Do you love almonds as much as I do?
There are a lot of ways to use almonds. You can just pop them in your mouth for a quick and healthy treat and you can get sliced almonds to use on oatmeal or other hot cereal, in yogurt and much more.
What about using your food processor to make your own almond butter? I have seen a lot of people do that and I want to try it sometime. Almonds have so many great nutritious benefits too. But as with anything else, eat them in moderation.
Benefits of Almonds
- Packed with fiber
- Helps reduce risk of heart disease
- Helps lower bad cholesterol and raise the good
- They help keep you full
My favorite almonds are from the company Blue Diamond (I also love their almond milk, so thick and creamy!). I like plain almonds but they also have a variety that includes sea salt, honey dijon and more. I’ll be trying those too next time I get to the grocery store.
Blue Diamond almond flavors became American Heart Association certified. That is something to be proud of. You can read about it below…
Blue Diamond Almonds
Blue Diamond Almond Flavors Become American Heart Association Certified
Variety of Flavors Meet Criteria for Heart-Healthy Food
Blue Diamond Growers is proud to announce that a variety of Blue Diamond Almonds have been certified by the American Heart Association (AHA) as a heart-healthy food. Not only are Blue Diamond Almonds a delicious snack, but they are good for your heart and good for your health! The following flavors now feature the AHA Heart-Check mark:
- Whole Natural
- Roasted Salted
- Low Sodium
- Sea Salt
- No Salt
- Honey Dijon
The American Heart Association works to build healthier lives, free of cardiovascular disease and stroke. Heart disease is American’s number one killer and is completely preventable by following a number of health measures, one of which is eating healthy. When a consumer spots the AHA Heart-Check mark on food packaging, they can rest assured that the food meets the strict guidelines for a heart-healthy food.
Blue Diamond Almonds are More Than Great Taste – they can help you lead a heart-healthy lifestyle! For more on the American Heart Association and the Heart-Check mark, visit heartcheckmark.org.
About Blue Diamond Growers
Blue Diamond Growers has been around for over 100 years and are always innovating new flavors and products for consumers to enjoy. Blue Diamond Growers has over 3,000 California almond growers delivering delicious almonds all over the world. For more on Blue Diamond Almonds, visit BlueDiamond.com and “like” Blue Diamond Almonds on Facebook.
I’m really excited for them, great company!
If you would like to get to know the company and products better, join us on Monday, May 21st, 2012 at 8 PM Central/9 PM Eastern for a Twitter chat. You can follow the Twitter chat with the hashtag #BlueDiamond. I’m on Twitter so be sure to follow me too.
What is your favorite way to eat almonds?
**FitFluential LLC compensated me for this campaign. All opinions are my own.
Almonds have always been my favorite nuts – and I eat a lot of them.. do love Blue Diamond too.
Nice review and will look in on the Twitter chat if I can. Thanks.
They are one of my favorite nuts too. Thanks and hope to see you at the Twitter chat.
I go through a bag a week at my house, I especially love the different flavors they offer. The salt n vinegar rocks. It’s great that they can taste great and help keep you healthy.
So glad you love almonds in your household. I want to try all the flavors. How fun!
My most favorite way to eat almonds is as creamy almond butter spread on a banana. My next most favorite way is to pop them in my mouth. I haven’t tried Blue Diamond almonds yet but with this many varieties, it’s a no brainer.
I’ll agree, I love almond butter on bananas! Let me know what you think when you try the Blue Diamond almonds. I’m excited to try the variety they have.
We go through a lot of almonds in my house. My husband tops nearly everything he eats with almonds. I love them in my oatmeal and paired with cheese and an apple for a light lunch.
I’ve never tried any of the flavored varieties, though. Will have to see what’s available next time I’m out shopping!
I like to add almonds to my oatmeal too. What a great combo for a light lunch/snack. Thanks for sharing.
I love to eat almonds with Chobai 0% Fat Greek Yogurt mixed with some protein powder, chia seeds and some frozen berries. Or even just by themselves.
Oh boy that sounds good Stacie! Thanks!
I am hooked on raw almonds – no flavors, no salt, no nothing. I roast them and salt them if I like, but they are in their raw form until I do. That way, I can put them in the food processor and make almond meal to use for coatings, much like cornmeal for chicken or fish, or other cooking or baking needs.
I get a 1 lb. bag of locally packaged almonds for about $8. I keep them in the refrigerator and eat a handful every day, so they last at least a couple weeks. I’ll buy a separate bag just to grind up for meal or save for chopping for recipes. So, really, for about $16 a month, I get a healthy snack every day.
I must say I do enjoy the Diamond brand almonds for snacking but found it simpler and healthier just to buy the raw almonds and roast them if I wanted. There is no added fat, salts, sugars, or additives if I just roast the raw almonds myself.
I figure my diet is pretty much complete if I keep raw almonds and other nuts in my refrigerator at all times! 😀 Nuts are really powerhouses of nutrition. Thanks, Angie, for bringing up this topic.
Ahhh putting them in the processor to make almond meal is a great idea. And they truly are a powerhouse of nutrition. Thanks for sharing your ideas and tips.
You’re welcome, Angie. Oh, and by the way, if you process them too long, you’ll end up with more of an almond butter or paste, which is cool if that’s what you want, but not if you wanted just a meal consistency. Just thought a reminder would be good. 😉
Yummm! I’ve always loved almonds – and even more so, after I was on the South Beach diet where I learned how healthy they are. I usually just munch them from the bag (usually one JUST like in the picture above 🙂 ), but I also like them in my salads AND Love the Chinese dish – almond chicken.
In fact, my whole Sandwich Generation family loves them – from the grandkids on up to my senior mom who also likes them in salads!
Thanks for an interesting post, Angie.
Ahhh a Chinese dish, I could do that!
How did you like the South Beach diet?
Hi Angie,
Almonds are totally one of my favorite go-to snacks whether it’s sitting at the computer, or munching them from a baggie in my car, or a quick pick-me up snack at my children’s volleyball tournaments. As a matter of fact I had the Sea Salt (love anything with sea salt) Blue Diamond Almonds two weekends ago at a tourney!
I also love almonds on salads -paired with balsamic vinegar – yum! And, balsamic glazed almonds in different recipes – scrum-delish!
Adding the Blue Diamond Twitter Chat to my calendar 🙂
Oh my, I love balsamic vinegar, that sounds really good!
Almonds are the perfect go-to snacks. I look forward to seeing you at the twitter chat.
Hey, Angie:
I’ve always been a fan of almonds and nuts in general. Blue Diamonds I usually pick up ay my local Walgreens as many times, they have them on sale 2/$7. Nice!
Almonds also have so many nutritional value – as a former vegetarian, I use to devour them for protein. My fave flavor is the Roasted Salted. Yummers.
Will also tweet this.
Cheers!
Missy,
Thanks for the Walgreen’s tip. I will have to go stock up. I could definitely use more protein in my life (as a vegetarian). Thanks for sharing this post, it’s been a popular one! Seems everyone loves Blue Diamond almonds.
I literally have jars of blue diamond almonds strategically placed all over my house, car and office. I love them!
Very smart! Something I need to do to keep healthy snacks more readily available to me (and veggies too!)