Benefits of nuts: almonds

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History - Almonds are part of the plum family found in North Africa and the Mediterranean dating back to the Greeks. 

FDA Benefits - The benefits of almonds range from providing essential vitamins and minerals to lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol.  According to the USDA’s 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans report, among the nutrients found to be lacking in the American diet are vitamin E and magnesium. Almonds are one of the greatest sources of both of these nutrients, providing nearly half of the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of vitamin E and almost a quarter of the RDA of magnesium in just a one ounce serving. They are also a source of dietary fiber with 3.3 grams per ounce (RDA is 26 g), and calcium with 70 milligrams per ounce (RDA 1200 mg). (Alison Sturm)

Recommended Daily Allowance -   2 oz

(Photo from MyPyramid.com) 

Uses - Almonds can be eaten in a variety of ways: raw as a snack, candied, mixed with vegetables or meats as an excellent flavoring accent.

Recipes -

• Almond Fruit Salads
• Almond Angel Cookies
• Honey Almond Chicken (Kosher)

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