Chieftain^® Wild Rice Company

ALMONDS, BLANCHED SLIVERED

Description:

The responsibility to provide a wide spectrum of menus supporting foods that are healthy, quick and convenient falls on food service providers. Almonds play an important role for the health-conscious eater.  Besides being low in saturated fat and cholesterol free, Almonds are available in a variety of cuts and forms, they hold well in recipes and lend themselves to an amazing variety of unique menu items. The Almond tree is native to North Africa, West Asia and the Mediterranean but now is grown primarily in California.  Almonds are known as nuts but are botanically a fruit, the ancestor of fruits that have large stones for seeds, such as nectarines, peaches, plums and apricots. The Almond has a tough greenish-gray hull that looks like a small, oval peach, when mature, this hull splits open, revealing the Almond shell, which encases the nut. There are two types of Almonds:  sweet and bitter. The sweet Almond has a delicate and slightly sweet flavor and is used in desserts and confectionery items. Bitter Almonds are cheaper and easier to grow but have a strong flavor and contain Prussic Acid, which is lethal. When the bitter Almond is heated, the toxicity is destroyed. Almonds may be used in confectionery, made into drinks, tossed in salads, used in stuffing, cereals and trail mixes.  A nutritional powerhouse, the Almond contains calcium, fiber, folic acid, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin E and riboflavin.  These Almonds are blanched and slivered for your convenience.

Suggested Use:

Rich and savory in wild rice stir-fry with cranberries and tart cherries.  For sweet temptations and unique entrees try some of these recipes:  Almond crostata, Almond date bars, Almond raisin bread, Almond sherbet, Almond rice pudding, date and Almond crusted rack of lamb, grilled pork chops Romesco,  crab cakes with white Almond gazpacho, Almond chicken pot pie, Almond crunch breading or Almond chicken salad sandwich.