Green Tea Walnuts

Author Notes

Walking through the San Francisco Ferry Building one day, I saw a sign outside the Imperial Tea Court advertising "green tea walnuts." They were, unfortunately, sold out, but I had a tin of matcha (Japanese green tea powder) at home and I started scheming to make them myself. These are crunchy, rich, bittersweet, and quite sophisticated. The sugar here is an imprecise measurement, so feel free to adjust it up or down depending on how sweet or bitter you want your nuts to be. —ieatthepeach

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: Ieatthepeach cooks, eats, and writes out of San Francisco.
WHAT: A snack to munch on until the ball drops this New Year's.
HOW: Coat walnuts in a mixture of egg whites and water, season with Japanese green tea powder, sugar, and salt, and bake until brown and glistening.
WHY WE LOVE IT: These walnuts, with a flavor more complex than your run-of-the-mill candied nuts, are not too-sweet -- and that means you can eat more of them without getting bored. The green tea powder provides pleasantly bitter notes, and next time we make it, we'll experiment with adding an additional tablespoon or two of matcha for a bigger jolt. —The Editors