Name: Sweet and Spicy Nuts and Pretzels
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 12 Servings
Cuisine: American

Cooking with Conks Verified

February 4, 2026

These sweet and spicy nuts and pretzels are the kind of snack that you eat half of before your guests show up. They’re crunchy, sweet, salty, and just spicy enough to keep you reaching for more. A mixture of nuts and pretzels gets coated in melted butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, salt, cinnamon, and cayenne, then baked for a toffee-like consistency. It’s an easy, make-ahead snack that feels simple enough for a weeknight but special enough for a holiday table.

From the Cook

1/6

Sweet and Spicy Nuts and Pretzels

Cooking with Conks Verified

Ingredients

WarningMilk and 6 other allergens identified

Instructions

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Instructions

Toast the nuts on a foil lined sheet for 3 to 4 minutes, then remove them from the oven and let them cool while you make the sauce.

Add butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, cayenne, cinnamon, and salt to a small pot and cook until fully melted and emulsified, about 3 minutes.

Add the toasted nuts and pretzels to a bowl and toss with the sauce until everything is coated, careful not to break the pretzels. You can also toss everything with the sauce on the sheet tray but it will be more challenging (in our experience).

Bake the nuts and pretzels at 350°F on the same foil lined sheet for 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and use a spatula to toss the nuts, then place them back in the oven and bake for another 7 minutes.

Toss the nuts again, then let them cool completely before eating.

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Tips & Tricks (5)

Nut Uniformity Trick 🥜
Use a mix of whole and roughly chopped nuts to ensure even coating and create interesting texture variations in the final snack.
Spice Balance Mastery 🌶️
Taste your cayenne before adding to adjust heat level - different brands can vary dramatically in spiciness, so start with less and add incrementally.
Maple Syrup Caramelization Secret 🍯
Use pure maple syrup and watch closely during baking to achieve a perfect toffee-like glaze without burning - stir every 10 minutes for even caramelization.
Pretzel Saturation Strategy 🥨
Ensure pretzels and nuts are completely dry before coating to help the butter and spice mixture adhere more effectively and create a crispier final texture.
Storage Preservation Hack 🧊
Store cooled nuts and pretzels in an airtight container with a small piece of paper towel to absorb moisture and maintain crunchiness for up to 2 weeks.

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About the Cook

Cooking with Conks

We’re Rachel & Emily Conklin (“Conks” for short), sisters, lifelong foodies, and the voices behind Cooking with Conks. We grew up in Southern California, surrounded by bold flavors, big family meals, and the kind of kitchen chaos that turns into inside jokes