“Raw” Vegan Gluten Free Maple Cinnamon Almonds
22Piggies! I have been inspired by our Gluten Free Healthy Surprise Giveaway, and so this month I am sharing some quick easy gluten free vegan snack recipes. These maple cinnamon almonds are absolutely scrumptious! Raw almonds are my favourite snack food, and if I want to make them more decadent, I cover them in different sweeteners and flavourings and dehydrate them. I made a few different kinds of sugar almonds last Christmas, and they were a huge hit. I have labelled this recipe as "raw" because the almonds are raw and dehydrated. However, strictly speaking, they are not completely raw because the maple sugar has been made from boiled maple syrup. But, there are raw foodists who eat maple syrup. So I thought I would include it in the raw category.
If you don't have an Excalibur dehydrator, are not a raw foodist, and want to make these almonds, you can dehydrate them on the very lowest setting of your oven for about 8-12 hours. I say that because the "cooking" time varies depending on whether or not you soak you almonds. I always soak all of my nuts, grains and seeds in order to remove the anti-nutrients and enzyme inhibitors and make them more digestible. You can read more about this on my Why Soak Grains, Nuts and Seeds page. But, you don't have to soak your almonds to make this recipe. You can just rinse them, as you will want the almonds to be wet in order to have the maple sugar stick to them.
If you have never used maple sugar before, you are in for a treat. If you boil maple syrup until it thickens, and let it cool, it crytallizes to form granulated maple sugar, which is a fantastic decadent sweetener. It is sold in blocks or as granulated sugar. It is rather expensive so I don't use it all that often. Just for special occasions when I want a real treat. You can get maple sugar at most health food stores. I like the Shady Maple Farms maple sugar, which has gorgeous flavour and texture. You can use ½ – ¾ cup of maple sugar for every cup of refined sugar in baked recipes. But I mainly use maple sugar as an accent sweetener or topping on gluten free cakes, pancakes, muffins, cookies and cereals. It can be a bit overpowering in large quantities.
But it is MAGIC mixed with cinnamon for these almond treats. Trust me, give these a go and you will not be sorry. They are DEELICIOUS!
“Raw” Vegan Gluten Free Maple Cinnamon Almonds
- 4 cups raw almonds soaked rinsed (or you can soak them for 12 hours and rinse for better digestion)
- 1 cup organic maple sugar (crystalized maple syrup)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt or Himalayan salt
- Mix together the maple sugar, cinnamon and salt.
- Roll the wet almonds in the mixture until well coated.
- Lay on trays and place in your Excalibur dehydrator for about 8 hours until dried.
- *If you soak your almonds you will need to dehydrate for longer - up to 24 hours.
- If you don't have an Excalibur dehydrator, you can use the lowest setting of your oven and heat for about 8 hours.
- ENJOY!
Piggy Cooking Tips
remove hazelnut skins and catch the nuts in one fell swoop
After allowing the roasted hazelnuts to cool, place them in a recycled plastic mesh bag with small holes like you buy lemons, limes or oranges in. Tie both ends and then rub the bag between your hands over the sink or trash can. All of the skins will slip through the bag leaving the whole naked treasures inside. Now that is better than the dirty tea towel approach!
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Add Your GruntOh my… these remind me of my visits to New York and hunting down the “Nut Guy” in Times Square… yuuuummmm! :) Definitely on my list of must try Piggie recipes…
This looks yummy and easy; great for the kids and an anytime snack. Love the maple sugar instead of sugar, thanks for sharing! Lisa
Yes! LOVE maple sugar!
It is really decadent.
But SO worth it for some recipes.
So easy and sooooooo delicious. These are coming out at all our parties from now on…..... if they last till the party that is!
So glad you enjoy them! Yes, these are great for parties!
I made these and they were really good. I had never bought maple sugar before. That stuff is EXPENSIVE.
They had to special order it in for me.
I won’t be using it all the time.
But I am glad I tried it for this recipe.
Delicious flavour, but I couldn’t afford to make these all the time.
Yes, it is quite pricey.
I feel really honoured that you would buy such an expensive item just to make one of my recipes.
Thankyou so much for giving these a go.
I made these with coconut sugar bc I happen to have some in my cupboard. These almonds turned out amazing! And, my house smelled unbelievable while they were dehydrating. I will have to get some maple sugar and try them the “right” way. Thanks for sharing your expertise with us, Tess. It has been a year that my daughter has been off gluten. I feel like I have had to learn to cook all over again, and having access to this site has made the journey less daunting. And, really delicious.
Oh, Thankyou for your lovely words of support and encouragement. I really really appreciate it. I am so glad you are enjoying the recipes! Please post comments on any others you have tried so people can learn from your experience.
Yes! Coconut sugar is FANTASTIC on these almonds. Either way works for me! Oink!!!
LOVE THESE!!!! Yes they are all caps worthy! As you can probably tell I’m not a huge nut person and I’m not sure what possessed me to make these, but I’m glad I did! If you like almonds I really insist you make these!
I don’t have a dehydrator, but I am going to try these in the oven with coconut sugar. These look good.
Great! Thanks for giving them a go.
Coconut sugar is great on these almonds.
Tess,
Did you know that “raw” almonds in the US are actually pasteurized, either by steam or chemicals? More here:
http://www.justalmonds.com/category_s/55.htm
That’s why I clicked over here; was wondering if your quotation “raw” was about the maple or the almonds. BUT you can hop through a loophole and order directly from the grower to get truly raw, unpasteurized almonds. Got mine this year for the first time from here: http://homegrownalmonds.com/
;) Katie
Yes! I LOVE Home Grown Almonds.
I know…..it is so frustrating about “raw” nuts. Truly raw nuts that have not been heated and pasteurized are definitely the way to go.
Unfortunately, they are cost prohibitive for many people.
I talk about this in my raw nuts and seeds posts and pages.
People really need to be educated and informed about this stuff.
I totally agree with you, and thanks for sharing this here!
Easy and yummy! Looks perfect for a party snack! Now I can have that second light beer. I like it when I can get a recipe that works with all types of party groups. The Super Bowl crowd and the family birthday party.
LOL! Enjoy :)