Nuts about Almonds!

One of the first things people start to do when embarking on a new diet is to snack on almonds. Your body needs fuel on an ongoing basis - You want to have a steady stream of fuel throughout the day in order to keep your blood sugar levels balanced, which is what makes almonds a great snack! Did you know that just a small handful of almonds can provide a great amount of essential nutrients? So, what is in that handful of almonds that has the ability to assist in relief from a host of health ailments as well as assisting the aesthetics of your hair, skin & teeth?

Firstly, almonds are a great source of protein, Protein with no cholesterol!  They also contain vitamin E, a valuable antioxidant with many cancer-fighting qualities. It doesn’t stop there, by consuming a small quantity of almonds; you are consuming minerals like magnesium, phosphorus and zinc, as well as fibre, calcium and folic acid. Don’t fall for the myth that almonds are fattening - most of the fat in almonds is unsaturated, which is "good" fat.

All of this sounds great, but how will almonds really help you?

Almonds are going to help the health of your heart! The fat, protein and potassium contained in almonds are good for the heart. Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant and reduces the risk of heart diseases. The presence of magnesium in almonds helps to avoid heart attacks. Almonds help reduce C-reactive protein which causes artery-damaging inflammation. Almond is also a source of folic acid. They therefore help to reduce the level of homocystein, which causes fatty plaque buildup in arteries.

The potassium present in almond helps to regulates blood pressure. Almonds are very low in sodium which also helps in containing blood pressure.

Regular consumption of almonds helps to increase the level of high density lipoproteins (HDL) and reduce the level of low density lipoproteins (LDL), thereby effectively controlling cholesterol levels. LDL cholesterol is called bad cholesterol.

Almonds are rich in fibre. Like most other fibre rich food, almonds also help in preventing constipation.  By assisting movement of food through the colon, this can also assist in the prevention of colon cancer.

Still worried about the fat?

The mono-unsaturated fat contained in almonds satisfies appetite and prevents over-eating. Studies have revealed that almond rich low calorie diet is good for obese people to assist in shedding their weight. Furthermore, The presence of manganese, copper and Riboflavin in almonds helps with energy production, which means you are going to have more energy to exercise!  Almond milk is a great substitute for dairy if you are looking at ways to tweak your diet to aid with weight loss!

Here is a great cake recipe that caters for most (No Gluten, No Dairy, No Wheat, No SUGAR), unfortunately if you have a nut allergy you may want to steer clear though!  Not only does this posess all the benefits of eating almonds, but this cake will provide vitamin C as well! Enjoy!

Middle Eastern (Superfood) Orange & Almond Cake

Ingredients

2 large Oranges

1 tsp Tonic Superfoods Camu Camu Powder

6 eggs

250g whole almonds (don’t use almond meal – blend/crush them yourself!)

200g xylitol

1 tbsp Tonic Superfoods Maca Powder

Method

Wash and boil oranges (unpeeled) in water for 2 hours, don’t cover them with water but keep topping it up so it doesn’t boil dry.
Preheat oven to 190.
Prepare a cake tin with butter or baking paper

Let the oranges to cool, then cut them open and remove pips.
Throw the whole almonds in to a food processor to grind them finely, however a few chunks are good as it will give the cake a slightly crunchy texture.
Take the almonds out of the food processor and then use the processor to blend the oranges & make them quite “pulpy”
Toss the oranges into a bowl with the almonds, then throw in the eggs (beaten) , the xylitol, camu camu & maca powder. Give it a good mix.
Pour in all into the cake tin, preferably one with a removable base
Bake at 190 C or about an hour, or a little longer if still very wet, although a little bit moist is great for this type of cake!