I love desserts, I have to admit. Chocolate, ice cream, cakes, pies, cookies. Whatev. I love to bake and sweets are definitely on my top ten list.

If I had to choose, though, I’d choose a salty snack nine out of ten times.

Popcorn is my favorite. I adore soft pretzels dipped in honey mustard or melted cheese. I could eat my weight in chips and queso, and I can’t keep potato chips or Doritos in the house because they are, quite literally, my only trigger foods. Yes, Doritos. I generally avoid processed foods, but I see nothing wrong with having a single-serving bag of Doritos from time to time. But like I said….I can’t buy them to keep in my house. Ever. Another favorite savory snack is nuts. Almonds, peanuts, pecans, pistachios, what have you. I remember as a child eating those greasy Planter’s mixed nuts from a can at my grandmother’s house and thinking they were, quite possibly, the best thing ever. Of course, they are not….but these rosemary roasted cashews come pretty close.

My Aunt Susan brought these to Tennessee when she came for Thanksgiving a few years ago. My dad’s older sister, she’s my kindred cooking spirit in our family. Unfortunately, she lives in Texas, so we don’t get to share our love of food in person more than once every year or two. She adapted this recipe from a recipe from Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa), and I’ve adapted it just slightly from hers. These would be a wonderful party snack….but in my case, they’re wonderful to keep in a jar and pour liberally into your hand everytime a craving hits…which is pretty much every time I walk past the jar. (And no, I did not plan the Memorial Day color scheme, which I noticed after I finished shooting the photos. Coincidence, I suppose!)