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!
Also Try This Healthy Sweet Potato Bread
This family-favorite Christmas recipe is one of the three recipes I made for my holiday recipe appearance on Dr. Oz this past month.
Here are a few more photos from my segment on The Dr. Oz 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
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.View Nutrition Facts
Notes
Have you made this recipe?
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More Easy Holiday Recipes:
Snowball Cookies – 60 calories each
Lynn says
I just made these… and cannot top eating them! Very good.
Lynn says
oops – cannot STOP eating them!
Kathryn says
I made these for Christmas gifts last year, but we ended up eating a lot ourselves! So I totally plan to make them again this year! I don’t know why I don’t make them any other time. Maybe this weekend…
Emily says
These look like the most incredible addictive snack!
xo,
Em
Hannah Schmitt says
Oh my goodness, these look SO wonderful!
I love the simple and nourishing ingredient list.
Thank you for sharing, Katie!
Joey says
What’s up with the time stamps on these comments…?
Monica says
I have to soak nuts before I eat them, and this recipe looks great for crisping them up again!
Kat says
Coconut oil is at the bottom of the ingredient list, but never mentioned in the instructions. Just curious as to what it is for?
Jason Sanford says
It says “Place all ingredients except pecans inside”. That would include the coconut oil. Hope that helps.
Scott says
Why is everyone giving this recipe five stars when nobody in the comments have actually made it? I actually made it and the nuts were not sweet and burnt. I followed the oven recipe exactly. $13 in nuts wasted. Please don’t rate a recipe unless you have actually made it! For the future, syrup burns at 350 degrees rather quickly, about 10 minutes. They may be good in the crockpot. However, I am unable to tell by the commenters because they only state how great they look but I’m concerned the photo isn’t even a photo of the actual recipe. If it is, what are the sprinkles on the pecans? Salt? Don’t think so, as the syrup quickly smooths it out. Have you actually made this in the oven or did you just create another option and estimated the times/temp?
Jason Sanford says
I’m not sure why would yo say people didn’t make them? Here are three comment links from people who made them, one of which said she did it in the oven. I can also vouch for the oven method and would probably suggest looking to see if your oven is calibrated? A lot of things can affect baking time, such as calibration, elevation of where you live and the climate. So if you make them again, just don’t bake as long. My pecans looked pretty much like Katie’s – It is salt and the cinnamon.
https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2017/12/21/cinnamon-pecans-crock-pot/#comment-3500821
https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2017/12/21/cinnamon-pecans-crock-pot/#comment-3492379
https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2017/12/21/cinnamon-pecans-crock-pot/#comment-3491662
Nancy says
I just made them using the oven method. Stirred after 15 minutes and cooked for 5 more minutes. And I live at an elevation of 7000’. I am posting a photo.
Hannah says
Mine looked like Katie’s and tasted delicious.
Nancy says
OMG! Where have these been all of my vegan life?? So easy and so delicious! I just made them and could easily eat all three cups right now. Thank you!
Leslie says
I bet these smell amazing! They’d be a yummy treat.
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
Robin says
I followed the recipe exactly, cooked in Crockpot, but the nuts burnt quite badly. I do know that my Crockpot cooks pretty hot. I think 2 hours would have worked better. So, just be wary if your Crockpot is like mine. Did the recipe again but cooked in the oven. This time they were fab!