[pnoon]

Originally Posted by GWN

Peter, I just kinda winged it, which always drives my wife nuts and a she's a stickler for following the recipe.
Probably mixed 1/4-1/3 cup of butter, about the same of brown sugar, 1 tsp of paprika and about the same of cayenne. Added 1/4 cup of maple syrup towards the end and then stirred in 1.5 to 2 pound of almonds, give or take. I left them on the smoker for about 45 min, stirring occasionally.

A friend did something similar Sunday, but followed this recipe:

Jacked-up honey smoked almonds
Ingredients
3 lbs. (or 8 cups) uncooked, untreated natural almonds –
6 oz honey
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup melted butter
1 tsp salt
¾ - 1 tsp cayenne, depending on your taste preference
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup real maple syrup (Don’t use artificial. Spend the money for the real stuff—it’s the only thing that works)
1-cup Jack Daniels bourbon (use any bourbon, but it should have some kick to it. Wild Turkey is a good alternative)

Procedure
Mix all ingredients except the almonds well in a large mixing bowl. Mix with some muscle until you have a soupy mixture. Add in the almonds, and continue mixing and stirring until all almonds are fully coated. Refrigerate for 3-6 hours.
This refrigeration process is integral to your outcome for two reasons. First, almonds are not porous and need time to accept these flavourings. Second, the bourbon needs to dry in to the almonds. If you don’t give it time, your result could be a fire on the grill. This happened to me the first time!

Smoke for about 3-4 hours at 200-250 degrees. Holding a specific temperature is not critical—that’s the range. Halfway through the smoking, rotate the sheets if using a vertical smoker, Watch for black patches. This is the first state of caramelizing, and will start to appear when your almonds are done. If you’re ambitious, turning them over halfway through the process is always helpful.

Don’t dust with salt or sugar when finished. Let cool in a single layer on a non-stick surface such as waxed paper, or simply loosen them from the cooking surface with a spatula and let cool to room temperature. Serve slightly warm, or at room temp.

Thanks, Jeff.

I usually like to have some sort of basic recipe when I try something new. From there I have no problem tweaking it, modifying it, or just winging it.