Christmas treat

Happy pre-holidays everyone! I thought I’d share a simple recipe to help get us all in the holiday mood. This is easy, inexpensive, and a little fancy. You can include this in a gift basket or just give them wrapped in brown paper and a little ribbon. 

 Pat’s orange pecans: 

3 cups pecan halves 

1 orange (fine-grate or "zest" the orange part of the peel off and save, then squeeze the juice into a cup and save) 

4 teaspoons brown sugar 

1 tablespoon butter or margarine 

2 dashes of each: Cinnamon, Cloves, and Nutmeg 

 Instructions: In a medium saucepan combine the orange peel, orange juice, brown sugar, butter, and spices. Heat to a boil and immediately add nuts. Stir and sauté until pecans absorb the liquid. Remove from heat. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and spread the hot pecans onto the tray. Bake at 350 for about 5 minutes. Keep checking that they are not getting too brown! Remove from the oven and let cool completely. The nuts will take on a crunchy rather than chewy consistency. These are good as a snack, crumbled up in a salad or oatmeal, or on a dessert, like a topping for ice cream.