National Chocolate with Almonds Day is observed annually on July 8th. What a great combination to enjoy. It is also filled with added health benefits!
The almond was spoken highly of in the Bible, and finds its origins in the Middle East. There it has been used as a source of food, medicine, and decoration for time out of mind. They are easily harvested from within the almond fruit, and are now grown extensively in California, and is the subject of the largest managed cultivation in the entire world of agriculture. That’s how important this humble tree nut is.
Chocolate is easily one of the most popular substances to ever enter the world. It has been seen as a solution for sorrow and a great compliment for joy, and literally contains the stuff of love, at least chemically. Chocolate is used as a way to demonstrate your love for another and has been used in just about every culinary combination you could imagine. Its diversity is well loved, as well as its adaptability.
Chocolate With Almonds Day celebrates what happens when these two fantastic ingredients come together into one mind-bendingly delicious whole.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF ALMONDS:
- reduce the risk of heart attack
- lower ‘bad’ cholesterol
- protects artery walls from damage
- help build healthy bones and teeth
- provide healthy fats and aid in weight loss
- lower the rise in blood sugar and insulin after meals
- help provide good brain function
- nourish the nervous system
- alkalize the body
FUN FACTS:
- The protein in almonds is more like the proteins in human breast milk of all the seeds and nuts, which is why it is the choice of the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine as the base for its baby formula.
- Almonds are the most nutrient-dense tree nut. One ounce of almonds (20-25 almonds) contains 160 calories and only 1 gram of saturated fat and no cholesterol. Almonds are also an excellent source of vitamin E and magnesium, and a good source of protein and potassium.
- The Jordan almond is a large plump variety of almond from Malaga, Spain, considered to be the finest cultivated almond. The are frequently sold with a hard colored sugar coating, or salted.
- It takes 1000 pounds of almonds to make 1 pint of almond oil.
- In the mid-1700s, the Franciscan Padres planted almond trees to grace their missions along El Camino Real (The Royal Road) that stretches along the California coast from San Diego to Sonoma.
- Cinnamon-glazed almonds were President Clinton’s snack of choice at both the 1993 and the 1997 inaugurations.
- Native to the Mediterranean countries, the almond was introduced to America from Spain in 1769.
- The world’s largest almond factory is located in Sacramento, California and processes over 2 million pounds of almonds per day. California produces over 80% of the world’s supply of almonds and that chocolate manufacturers currently use about 40% of the world’s almonds and about 20% of the world’s peanuts.
- Raw Almonds contain prussic acids, the eating of more than a handful can be lethal. this is why all almonds are dried, roasted and/or pasteurized.
- The bitter taste in Almonds is derived from the 4-9 mg of hydrogen cyanide in each.
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