Everything-Bagel Seed & Nut Crunch

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

All the crackly, garlicky, poppy-flecked payoff of a fresh everything bagel, in a jar of snackable seeds and nuts. A whipped egg white binds the mix into lacy clusters, a spoonful of maple gives it just enough gloss to hold the seasoning, and the dried onion and garlic go in late so they toast to sweet-savory rather than bitter. Great by the handful, better scattered over cream cheese toast, salads, or soft-boiled eggs.

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 3/4 cup raw sunflower seeds, hulled
• 3/4 cup raw almonds, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup raw cashews or hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• 3 tablespoons white sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds

• 1 large egg white
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons neutral oil, such as grapeseed
• 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
• 1 tablespoon dried minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt, for finishing

• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, for a savory, cheesy edge
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C) and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. A low oven is essential here: seeds and dried alliums scorch fast above 325°F.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the egg white with a fork for about 45 seconds, until loose, foamy, and no longer stringy. Whisk in the maple syrup, oil, kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, and the nutritional yeast and red pepper flakes if using.
3. Add the pepitas, sunflower seeds, chopped almonds, chopped cashews, and both white and black sesame seeds. Fold with a silicone spatula for a full minute, until every piece is slick and glossy with no dry patches at the bottom of the bowl.
4. Scrape the mixture onto the sheet pan and spread it into an even single layer, pressing lightly so some pieces cling together into clusters. Bake for 15 minutes.
5. Pull the pan out and stir with a spatula, breaking up only the largest clumps and re-spreading the mix. Scatter the dried minced onion and dried minced garlic evenly over the top and toss them in — adding them now means they toast to a sweet, bagel-shop aroma instead of burning.
6. Return to the oven and bake 12 to 15 minutes more, stirring once at the halfway point, until the onion flakes are golden brown, the sesame seeds smell nutty, and the mix looks dry and matte. It will still feel slightly soft in the pan; it crisps as it cools.
7. Set the pan on a rack and immediately sprinkle over the poppy seeds and flaky sea salt. Press the mix down gently with the back of the spatula to encourage clusters, then leave it completely undisturbed for at least 30 minutes to cool and set hard.
8. Break the cooled sheet into bite-size clusters and loose seeds. Serve in a bowl as a snack, or spoon over cream cheese toast, avocado halves, cottage cheese, or a green salad. Store in an airtight jar at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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