The almond is a rich and generous nut. High in Vitamin E and calcium, they are the earliest known nuts (along with pistachios) that were cultivated, somewhere before 3000 BC, and are now known to help prevent cancer, strengthen bones, and provide a healthy source of protein without the saturated fat that accompanies other protein sources.

The earliest known varieties came from China, via the Silk Road to the Middle East, where they became so much a part of the diet that they are even mentioned in the Bible (Aeron’s rod was the shoot of an almond tree). Eventually, in the sixteenth century, Arabs brought almonds into India, where almond milk became part of Indian cuisine. Today, almonds are given as gifts at Christmas (symbols of fertility and fortune) in Europe, while many of us consume them every day in our cereal.

These miraculous nuts can provide you with so much goodness that entire books and websites have been written around them. Two handfuls provides you with almost all your recommended count of vitamin E for the day, and four handfuls gives you the calcium that you need (so you don’t even need to drink milk!).

Vitamin E helps ward off cancer, since it protects the body’s cells against harmful free radicals. It has also been shown to play a role in immune function, in DNA repair, and other metabolic processes.

Calcium, besides being essential for maintaining strong bones and teeth, is also needed for muscle contraction, blood vessel contraction and expansion, the secretion of hormones and enzymes, and sending messages through the nervous system.

Almonds also possess magnesium, phosphorous and iron in high percentages.

So here are two recipes to whip up for a healthy almond snack on the run.

Almond rice biscuits

To make 12 biscuits:

  • 175ml ground rice or rice flour
  • 2 handfuls ground almonds
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg white, lightly beaten
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 3 drops almond extract
  • 12 split blanched almonds

    Set the oven to 180C.
    Mix the rice, ground almonds, and sugar.
    Thoroughly beat in the egg white, honey, and almond essence.
    Line a cooking tray with waxed paper.
    Place teaspoons of the mixture well apart on the paper, and press a split almond on top of each.
    Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the cookies are light golden brown.
    Leave them to cool slightly, then lift them off the waxed paper.
    Store in an airtight tin.

    Source: ‘Low Fat Cooking’, by Pamela Westland.

    Almonds doused with coriander, chili and olive oil

    For a savoury snack on the run, or for a healthy pre-dinner appetizer, try these almond niblets:

  • ½ tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 ½ cups blanched almonds
  • 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
  • 1 to 3 small dried red chili peppers
  • 2 generous pinches of sea salt

    Add the olive oil and almonds to a hot saute pan.
    Saute and kind of toast the almonds until golden brown, shaking the pan regularly to colour them evenly and accentuate their nutty flavour.
    Crumble in the chili and coriander to taste and add the sea salt.
    Toss over and serve hot on a large plate.

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