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Susan! 🙂
  Reply
Alandra Love
December 04, 2020 at 11:53 am

FANTASTIC!! I have tried other recipes, This one calls for Vanilla,, This one is the Best!
Thank You……
Reply
- Sam
  December 04, 2020 at 3:00 pm
  I’m so glad you enjoyed, Alandra!! Thank you so much for commenting, I appreciate it! 🙂
  Reply
Amelia
August 17, 2020 at 12:56 am
Wow these were so good! To bad they weren’t around for long… 😋
Reply
See Also
Kentucky Bourbon Balls
- Sam
  August 17, 2020 at 9:15 pm
  I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Amelia! I guess you’ll just have to make another batch. 😉
  Reply
Linda
July 17, 2020 at 12:01 pm

Delish! Have tried others, this is the best!
Reply
- Sam
  July 17, 2020 at 4:01 pm
  I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Linda! 🙂
  Reply
Linda
June 25, 2020 at 10:09 am

Delicious!
Tried other recipes, this is by far the best!!
Reply
- Sam
  June 26, 2020 at 10:20 am
  I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Linda! 🙂
  Reply
Abby
December 19, 2019 at 5:20 pm
Would it be possible to bake these on a silicone baking mat instead of parchment paper?
Thank you for the wonderful recipe! Can’t wait to make these!
Reply
- Sam
  December 19, 2019 at 9:33 pm
  Hi Abby! That will work just fine. Enjoy! 🙂
  Reply
Lisa
December 04, 2019 at 12:08 pm
Another great recipe. I cooked apples, cooked more apples all fall using recipes from your website. Now for the holidays, more great recipes. Thanks
Reply
- Sugar Spun Run
  December 04, 2019 at 12:15 pm
  I love it! Thank you so much, Lisa! 🙂
  Reply
Linda petraitis
September 11, 2019 at 9:37 pm

I have made these several times. I have given these out as gifts to my friends and family. Just trying not to eat them all at once they are that good😀
Reply
- Sugar Spun Run
  September 12, 2019 at 5:55 am
  Thank you so much, Linda! I am happy that you enjoyed the candied walnuts. I appreciate your taking a moment to comment. Enjoy! 🙂
  Reply
Melissa
December 24, 2018 at 5:47 am

Absolutely the BEST candied nut recipe I have made at home! However, I did make a few tweaks… I like the texture better after beating the egg whites with a hand mixer until very fluffy (one minute) and I added an additional tsp of cinnamon, 2 tsp of black pepper and a 1/2 tsp maple extract and omg they are amazing!!!!
Reply
- Sam
  December 24, 2018 at 11:11 am
  I will have to try it that way. I am so glad you enjoyed them, Melissa. 🙂
  Reply
Faye
November 01, 2018 at 2:40 am

These are soooo good. Took them as a snak while trunk or treat. My fellow church members fell in love with them. Great recipe, making the nuts a perfect texture, flavor, etc
Reply
- Sam
  November 02, 2018 at 4:05 am
  It’s one of my favorite snacks, if I can avoid eating the whole batch! 😂 I am so glad everyone enjoyed them.
  Reply
Marie
October 15, 2018 at 7:26 pm
How many pounds of walnuts does this recipe call for?
Reply
- Sam
  October 15, 2018 at 7:56 pm
  Roughly a half a pound (225 grams)
  Reply
Doris
October 03, 2018 at 4:53 pm
Will the candied walnuts keep longer than the 2 weeks stated? I would like to make them for a charity fund raiser and want to do they about a month prior to the event.
Reply
- Sam
  October 03, 2018 at 7:50 pm
  If you want to make them that far in advance, you would need to keep them in an air tight container in the refrigerator or freezer, otherwise they could turn rancid. ☺️
  Reply
Mikaru86
March 07, 2018 at 2:27 pm

In the description it sais “We start with a single egg yolk” yet in the ingredient list we have “1 large egg white”. If I recall correctly you used one egg white for the candied almonds, so I’m assuming the ingredient list is correct and the description got mixed up a bit.
Reply
- Sam
  March 07, 2018 at 11:20 pm
  Omg… that’s my jetlagged brain. YES an egg WHITE, I am fixing that now. Thank you for pointing it out to me!!!
  Reply