Rosemary Roasted Almonds with Brown Butter and Flaky Salt

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The bar-snack almond, done properly at home: raw almonds dry-roasted until the interiors turn golden and nutty, then tossed while blazing hot in butter browned with finely chopped rosemary, black pepper and a whisper of cayenne. A short second trip to the oven sets the coating so it clings instead of pooling in the bottom of the bowl. Sweet-savoury, deeply herbal, and dangerously easy to eat by the handful.

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw whole almonds, skin on (about 10 oz / 285 g)

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped (from about 4 large sprigs)
• 1 tsp light brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest (optional)

• 1/2 tsp flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C) with a rack in the middle. Spread the almonds in a single even layer on a rimmed baking sheet — no oil yet, the dry heat is what develops the roasted flavour all the way to the centre.
2. Roast for 15 to 18 minutes, sliding the pan out and shaking it every 6 minutes or so. They are ready when the kitchen smells strongly nutty and a nut split in half is pale golden inside, not white. Skins will look slightly darkened and a few may crack — that is correct.
3. While the almonds roast, melt the butter with the olive oil in a small skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Let the butter foam and then quieten, about 2 to 3 minutes, until you see fine tan flecks on the bottom of the pan and it smells like toasted hazelnuts.
4. Pull the pan off the heat and immediately stir in the chopped rosemary. It will sizzle hard for about 30 seconds — that bloom is where the flavour comes from. Stir in the brown sugar, kosher salt, black pepper, cayenne and the lemon zest if using. Swirl until the sugar dissolves.
5. Tip the hot almonds straight from the oven into a large heatproof bowl, pour over the rosemary butter, and toss hard with a silicone spatula for a full 45 seconds. Hot nuts drink up the fat; cool nuts let it slide off.
6. Scrape the almonds and every bit of the coating back onto the baking sheet, spread them out, and return to the oven for 4 minutes to set the glaze and drive off the last moisture.
7. Sprinkle with the flaky sea salt while still hot, then leave the almonds on the sheet to cool completely, about 25 minutes, stirring once or twice. They crisp as they cool — resist tasting for crunch until then. Serve at room temperature.

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Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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