Wonderfully delicious, almonds have long been revered as a symbol of wellness and health. The nuts are enriched with many health-benefiting nutrients that are essential for optimum health.
Almond nuts are rich in dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals and packed with numerous health promoting phyto-chemicals; the kind of well-balanced food ensure protection against diseases and cancers. Just a hand full of these nuts a day provides enough recommended levels of minerals, vitamins, and protein.
This Valentine’s Day give your sweetie the gift of health with a decorated jar filled with almonds lightly dusted with chocolate.
Dusted Chocolate Covered Almonds (recipe adapted from Sunset Magazine, February 2010)
Ingredients:
Cooking-oil spray
1 tablespoon corn syrup
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups raw almonds with skins
2 tablespoons butter
12 ounces chopped milk or dark chocolate
3 tablespoons Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
Directions:
- Spray a baking pan with cooking spray and set aside. Mix corn syrup, granulated sugar, and 2 tbsp. water in a 4-qt. pot. Bring to a boil; boil 2 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium-high, add nuts, and cook, stirring continuously; syrup will crystallize into sugar around nuts and become very sandy. Keep cooking and stirring until sugar starts to melt again and caramelize, about 5 minutes. When nuts smell toasted and all sugar has caramelized and is medium brown, remove from heat. Stir in butter. Carefully pour hot nuts onto prepared baking pan (reserve pot).
- Spray tines of 2 forks with cooking spray. Using forks, stir and separate nuts until cool. Freeze nuts on pan 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add 3 in. water to reserved pot; bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Put chocolate in a medium metal bowl and set bowl over pot. Let sit, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted.
- Transfer nuts from freezer to a medium bowl. Pour half the melted chocolate over nuts; stir well to coat. Return nuts to baking sheet, spreading out and separating them. Return nuts to freezer until chocolate has set, about 20 minutes. Repeat with remaining melted chocolate.
- Divide nuts between 2 bowls. Sift cocoa over first bowl, tossing gently to coat nuts. Repeat with second bowl, using powdered sugar instead of cocoa. Store nuts separately in airtight containers up to 2 weeks.
Cook’s Note:
If you live in the Lake County area, stop by The Nut and Candy House in Wauconda. They have the best selection of nuts and chocolates which can be purchase in small or large quantities.
Nutritional Information:
Serving size is ¼ cup.
Calories: 114
Calories from fat: 60%
Protein: 3.1g
Fat: 7.5g
Saturated fat: 1.4g
Carbohydrate: 10g
Fiber: 1.8g
Sodium: 16mg
Cholesterol: 4.2mg
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