Once my younger brother and I moved out for college, the refrigerator and pantry underwent a fairly substantial makeover. Boxes of Life, Corn Flakes, and Frosted Mini Wheats disappeared from the cereal shelf; Nature Valley granola bars and Chewy Chips Ahoy sleeves vanished from the snack bins; and the jars of peanut butter in the pantry magically transformed into almond butter in the refrigerator.
Eventually, my parents began to repopulate the snack shelves. Dad supplied the peanuts and pistachios while Mom stocked the gluten-free crackers and cookies. A few months later, Mom also started to buy nuts for the bins, but due to her allergies to peanuts and walnuts, she stuck to cashews and almonds.
With her busy work and travel schedule, she looked for snack-size packages that were easily transportable, ones that she could slip into her purse to nibble on during the commute home from work or a plane flight instead of the complementary peanuts.
She sampled 100-calorie packs of flavored almonds, one with cinnamon and the other cocoa, and now she consistently keeps at least one box of each in the pantry. I always steal a few packages when I visit! One with breakfast, another while waiting for dinner, and as many as I can sneak when we run errands. I am my mother’s daughter!
Since I know how quickly those snacks disappear when we’re both under the same roof (daily trips to the grocery store are practically a necessity!), I created a similar recipe for a big batch of my own Cocoa Roasted Almonds. With just 3 ingredients and 20 minutes to make, they’re almost as dangerous to keep around!
With how easy this snack is to make, it’s almost a “non” recipe. Toast almonds; then toss them in barely sweetened cocoa powder. The first part is my favorite. Walking around the kitchen, smelling the sweet nutty aroma lightly wafting from inside of the oven… It’s almost as tempting as the smell of cookies! Almost. But not quite. (It’s practically impossible to beat the taste of one of these fresh from the oven!)
Then comes the cocoa shower. I was rather doubtful at first, wondering if the cocoa would actually stick to the almonds, but somehow it magically did. Coating the nuts in a dusty layer of chocolate was pure bliss!
It’s important to toast the almonds first before rolling them around in the cocoa powder bath. If you do things in the opposite order, the cocoa begins to melt a little in the oven, gives the nuts tiny dark freckles, and forms a thin, crispy chocolate blanket on the bottom of the pan. They still taste the same, but for the prettiest almonds, toast them first!
In just 20 minutes, you can have a batch of these gourmet-looking Cocoa Roasted Almonds sitting on your countertop! If you double or triple the recipe, you’ll have plenty to give away as last-minute holiday gifts to friends and neighbors, plus enough left over for you to enjoy too.
Or maybe too many, in my case…
| Cocoa Roasted Almonds | | Print |
- 2 c (280g) raw unsalted almonds
- 1 tbsp (5g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp (2g) Truvia
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Place the almonds in a single layer on a rimmed baking tray, and bake at 350°F for 5 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven, shake it back and forth to move around the almonds, and continue to bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until the almonds are lightly fragrant and toasty.
- Cool the almonds on the tray for 1-2 minutes, then carefully pour into a medium bowl. Add in the cocoa powder and Truvia, and stir to coat all of the almonds. Pour them back onto the baking tray into a single layer to cool.
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low calorie}
More chocolate almond recipes from other bloggers…
♥ Chocolate-Almond Steel Cut Oatmeal by Very Culinary
♥ Chocolate Almond Date Balls by Something Swanky
♥ Caramelized Almond Chocolate Bark by Bakery by Nature
♥ Vegan Almond Joy Hot Chocolate by The Almond Eater
How much powdered sugar should I use if substituting the Truvia?
Use the same amount (or a little more if you prefer your almonds sweeter)! I’m excited to hear what you think of these Erika!
Thank you Amy! They weren’t quite what I was looking for – I recently tried the Kirkland brand and was looking to simulate those more, but they were still good. I appreciate the simplicity of the recipe and how it’s an alternative to much less healthy snacks!
I’m always happy to help, Erika! I haven’t tried Kirkland’s cocoa roasted almonds, only the ones Emerald Nuts. What’s different about Kirkland’s compared to these homemade ones? Perhaps we can modify the recipe so they’re a bit closer! 🙂
Actually, the Truvia website says it should be closer to a teaspoon of sugar to be the same sweetness. Stevia is a calorie-free sweetener in part because it’s much sweeter tasting than sugar in similar quantities.
I appreciate your interest in my recipe Muria! In my recipes, I’ve actually found that I need just as much Truvia to equal the same sweetness as sugar. I know the Truvia website says otherwise, but that’s just what I’ve found for my recipes! 😉 From what I learned in biochemistry, stevia is calorie-free because our bodies don’t metabolize, break it down, and process it to use as fuel (just like fiber!), so it basically passes right through our bodies. The amount or sweetness level doesn’t really matter! Essentially, anything our bodies can’t metabolize and break down to use as some sort of fuel (think carbohydrates, sugar, protein, fat — that kind of thing!) will be calorie-free. I was an organic chemist before I became a baking blogger, so I love nerdy food things like that! 🙂
Great stuff, thanks.
My pleasure! I’d love to hear what you think of these almonds if you try them Steve!
These are great thank you! I used a heaping teaspoon of powdered sugar, and I did add salt. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you how much because I used a grinder, but with the added salt, they’re delicious.
I’m so glad you enjoyed these almonds Megan! I’ve done the same thing with a salt grinder before — you’re not alone! 😉 Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
I use a mortar and pestle to create powdered Truvia.
Thanks for sharing Crystal! That’s such a great idea! 🙂 I hope you enjoyed these cocoa roasted almonds!
These look delish, and quick! I wonder if I could make a variety of almonds by adding other spices to the cocoa, and how much I would add, like cayenne, cinnamon, or even ground orange peel? I’d hate to waste almonds with lots of trials and errors…
But first, this recipe. Yum!
I’m honored that you’d like to try making these cocoa roasted almonds, Robynne! I actually have a cinnamon roasted version of this recipe here. So I definitely think you could add other spices to this cocoa version too! I’d recommend starting with ½ teaspoon (or less) of cinnamon, so you don’t overpower the cocoa powder, and just a teensy tiny pinch of cayenne since it can be SO strong and spicy. 🙂 I haven’t tried something like orange peel (I actually really dislike chocolate + orange together — I know I’m weird like that! 😉 ), but it could be fun to try!
I can’t wait to hear what you think of these almonds!
How much salt could I add, very much a beginner here and I tend to overdo it, ty!
We’re so honored you’d try this recipe, Kandice! It really depends on your personal taste. I think ¼ teaspoon should be a fairly safe amount. Something to keep in mind is that the salt probably won’t stick very well, so if you’d like to taste some salt, it might be better to substitute salted almonds instead. They’re generally sold already roasted (not raw!), so you could probably get away with not baking them for very long, if at all. (Baking does tend to help the cocoa powder stick a bit better, so that would be the main reason to heat them!)
I’d love to hear what you think if you decide to make these almonds! 🙂
Hi! I just came across this recipe. I didn’t think the powder would stick to the nuts but it did! They were great because I don’t like too sweet things (I used the powdered sugar). Thanks!
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed these almonds, Becs! Thanks for taking the time to let us know! 🙂