• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Fearless Dining
  • New? Start Here
  • Recipe Index
  • Cookbooks
  • GF Resources
    • Pantry
  • The Gluten Free Resource Guide: Everything You Need To Know About Gluten Free Living
  • Reader Testimonials
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Resources
    • My Pantry
  • Testimonials
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • About
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • Resources
    • My Pantry
  • Testimonials
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
  • About
×
Home Recipes Candy Recipes

Cinnamon Spiced Walnuts

Published: Apr 5, 2021 · Modified: Mar 28, 2023 by Sandi Gaertner · 8 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links

  • Facebook
  • Yummly
  • Flipboard
Jump to Recipe
A Pinterest pin image of the candied walnuts.

Nuts are perfect for snacking! This easy cinnamon-spiced walnuts recipe is no exception! They are full of sweet delicious flavor. With just a few simple ingredients, you can enjoy these cinnamon sugar walnuts in about 20 minutes!

The top view of a jar of cinnamon spiced walnuts.
Jump to:
  • Why This Recipe is Great:
  • Ingredient Notes:
  • Tips For Sucess:
  • Recipe Step-By-Step Directions:
  • Ways To Enjoy Candied Nuts:
  • Recipe FAQ:
  • More Gluten Free Snack Ideas:
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

I love making spiced walnuts. I leave them out on the counter in a bowl, and everyone loves to grab some. Candied nuts also make great gifts! If you love candied nuts as much as we do, you will also want to try my Honey Roasted Cashews recipe.

Walnuts are healthy and a great way to entice kids to eat them. You can easily adjust of sugar you use in the recipe, making this cinnamon roasted walnuts recipe easy to customize.

Why This Recipe is Great:

  • Cinnamon is a warm, comforting spice that gives the nuts a delicious aroma and flavor. It adds a sweet, slightly spicy, and fragrant taste that enhances the overall flavor of the nuts.
  • Cinnamon-flavored nuts make a versatile snack. They can be eaten as a standalone snack, added to salads or yogurt, or used as a topping for oatmeal or smoothies.
  • I love this recipe because it is so easy to make and much cheaper to make flavored nuts than to buy them in the store.
  • Not only are these cinnamon-spiced walnuts easy to make, but they are also perfect for snacking!

These candied walnuts also make a perfect DIY holiday gift, teachers' gift, etc. They are naturally gluten free, dairy-free, and egg-free! If you love cinnamon, try my popular Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls and these Gluten Free Brown Sugar Cinnamon Biscuits recipes.

Ingredient Notes:

Photos of the spiced walnuts ingredients.
  • Walnuts - You can use walnut halves or pieces in this recipe. If you don't have walnuts, you can use ANY nuts for this candied nuts recipe.
  • Sugar - White sugar works in this recipe. Coconut and brown sugars will not work well, so I do not recommend substituting them.
  • Ground Cinnamon - Any variety.

Tips For Sucess:

🔑 Sandi says: The best way to ensure your recipe turns out is to use a candy thermometer to test that your sugar mixture is at the right temperature.

Top Pick
Taylor Precision Products Programmable Digital Candy and Deep Fry Thermometer with  Adjustable Pan Clip
Taylor Precision Products Programmable Digital Candy and Deep Fry Thermometer with Adjustable Pan Clip

I love this candy thermometer because its clip fits onto the pan. This is a good way to monitor how hot your mixture is getting. It has a long stem so that you can fit it onto any size pot.

Buy Now
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Recipe Step-By-Step Directions:

Photos of step 1 and 2 making candied walnuts.

Step 1: In a small saucepan, heat the water, sugar, and cinnamon over medium heat.

Step 2: Place a candy thermometer in the pan and allow the ingredients to melt. DO NOT STIR until it reaches 238º F. This will take about 8 minutes.

Photos of steps 3 and 4.

Step 3: Preheat your oven to 350º F. Place the walnuts (or any nuts you plan to use) onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 10 minutes or until the nuts are lightly brown.

Step 4: Pour the nuts into a large bowl and pour the liquid sugar mixture on. You can see my photo in step 4. The steam blurred the photo. Mix well.

The candied walnuts on parchment paper.

Step 5: Spread the walnut mixture onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Ensure the walnuts are not too bunched up so they harden individually.

After the walnuts have cooled, you can serve whole or crush them into small pieces and place them in a serving dish. Check out my candied walnuts web story for more tips!

Ways To Enjoy Candied Nuts:

  • Sprinkled these cinnamon walnuts on yogurt
  • Crushed to make a praline topping for cake or pie
  • On your favorite ice cream
  • By the hand full plain!
A close up of the cinnamon sugar walnuts.

Recipe FAQ:

Can you use walnut pieces to make this recipe?

You can make this recipe with whole walnuts, halves, or pieces!

How long will these spiced walnuts keep fresh?

These walnuts should keep up to 1 week in a sealed container.

Why are the candied nuts sticky?

If your nuts were sticky, your sugar mixture wasn't hot enough to create that hardened, brittle effect.

Can you fix the nuts if they are sticky?

You can fix the nuts on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Bake them at 325º F for 5-15 minutes. Allow them to cool completely.

Can you freeze these candied nuts?

You can easily freeze these nuts. I put them into a freezer-safe baggie and freeze them. They should keep up to 2 months.

A green Christmas tin filled with cinnamon spiced walnuts.
These candied walnuts make a great holiday gift!

More Gluten Free Snack Ideas:

  • Gluten Free Blueberry Scones - Scones make a great tea-time snack.
  • Homemade Cinnamon Granola - Granola is one of my kids' favorite snacks. It is so easy to make too!
  • Gluten Free Zucchini Muffins - These muffins make a great mid-day snack.
  • Gluten Free Cheez It Crackers - These delicious crackers are tasty on their own or served with a dip.

📖 Recipe

the top view of a jar of cinnamon spiced walnuts

Cinnamon Spiced Walnuts

Sandi Gaertner
A quick and easy candied walnuts recipe. They are cinnamon spiced and are delicious by themselves or on yogurt or ice cream.
5 from 8 votes
dairy free allergen icon
an egg free allergen icon
gluten free allergy icon
soy free allergy icon
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save RecipeSaved!
Prevent your screen from going dark
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 15 minutes mins
Total Time 25 minutes mins
Course Gluten Free Candy Recipes
Cuisine American
Servings 6
Calories 257 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ½ cups walnuts * see note
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350º F.
  • Place the walnuts on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly brown.
  • In a saucepan over medium heat add the sugar, water, salt, and ground cinnamon.
  • Place a candy thermometer in the pan and allow the ingredients to melt. DO NOT STIR until it reaches 238 degrees. (This will take roughly 8 minutes.)
  • Remove from heat and immediately stir the hot sugar mixture into the walnuts.
  • Lightly spray a cooled baking sheet with non-stick spray. Spoon the walnut mixture onto it. (You can put the mixture onto parchment paper if you prefer for cooling.)
  • After the walnut mix has cooled you can serve whole or crush them into small pieces and place in a serving dish. Snack on it, or add it as a topper to yogurt or ice cream!

Notes

  1. You can use walnut halves or pieces in this recipe. 
  2. If you prefer, you can use pecans or any nuts you have on-hand. If you want to get fancy, you can add seeds like chia and sunflower to make a brittle.
  3. If your nuts mix turns out sticky, it means you didn't cook the sugar mixture until it was hot enough. To fix sticky nuts, place them onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake at 325º F for 5-15 minutes. Allow them to cool.
  4. These nuts will keep in an air-tight container up to 5 days. If you freeze them they will keep up to 2 months.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 257kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 4gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 98mgPotassium: 132mgFiber: 2gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 7IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 1mg
Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @FearlessDining or tag #FearlessDining!

Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.

the cover image of my lemon e-cookbook.

If you love the recipes you find on my blog, I would love for you to sign up for my newsletter (and get my free gluten free lemon dessert e-cookbook!)

More Gluten Free Candy Recipes

  • Rows of coated truffles in a pan.
    Gourmet Gluten Free Truffles You Can't Pass Up!
  • A gift jar filled with wrapped honey sesame candies
    Honey Sesame Seed Candy
  • fudge on a white pedestal.
    Homemade Peppermint Rocky Road Fudge
  • a tray of gluten free matzo crack with white chocolate and blue sprinkles.
    Easy Gluten Free Matzo Bark
  • Facebook
  • Yummly
  • Flipboard

Reader Interactions

Comments

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




  1. Susie Fasanaro

    December 12, 2021 at 2:25 pm

    Did I miss something?
    when do you add the sea salt?

    Reply
    • Sandi Gaertner

      December 13, 2021 at 9:13 am

      Hi Susie, Add the salt to the cinnamon and ingredients in the pot. I will make it more clear in the recipe.

      Reply
  2. Hanna

    April 12, 2021 at 7:15 am

    5 stars
    I've been using these as a topping for my salad and they work perfectly. Thanks for the great recipe!

    Reply
    • Sandi Gaertner

      April 12, 2021 at 5:30 pm

      I love these on our salads too!

      Reply
  3. Nellie Tracy

    April 12, 2021 at 7:11 am

    5 stars
    This is a great recipe for spiced nuts. LOVE it!

    Reply
    • Sandi Gaertner

      April 12, 2021 at 5:30 pm

      I am so glad you like them!

      Reply
  4. Ella Jeans

    April 11, 2021 at 7:08 am

    Will this work if I substitute Xylitol or Erythritol instead of sugar?

    Reply
    • Sandi Gaertner

      April 11, 2021 at 9:28 am

      Hi Ella, I have never used those sweeteners so I am not sure how they would behave in my recipe. If you try it, please let me know how it works.

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

  • Amazon
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
A picture of my face standing in front of landscape bushes

Welcome to my blog! I am so glad you are here. If you have Celiac Disease, are gluten intolerant, or have a wheat allergy, you've come to the right place. With years of extensive experience in recipe development, I am dedicated to assisting you on your gluten free journey. As a seasoned gluten free cookbook author and recipe developer, I specialize in creating easy, family-friendly recipes that rival their gluten-filled counterparts. Rest assured, my recipes undergo rigorous testing and refinement, ensuring foolproof results every time.

More about me →

Back To School Recipes:

  • Two bowls of Gluten Free Hamburger Helper on a wooden table.
    Gluten-Free Hamburger Helper: One-Pot Comfort Food
  • a plate with orange chicken over rice.
    Quick and Easy Gluten Free Orange Chicken
  • a photo of the skillet lasagna in a large pan.
    Gluten Free Skillet Lasagna
  • chopsticks holding up beef and noodles
    Gluten Free Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

More Meal Recipes!

A glass bowl filled with my gluten free flour blend.

Try My DIY Gluten Free Flour Blend Recipe! It is also gum-free!

Trending Gluten Free Recipes:

  • two slices of gluten free bread on a plate
    Bake the Best Gluten Free Bread with Your Bread Machine
  • A baked pie crust in a pan.
    How to Make a Homemade Gluten Free Pie Crust
  • two bowls of chicken soup with a garlic press and garlic cloves next to the bowls
    Grandma's Chicken Soup From Scratch
  • a biscuit cut in half on a plate with butter
    The Best Flaky Gluten Free Biscuits

Footer

^ back to top

About

  • About Me
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Accessibility Policy

Newsletter

  • Sign Up!

Contact

  • Contact
  • Work With Me
  • Web Stories

Copyright © 2013-2023 Fearless Dining, LLC.