Spicy Candied Almonds #GardenCuizine #SuperBowl #Snack

Spicy Candied Almonds

Candied nuts with cinnamon and spice give your body nutrition while providing flavor to your taste-buds. A few is all you need to satisfy and serve as a stand alone snack. For those who can safely eat nuts, spiced nuts make a welcomed homemade gift from your kitchen. I made these at Christmas and just made another batch for Super Bowl Sunday snacking!

Ingredients
2 cups lightly salted whole almonds
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon (or more!) ground hot peppers from your garden (or store bought cayenne)
2 Tablespoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch sea salt

Putting it all together
preheat oven to 375 deg F

Spread the almonds onto a foil-lined baking sheet; bake 5 min
Remove from oven and set aside to cool

• In a medium bowl, sift sugar with spices
• Add water and vanilla; stir to combine
• Stir in nuts; save the foil lined cookie sheet

On stove-top, medium heat, preheat a 10-inch cast iron skillet
when hot, add nut mixture

• Cook 3 min, mixture will get bubbly
• Stir
• Cook another 3 minutes

Spread onto the foil lined baking sheet
Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt
Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight baggie - I let them sit overnight

Serve with other healthy snacks such as fruits, cheese and/or veggies and dip.

Enjoy!
Related Links
My Instagram post
Healthy Super Bowl Party Recipes
Blog post and photo Copyright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.

ALMONDS = great choice for a Nutritious snack or in your next healthy recipe! #GardenCuizine

♥ Heart Healthy

 ALMONDS
Great Choice for a Nutritious Snack!

Fruits, Vegetables, NUTS, and Seeds are good sources of PLANT STEROLS that have been shown to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. Scientific evidence also suggests but does not prove that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as almonds, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease. (See nutrition information for fat content).

Almonds harvested from Prunus dulcis trees grow well in California and Utah according to the USDA. The US is among the top world producers of almonds, with California producing over 80%. Spain, Iran, Morocco and Italy are among other almond producers. It was exciting to see almond trees growing in Sicily. The blooms are beautiful like peach blooms. Most species require pollination to yield the almonds.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics reports good evidence that daily consumption of 2 to 3 g plant sterols* lowers total cholesterol concentrations in a dose dependent manner by 4 to 11% and LDL cholesterol concentrations by 7 to 15% without changing HDL cholesterol or triacylglycerol concentrations. Eat almonds as a healthy snack or add them to your favorite recipes.

* plant sterols are also added to some margarines, low-fat yogurts, orange juice, breads, and cereals - read the labels and look for the health claim "lowers cholesterol" 

 ♥ ALMONDS Nutrition:
calculated by Diana Wind, RD using USDA Nutrient Reference Data
Excellent Source: Vitamin E
Good Source: Protein; dietary Fiber; Riboflavin; Magnesium

 ________________________

1 oz (28g): 161 calories; Sodium 0 mg; dietary Fiber 3.4g (14% DV); Protein 6g (12% DV); Potassium 197 mg (6% DV); Calcium 74 mg (7% DV); Magnesium 75mg (19% DV); Vitamin E 7.3 mg (37% DV); Iron 1 mg (6%DV); Monounsaturated Fat 9g; Polyunsaturated fat 3.4g; Saturated Fat 1g; Riboflavin 0.3 mg (17% DV); Beta-sitosterol 37 mg 
Related Links
All About Almonds
Life Cycle of an Almond
Blog post Copyright (C)2012 Wind. All rights reserved.

Energize your Holiday w/Honey Roasted, Cocoa Volcano Dust PECANS #GardenCuizine

Heart Healthy

 Honey Roasted ♥ Cocoa Volcano Dust
 P E C A N S

Fruits, Vegetables, NUTS and Seeds are good sources of PLANT STEROLS (phytosterols) that have been shown to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. Eat nuts alone as a snack or use them in recipes as part of a heart healthy diet. These jazzed up pecans make a nutritious addition to holiday cookie trays or atop a holiday garden salad.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the following qualified health claim: “Scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as pecans, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.”  

Ingredients
1 pound raw pecan nuts
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground dried hot peppers from your garden
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
 
1/8 cup water
1/8 cup honey
2 tablespoons canola oil

Putting it all together

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Layer the nuts on your baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes or until fragrant and toasted.
• Grind your dried hot peppers (seeds and all) in a spice grinder (we use a small coffee grinder just for spices)
• In a small bowl combine the sugar, salt, cocoa and spices
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and set aside.
• Place the toasted nuts in a large bowl and toss with the spice mixture.
• Return the nuts to the lined baking sheet and bake another 8-10 minutes.
• Allow to cool on the baking sheet.
• Store in air tight container. Serve atop holiday garden salads, as a snack, or in your favorite baked goods or recipes.

GardenCuizine Nutrition Data PECANS: calculated by Diana Wind, RD using USDA Nutrient Reference Data 

Excellent Source: Manganese
Good Source: dietary Fiber, Thiamin  

1ounce (28g) PECANS = 193 calories; dietary Fiber 3g (11% DV); 276 mg Omega 3; Monounsaturated fat 11.4g; Polyunsaturated fat 6.1g; Saturated fat 1.7g; Protein 2.6g (5% DV); Thiamin 0.2 mg (12% DV); Magnesium 34 mg (8% DV); Manganese 1.3mg (63% DV); Zinc 1.3 mg (8% DV); Phytosterols 29 mg
Related Links
Pecan Nutrition in a Nutshell 
Antioxidants in Pecans