Candied Pecans

Easy homemade candied pecans are made with just 7 simple ingredients! Make yourself a batch of this old-fashioned recipe and enjoy it as a sweet treat during the holidays, or use it as a topping on salads, yogurt, ice cream, and casseroles. They’re also perfect for gifting! These sugared pecans are not overly sweet and have the best thick and crunchy cinnamon coating.

I make these candied pecans every year, they’re loved by everyone in my family so I always make a double batch using two large cookie sheets and they’re gone within a day or two!

These sweet treats are so easy to make. They take just 5 minutes to prep, and 45 minutes in the oven. Allow them to cool to room temperature and you’re done.

My favorite thing about these candied pecans is their texture, they’re crunchy but not hard, so they’re pretty easy to chew on and have a brittle coating. Once you start eating them, you won’t be able to stop.

Looking for more easy holiday candy recipes? Try my Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites, Divinity Candy, or these super easy Christmas Pretzel Hugs.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

1. Old Fashioned Recipe – These candied pecans taste the same as the ones that your grandma used to make!
2. Quick & Easy – Prep time for this recipe is just 5 minutes, and then the oven will bake these pecans to perfection. They’re so easy to make too!
3. Change up the Nut – We’re making candied pecans here, but you can use this recipe for almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, or walnuts.
4. Brittle – These irresistible praline pecans have a nice thick caramelized coating that is brittle and easy to bite on.

Key Ingredients

Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

• Pecans: You need half a pound of untoasted pecan halves for this recipe. I buy large packs of pecan halves at Costco.
• Sugar: We’re using a combination of granulated white sugar and light brown sugar. I also added a dash of salt to enhance the flavors and balance the sweetness of the candied pecans.
• Cinnamon: Ground sweet cinnamon will make your whole house smell like Christmas! If you like more spice, you can add fourth a teaspoon of allspice, or other spices like cardamom, nutmeg, ginger, or cayenne pepper.
• Egg Whites: You need an egg white (from one large egg), it will be whisked with a dash of water and pure vanilla extract to coat pecans in frothy egg whites.

How To Make candied pecans

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F/120°C, and line a half sheet size baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat silicone mat. In a small bowl, combine the sugars with cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
2. In a separate larger bowl, combine the egg white with water and vanilla extract. Whisk the mixture until the egg white is frothy.
3. Add the pecan halves, and mix with a spatula until the pecans are well coated.
4. Add the sugar mixture to the pecans.

1. Mix the pecans coated in egg whites with the sugar mixture until the pecans are well coated.
2. Transfer the pecans to a rimmed baking sheet, and spread them in an even layer (as much as possible, I used 2 forks to move the pecan halves).
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, flipping them every 15 minutes.
4. Remove the pecans from the oven and allow them to cool to room temperature before serving/storing. The coating will dry and harden as the pecans cool.

Recipe Tips

• Change up the nut: If pecans are not your favorite nut, or you want to make different variations of this recipe. Feel free to swap the pecans for almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, or walnuts.
• Gifting: Candied pecans are perfect for gifting, wrap them up in clear treat bags, or put them in small mason jars, and don’t forget to add cute tags and ribbons to them!
• Use candied pecans to garnish your desserts. They’ve lovely on top of Pear crisp with vanilla ice cream, or pumpkin slab pie.

Storing Tips

These candied nuts can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the fridge for 3 weeks. You can also freeze them in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

FAQs

I hope that you love these candy-coated pecans as much as I do! Don’t forget to share this recipe with your family and friends, you can also Pin it to your Pinterest board so you can find it again next year!