Rosemary Marcona Almonds
Spanish almonds roasted with rosemary, olive oil, and flaky salt
- 2 cupsMarcona almonds
- 2 tbspextra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbspfresh rosemary(finely chopped)
- 0.5 tspflaky sea salt
- 0.25 tspcayenne pepper(optional)
Store in airtight container up to 2 weeks. If they soften, re-crisp in 300°F oven for 5 minutes.
- 1Preheat oven to 325°F
- 2Toss almonds with olive oil, rosemary, salt, and cayenne if using
- 3Spread in single layer on rimmed baking sheet
- 4Roast 12-15 minutes, stirring once, until fragrant and slightly darker
- 5Let cool completely on pan - they will crisp as they cool
- 6Taste and add more salt if needed
- 7Store in airtight container
Marcona almonds are already fried, so roasting time is shorter than raw nuts. Watch carefully - they can burn quickly. The rosemary should be finely chopped so it adheres. Cooling completely is essential for crisp texture.
Marcona almonds (Prunus dulcis var. marcona) are a variety of sweet almond native to Spain, cultivated primarily in the provinces of Alicante, Valencia, Murcia, and Tarragona. They are rounder, flatter, and softer than the Nonpareil variety that dominates California production, and their higher oil content gives them a distinctive buttery, subtly sweet flavor that sets them apart from other almonds. The traditional Spanish preparation — frying them briefly in olive oil and finishing with sea salt — is documented as a tapas staple throughout the southern and eastern regions of Spain. Almonds are among the most ancient cultivated tree crops in the Mediterranean, with evidence of almond cultivation in Jordan and Turkey dating to approximately 3000 BCE; they were widely traded throughout the ancient Mediterranean world and appear in ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman food records. Spain became a major almond-producing country after the Moors introduced extensive orchard cultivation during their occupation of the Iberian Peninsula (711–1492 CE). Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus, formerly Rosmarinus officinalis) is native to the Mediterranean and has been used in cooking since antiquity — documented in ancient Roman and Greek culinary texts. The combination of rosemary's piney, aromatic character with the buttery sweetness of fried Marcona almonds is a Spanish tapa preparation that has been adopted widely into Italian aperitivo culture.