Bourbon Old Fashioned Pecans
These sweet & spicy pecans taste exactly like a Bourbon Old Fashioned cocktail! Dried cherries, bourbon, orange zest, and a sweet and spicy glaze makes an excellent cocktail snack and are particularly loved at a holiday gathering.
Servings: 6 Cups
Equipment
- Sheet pan
- parchment paper or aluminum foil or silicone mat
- Large non-stick skillet
- 2 mixing bowls
Ingredients
- ½ cup dried tart cherries packed
- ½ cup Bourbon
- ½ cup dark brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 cups pecan halves
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp orange zest or from one small orange
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a sheet pan by lining with parchment paper, aluminum foil, or a silicone mat. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, add dried cherries. Using your hands, break up any large clumps of cherries. Add bourbon and stir. Set aside to soak for at least 30 minutes.
- In another small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper and set aside.
- In a large non-stick skillet, heat pecans over medium-high heat until they smell fragrant and toasty, about 5 minutes.
- Add butter and stir until melted.
- Add sugar / spice mixture and stir until the nuts are completely coated.
- Turn off the heat and add the bourbon cherry mixture (see note). It will bubble up a lot and create a lot of steam, so stand back! Once this has settled down after a few seconds, turn the heat back on to medium, cooking until the syrup reduces to a thick glaze and has almost disappeared, about 8-12 minutes.
- Spread the glazed nuts on the sheet pan in a single layer, and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, stirring once.half-way through.
- Cool completely out of the oven, and then zest the orange over the nuts and stir well to coat every nut in the zest and oils from the orange.
- Store in a sealed container.
- These nuts make a great gift! The recipe will make 6 – 1 cup jars of nuts to give away. Enjoy!
Notes
IMPORTANT NOTE about adding the bourbon mixture: You are adding alcohol to a hot pan, so turning off the heat is of the utmost importance for safety! If this is the first time you’ve done something like this, have a lid nearby that fits your pan in case it catches on fire.
Did you make Bourbon Old Fashioned Pecans? Post a photo on Instagram, and tag me @dinneratlulus and use the hashtag #dinneratlulus.
Inspired by this recipe from Serious Eats.