Preheat your pellet smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
MAKE EGG AND ALMOND MIXTURE:
Place the egg whites in a medium bowl and beat with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form.
Add the almonds on top of the egg whites in the middle of the bowl.
Pour the melted butter over the almonds, not directly into the egg whites.
Gently stir until the almonds are evenly coated.
MAKE CINNAMON SUGAR:
In a separate bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar. Mix until thoroughly combined.
COMBINE:
Pour the cinnamon sugar over the almonds and fold the mixture until the almonds are nice and coated.
Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray and spread the almonds evenly across the baking sheet.
SMOKE ALMONDS:
Smoke for 1 ½ hour, and then remove the almonds from the smoker.
Let the almonds sit for about 5 minutes before consuming. Enjoy!
Notes
Be careful going over the butter and egg white amount listed. If they’ve got too much liquid, the cinnamon and sugar mixture will slide off of the almonds and not stick as well.
It’s essential to have salted almonds for this recipe to get the best flavor. If you have whole almonds that aren’t salted, I would add a tablespoon of coarse sea salt to the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Of course, if you prefer no salt, that’s perfectly fine, but I have found more people like it with the salt added.
If your almonds are chewy, it means they’re undercooked, and you need to let them smoke a little longer.
I used Traeger brand cherry wood pellets for this recipe, and it was terrific. However, you can use any pellet you prefer; note that each type of pellet will give its unique flavor to the almonds.