Candied Spiced Walnuts--Super Last-Minute Christmas Gift!

Last month I mentioned a big gathering I was cooking for, wrote about the truffle-flavored pâté I made. (One small crock was left over so I covered it with a quarter-inch of melted butter and it’s at the back of the fridge, the country way of preserving potted meats…we’ll dip into it on New Year’s Eve, can’t wait.) Also for the party, tempted by a photograph of spiced walnuts next to the recipe in a commercial rag—the nuts had the matte look of cinnamon-colored streusel, sugar crystals gleaming—I prepared a 10-cup batch. In all my years of making sweets I’d never candied walnuts and wasn’t sure what to expect—the recipe was so EASY it didn’t feel like making candy. When the walnuts came out of the oven and I took a bite, I was thrilled. They were so crunchy, toasty, spicy, walnutty, and not too sweet.
Yesterday, I made another batch for Christmas presents. Quickly made (not much more than an hour), I couldn’t recommend these more highly…a lovely luxe present for little time, money, and effort.
NB: you can divide or multiply the proportions as you wish.
1½ cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1½ teaspoons ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 egg whites
3 tablespoons water
10 cups best quality walnut halves (for economy’s sake, broken pieces can be mixed in)
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with baking parchment or foil.
Shake the sugar and spices together in a paper bag until blended.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the egg whites and water together until frothy. Add the walnuts and toss with a fork or your fingers until pieces are thoroughly coated.
In relays, place nuts in the bag and shake until pieces are thoroughly sugared.
Spread the nuts in a single layer on the baking sheets and bake until the coating is dry and set, about 1 hour, stirring gently every 10 minutes.
Cool thoroughly on the sheets, stirring gently as needed to break up stuck pieces. Store in an airtight tin in a cool place (not the refrigerator). Makes 10 cups. They’ll keep until eaten.