Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the walnut halves in a shallow baking pan and toast in the oven for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
When you start to smell the nuts, remove them from the oven and let them cool.
In a medium saucepan combine the sugar, water, cinnamon, and salt.
Bring to a boil over medium heat, and cook to the soft-ball stage (236 degrees F on a candy thermometer) without stirring.
Remove from the heat. Add the vanilla and toasted nuts, and stir gently until the nuts are well-coated and the mixture loses its gloss. Only takes a few minutes.
Turn out onto a greased (I used butter on a cookie sheet) platter. Separate the halves as they cool.
A tip. Toast the walnuts before starting the hot stuff. I started both at the same time and my candy was ready before the walnuts came out of the oven.
This is the fastest candy recipe I have ever used. 15 minutes, start to finish, including dragging out the saucepan.