If I prefer larger pieces of almond can I put them in without chopping them to rice grain size and still get similar results? What about adding ad...

I haven't tested these things, so take these recommendations with a grain of salt, but here's what I'd think! You could try adding bigger pieces of nuts (other croccante recipes do)—the larger they are, the longer they will take to toast through, so you might want to add them very slightly earlier. Extracts are very volatile and lose flavor quickly, so I would add them as close to the end as possible, and same with ground spices, which could burn quickly. Maple syrup is a bigger question mark—it might be good to add at the beginning, which might even help keep the sugar from crystallizing, since it's made up of some invert sugars. Check out the video before you get going—it's important to let the bubbling caramel do its thing undisturbed and just barely swirl it (if needed) to try to prevent the caramel from crystallizing. Good luck, and have fun playing around! Might be a good idea to have extra ingredients on hand, so that you can try a few rounds.