Enjoy maple sweetened Candied Maple Pecans as a condiment on salads or pie, as a snack, or share on a cheese board. They’re made with two simple ingredients (plus salt and pepper), without egg whites or brown sugar, so they’re easy to whip up quickly. Baked in the oven, once cool, these tasty glazed pecans have a thin, shiny, crunchy candy coating that’s such a delight with each bite.
Versatile and Delicious Baked Candied Pecans
Perfect for the holidays, but really, anytime when you want that little extra something for your salad, snack platter, or just a naturally sweetened crunchy treat to pop in your mouth.
This recipe is easy to prepare with just two simple ingredients plus salt and pepper, just like my Candied Maple Walnuts. I’ve included a small and large batch on the recipe card, so scaling up or down is easy.
This Recipe Is
- naturally sweetened and with a hint of salt
- crisp and snappy
- a tasty condiment or snack
If you’ve made my Sweet and Spicy Roasted Rosemary Cashews to nibble on, you’ll enjoy this recipe too.
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How to Make Candied Maple Pecans
Step by Step
To ensure your pecans turn out perfectly, I recommend an external oven thermometer. Ovens can run hot and fluctuate widely in temperature. An oven thermometer will show the true temperature of your oven, so you can adjust as needed.
“I love these pecans – perfect addition to salads and cheese plates. The maple syrup really makes these extra special. The oven method of making these is so much less fussy than stove top. Make the big batch, they disappear from the pantry way too quickly!!”
LAH
How to Enjoy Candied Maple Pecans
- Pop em’ in your mouth!
- Rough chop and enjoy on ice cream.
- Share on a snack board with cheese, fruit and crackers.
- They’re tasty on salads like this roasted Beet and Apple Salad or Juicy Orange and Roasted Beet Salad.
- Put them on pie or pie slice as a garnish. They’re delicious on these little Gluten Free Mini Pumpkin Pies.
- For Foodie Gifts: This recipe makes tasty holiday gifts. Simply fill small Mason jars with the pecans and lid. The jars can be tied with ribbon and reused.
Use pure maple syrup for flavor and crunch!
Traci’s Tips
- Choosing Pecans: look for pecan halves that are mostly whole pieces. Buy in bulk for best value.
- Keep an Eye on Your Pecans: keep tabs on your pecans during the last few minutes of baking. They can go from done, to too dark fast.
- Store with Rice: store your maple pecans an air-tight container with a small bowl of white rice in it for up to a week. The rice acts like a desiccate and absorbs any surrounding moisture in the container, keeping the maple pecans fresh and snappy. When store without rice, the pecans become sticky.
2 Ingredient Oven Baked Candied Maple Pecans
Servings:2 cups
Calories:894kcal
[ recipe VIDEO below ] Enjoy naturally sweetened Candied Maple Pecans as a condiment on salads or pie, as a snack, or share on a cheese board. They're made with two simple ingredients (plus salt and pepper), so they're easy to whip up quickly. Baked in the oven, once cool, these tasty glazed pecans have a thin, shiny, crunchy candy coating that's such a delight with each bite.
Ingredients
Small Batch
- 1 cup (100 grams) Raw Pecan Halves
- 1/4 cup (75 grams) Pure Maple Syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- Pinch Ground Black Pepper
Larger Batch
- 2 cups (200 grams) Raw Pecan Halves
- 1/2 cup (150 grams) Pure Maple Syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1/8 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- Arrange an oven rack to the center of your oven and preheat to 375 Fahrenheit (190 Celsius). Have ready a sheet of parchment paper on the counter for the nuts once they come out of the oven.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the pecans, maple syrup, and salt and pepper. Stir to coat the pecans. Scrape the mixture onto a large, unlined, and ungreased sheet pan (use a small sheet pan for a small batch). Spread into an even layer. There'll be puddles of maple syrup on the pan.
- Once your oven is preheated, bake for 10-12 minutes. Do not stir. While baking, the maple syrup will bubble up at first, then subside to smaller bubbles, turning a darker amber color towards the end of baking. The nuts will be darker, and take on the color of the caramelized maple syrup. *Tip: watch closely. Keep the pecans in the oven as long as possible but without burning. Otherwise the texture will be chewy rather than snappy.
- Remove from the oven and working quickly, use a silicone spatula to scrape the pecans and all the sticky maple syrup onto the parchment paper, spreading into one layer as best you can. The pecans will be hot and sticky. Cool for 15 minutes. They should develop a thin candy shell as they cool.
- Once cool, gently snap the pecans apart. Store in a lidded storage container at room temperature with a small bowl of white rice to help keep moisture at bay (moisture will make them sticky). They'll store for about a week.
Video
Notes
Oven Temperature: I use and recommend an external oven thermometer. It reflects the true temperature of your oven, which is especially helpful for baked goods but also for recipes like this (nuts) that are sensitive to oven variations.
Pan Cleaning Tip: once cool, allow the pan to soak in water for about 10 minutes. The hard maple syrup dissolves right off.
Recipe adapted from Edible Seattle, by Sylvia Fountaine.
Nutrition Below is for the Large Batch.
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
Serving: 2cups | Calories: 894kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 72g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 22g | Monounsaturated Fat: 41g | Sodium: 588mg | Potassium: 581mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 49g | Vitamin A: 57IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 153mg | Iron: 3mg
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I love the smooth,shiny light glaze! Such a nice subtle maple flavor and just right amount of sweetness! I love adding them with blueberries or pears to my spring greens salads!
Love hearing this, Tina! Ah, yes! Salads are my favorite too.. just a touch of sweet and crunch!
Wonderful!
Hii Roberta! Hooray! SO glad to hear. Thank you for your note!
I love these pecans – perfect addition to salads and cheese plates. The maple syrup really makes these extra special. The oven method of making these is so much less fussy than stove top. Make the big batch, they disappear from the pantry way too quickly!!
Hi LAH! Thank you for your note and giving the recipe a go! Agreed about the oven method… A big batch sounds good to me!
Year 3 of making these fabulous pecans !! I use Millican Pecans from Texas (Whole /raw in a bg of 4 cups) and they disappear in the cocktail hour pre-dinner and my hostess stashes away a few for her own salads later in the week :)) No egg whites and I spring for organic maple syrup, pepper and salt and they are DIVINE !! Thanks for the tips in the recipe process and the ease of doing them.
Hi Rondi! Thank you for your note. Is it this recipe you’re referring to? I just posted it two months ago. So glad you’re enjoying the pecans!
Wow Traci, these are FAB! Simple and very impressive. Thank you!
Thank you for your note, Caroline!
yummy! 2nd time making it
Best news ever, Ellen! I appreciate your note 🙃