Today I’m sharing my family’s recipe for crockpot cinnamon pecans that we make every year for the holidays:
I played around with the original recipe to make it much healthier and lower in sugar, and no one could tell a difference.
That’s my goal with all of the recipes I publish here on the blog.
It’s a sign of a successful healthy dessert if the people to whom you serve it don’t feel like they’re missing anything and would gladly pick the healthy version over the original.
These slow cooker pecans–completely vegan and free of refined sugar–make such an excellent gift.
People appreciate the cinnamon pecans because they are homemade and taste delicious… and all you have to do is throw everything in the slow cooker and sit back as the machine does all the work for you!
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This family-favorite Christmas recipe is one of the three recipes I made for The Dr. Oz Show.
(Here are a few more photos from the show.)
Craft stores such as Michaels or JoAnn are great places to go if you want to package the pecans up and hand them out as gifts.
Most craft stores will sell holiday-themed paper and tin boxes (like the santa box above) at a pretty good price.
Another option is to place the nuts in clear bags tied with holiday ribbons. I could honestly spend hours in craft stores.
**If you don’t have a crock pot, I’ve also included oven instructions in the recipe below.
Cinnamon Pecans
Cinnamon Pecans
Print This Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 cups sliced raw pecans (or other raw nuts)
- optional 1 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
Slow Cooker Version: Lightly coat the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray. Place all ingredients except pecans inside, and stir to combine. Stir in the nuts, and turn the heat to low. Put the lid on and cook 2 hours, stirring once after the first hour. Remove the lid and stir, then cover again and continue cooking an additional hour on low. Pour the contents onto a cookie sheet or large platter, and break up any large clumps. Allow to cool completely, and they will harden as they cool. Transfer to decorative tins for gifts.
Oven Version: Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Stir together all ingredients in a large bowl, then spread out on the cookie sheet. Bake 15 minutes, turn with a spoon, then bake another 5-10 minutes as needed.
Store leftovers in a decorative tin for up to 2 weeks, or freeze up to 4 months.
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Margaret says
Your cinnamon pecans were a delightful addition to our holiday munching and meals, Katie! At the last minute, I threw a handful in a coleslaw along with sweetened dried cranberries, grated carrot and apple, cabbage, and my mayonnaise coleslaw dressing, and it was a positive hit that I will repeat next year. I also added them to a pumpkin oatmeal this morning–delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Ali says
My house smells wonderful. I just made these! Yum.
Millican Pecan says
I think the key to this is the “Just 5 Ingredients”. People try to complicate cinnamon pecans. Less sometimes can be more. I am a big fan of the maple/pecan combo so I am glad to see it here. Well done! We are always looking at how people candy their pecans. PS: Did you know that pecans are the only native tree nut to America? …and did you know that pecans have more vitamin E than any other nut? Just a couple of little fun facts for your readers.
Danielle says
I’m a little late posting this, but I wanted to let you know that I made these as part of my vegan Christmas tins for my coworkers in 2018. Everyone raved about these pecans! First of all, the house smells soooooo good when making these– very similar to the nut stands at the mall. These pecans are so addicting & perfectly crunchy! Thanks for an amazing recipe!!
Chocolate Covered Katie says
Thank you so much for making them!! 🙂
Allison says
Did anyone ever figure out if it’s 2 or 3 hours total? Sorry!!! They smell amazing cooking!!
Jason Sanford says
Hi, hope they turned out well! The directions in her post say three hours: Put the lid on and cook 2 hours, stirring once after the first hour. Remove the lid and stir, then cover again and continue cooking an additional hour on low.
🙂
Allison says
Thank you! I did figure that out finally! They were amazing – gave as gifts and everyone raved about them!
Allison says
One more question! Has anyone tried making a double or triple batch in a big crock pot?
Katie says
I made this recipe with the same amount of flavoring but only half the nuts, and my nuts have almost no flavor.
Jason Sanford says
If you halved the nuts and used the full amount of spices (and salt!), they would almost definitely be overpoweringly cinnamony and salty. Did you possibly accidentally leave something out? I’ve done that before with recipes!
Jason