exciting sweet & spicy trail mix that will arouse your senses

This sweet & spicy trail mix is one of my staples around here. It’s critical for me to have easy access to healthy snacks because, if not, I may go on an ice cream run or something crazy like that!

Sometimes you just need to crunch and I can’t think of anything better than nutritious whole foods like nuts, seeds, fruit or coconut.

What sets this sweet and spicy trail mix apart is the flavorful spice blend that deliciously coats the oven roasted nuts and seeds. It has:

• richness from butter (or ghee)
• heat from cayenne and cumin
• acidity from orange zest
• warmth from cinnamon
• sweetness from dates (subs below) and dried fruit

This low-carb trail mix is very easy to adapt depending on your diet preferences. I’ve included recommendations in the notes section.

This recipe was adapted by Alton Brown’s spiced pecans (YUMMMM)!

is trail mix healthy?

Depends on what you put in the mix! This sweet and spicy trail mix has nuts and seeds, which are good sources of protein, healthy fats, fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

If you add coconut to the mix, you get more protein, several important minerals, and small amounts of B vitamins. Finally, dates and raisins have several vitamins and minerals, in addition to fiber and antioxidants.

Seems healthy to me!

how to make sweet & spicy trail mix

First, roast the nuts and seeds in the oven. While they are cooking, you’ll make the spice blend which will coat the nuts and seeds once they are cooked.

The spice blend starts with melted butter or ghee, salt, different spices, a little bit of orange zest and sweetener.

For sweetener, I’ve been using date paste (instructions below) but if you prefer, you can sub with maple syrup or brown sugar. I’ve also used Swerve brown (and it was delicious) if you want to keep carbs/sugar down.

Once you’ve poured the spice/butter/sweetener mix over the roasted nuts and seeds, spread them out on parchment paper to cool/dry. To speed up this process, you can stick them in the fridge.

Once cooled, I add the “extras” like dried fruit, coconut, dark chocolate chunks or additional nuts. The date/seed mix may still be slightly wet but will continue to dry out over time.

Store in tightly sealed container.

how to make date paste

Date paste is a great way to naturally sweeten foods. It’s whole30 approved, vegan and paleo friendly. You’ll need 12 ounces (12-16 medjool dates), pitted and 1-2 cups of water (enough to cover dates).

• Place dates in large bowl and cover completely with water. Soak dates for 2 hours or up to 2 days in fridge. For a quicker version you can use 1 cup boiling hot water.
• Once softened, place dates and soaking water into high powered blender or food processor.
  NOTE – If you’d like the paste thicker, discard a few tbsp of the water.
• Process until very smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. The thinner the paste, the less sweet it is.
• Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 weeks or freeze for up to a year.

This healthy trail mix is a fantastic snack by itself or you can pile it on to a bowl of fresh fruit or a salad!

Happy munching!

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• no-bake caramel protein cookies
• crispy chickpeas with parmesan
• quinoa granola with oats (gluten-free)

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enjoy desserts without feeling guilty afterward?

Life can still be sweet without refined sugar! Whether you need to lose weight, reduce your carb intake due to medical issues, or are simply looking for healthy recipes the entire family can enjoy, we’ve got just the guide to get you started!

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exciting sweet & spicy trail mix that will arouse your senses

4 from 6 votes

Recipe by Karen Lachman Course: Snack, Breakfast, DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

Calories

300

kcal

Yield

3.5 cups

This grain & gluten-free, healthy trail mix is a fantastic snack by itself or topping a bowl of fresh fruit or salad!

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cup raw nuts (I used 1 1/4 cups raw pecans, 1/2 cup raw almonds, 1/2 cup walnuts)

• 1/2 cup raw seeds (I used 1/4 c of pumpkin and 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds)

• 1 tsp. Kosher or sea salt

• 3/4 tsp. ground cumin

• 3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (use more or less depending on how much heat you like)

• 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp. orange zest (about 1/2 an orange)

• 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, clarified butter or ghee, melted

• 4 tbsp. maple syrup or date paste (or sub with 2 tbsp. of Swerve Brown + 1 tbsp of water)

• 1/4-1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

• 1/4-1/2 cup raisins, dried cranberries or other dried fruit

Directions

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Mix nuts and seeds and spread them on a baking sheet. Cook in the oven for 10 minutes until roasted. Check after 8 minutes to make sure they don’t burn.
• While nuts are cooking, combine the salt, spices, orange zest, melted butter or ghee and date paste (or sweetener sub, see notes) in a large bowl.
  
• When nuts are finished, add them to the bowl and mix well to coat nuts and seeds.
• Lay out on parchment paper to dry (you can put them in the fridge to expedite the process).
• Once the nuts & seeds have cooled and the “sauce” on them is relatively dry, add additional ingredients like coconut flakes or dried fruit. 
  
• Store in a tightly sealed Tupperware container.
  

Notes

• *Cayenne gives this mix a slight kick but if you like heat, add more.
• Nutrition facts based on 1/2 cup servings.
• Substitute date paste for maple syrup, for 2 tbsp. of brown sugar or Swerve Brown (low-carb option) plus 1 tbsp. of water.
• To make this Whole30 and paleo compliant use ghee vs. butter.
• To make this Keto, use Swerve brown for sweetener and omit dried fruit.

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