Saturday, February 16, 2013

Almonds: why to go nuts for them

Happy National Almond Day! To be honest, I had no idea there was a day dedicated to almonds until this morning. I do love almonds, and I would hate to neglect them on their special day, so I decided to fore-go the post I was originally going to put up today and decided to give some well-deserved acknowledgement to one of my favorite super foods.

Almonds rank number one on Women's Health's list of nuts to include in your diet for good reason. They not only contain high levels of monounsaturated fats (healthy fats that when eaten in moderation can actually aid in weight-loss), but are also packed with protein, fiber, calcium, and iron! Making almonds even more amazing, they're a great food to snack on when you're feeling stressed. In addition to their high amounts of vitamin E, they contain vitamin B, which can help to relieve anxiety and aid in brain function.

Being a nut of versatility, there are plenty of ways to incorporate almonds into your diet! You can eat them in their raw-nut form, with your cereal or oatmeal, (I'm a fan of Silk Pure Almond Unsweetened Vanilla), you can spread almond butter onto whole wheat toast or add some into your fruit smoothie, and you can incorporate them into your baked goods! Since today is a celebration, I've provided some links below to some healthy almond dessert recipes:

Matcha Almond Layer Cake with Matcha Frosting 

Fudgy Black Bean Brownies and Banana Treat  (contains almond butter)

Almond Joy Candy Fudge

Health Nut Truffles

Cinnamon Rasin Almond Balls

Raw Vegan Fudge Brownies (contains almond butter and raw almonds)

If you're on the run and still want to pay tribute to the almighty-almond today, make a pit-stop at the grocery store and pick up some Blue Diamond Dark Chocolate Oven Roasted Almonds or Blue Diamond Cinnamon Brown Sugar Oven Roasted Almonds. There are other flavors to choose from, but these two are my personal favorite! Additionally, they also come in awesome 100-calorie packs (links provided above)!

Commemorate the day and try out an almond-based treat! Happy munching!

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