Gifts from our garden

Along with honey from the garden, our gift to friends this year is the following nut mix. Spicy, smoky, sweet, all-round sensational. Several have asked for the recipe. It's from Ina Garten's How Easy is That.  Love this and all her other books.

Note to self: Next time, find sensible source for nut purchases. Spare yourself the excitement of a totally outrageous bill/shop smart. Definitely not Draegers!

For local readers: You'll find chipolte chile powder at Penzeys Spices, Menlo Park as well as other Penzeys stores around the country.

Ina Garten's Chipotle & Rosemary Spiced Nuts
Serves 8 to 10

"When I have a little extra time before a party, I'll whip up a batch of these really delicious nuts. They're sweet, salty, and spicy--with lots of brown sugar, maple syrup, chipotle powder, and fresh rosemary. Roasting is the process that brings out the most flavor in nuts, and serving them warm is a particularly nice touch.

Vegetable oil

3 cups whole roasted unsalted cashews (14 ounces)
2 cups whole walnut halves (7 ounces)
2 cups whole pecan halves (7 ounces)
1/2 cup whole almonds (3 ounces)
1⁄3 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 teaspoons ground chipotle powder
4 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves, divided
Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Brush a sheet pan generously with vegetable oil. Combine the cashews, walnuts, pecans, almonds, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, the maple syrup, brown sugar, orange juice, and chipotle powder on the sheet pan. Toss to coat the nuts evenly. Add 2 tablespoons of the rosemary and 2 teaspoons of salt and toss again.

Spread the nuts in one layer. Roast the nuts for 25 minutes, stirring twice with a large metal spatula, until the nuts are glazed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with 2 more teaspoons of salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons of rosemary.

Toss well and set aside at room temperature, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking as they cool. Taste for seasoning. Serve warm or cool completely and store in airtight containers at room temperature.

Chipotle chile powder is different from ordinary chili powder-- it's ground dried smoked jalapeños and has a distinctive hot, smoky, sweet flavor."