Ryan bought some Jalapeno Smokehouse almonds as a quick snack from time and time. When I tried them they were pretty tasty but I was very suspicious of them. I of course read the ingredients this is what was in them.
The biggest red flags for me aside from the bad oils and the sugar disguised as maltodextrin was torula yeast, spices and natural flavors. More then likely they are all forms of MSG torula yeast being pretty much guaranteed! And after trying them and wanting to eat the whole can I knew there is some MSG in there and I needed to give Ryan a better snacking option.
We have lots of truly raw almonds that I buy in bulk every fall, so I soaked (sprouted) them and dried them and... well just follow the recipe! They make a excellent snack with lots of live whole food nutrition! Almonds are so good for you loaded with fiber, protein, potassium, calcium, among other things and are known for being effective at lowering cholesterol! Being sprouted this way not only gives them a extra fun crunch but also makes all their wonderful nutrients and enzymes wake up and feed us that much more! ENJOY!
Oh by the way Ryan loves them and so does everybody at work! ;)
Seasoned Almonds
10 cups raw almonds, soaked 6-8 hours or overnight and dehydrated at 105 degrees approximately 12 hours
1 cup olive oil mixed with 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar and an optional few dashes of Tabasco sauce
Seasoning Mix:
1/2 cup sea salt
2 Tablespoons onion powder
4-6 Tablespoons favorite seasonings (like chili powder, garlic powder, chipotle, jalapeno powder, dried bell peppers, celery seed, curry, etc.)
In blender, blend together seasoning mix ingredients.
1 cup olive oil mixed with 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar and an optional few dashes of Tabasco sauce
Seasoning Mix:
1/2 cup sea salt
2 Tablespoons onion powder
4-6 Tablespoons favorite seasonings (like chili powder, garlic powder, chipotle, jalapeno powder, dried bell peppers, celery seed, curry, etc.)
In blender, blend together seasoning mix ingredients.
My favorite seasoning combo is a few Tablespoons chili powder, ½ teaspoon chipotle (less if you don’t like hot), 1 teaspoon jalapeno pepper powder, 1 Tablespoon dried green bell peppers, and 1 teaspoon garlic powder. You could also do a more BBQ and or smoked flavor by adding a sweetener, Sucanat would be my choice, with favorite BBQ type seasonings. If you want to go with a more cheesy flavor add some nutritional yeast and things. Be creative make a flavor you love!
Take dried almonds and dip ½ cup full in the olive oil mixture take out with fork or strainer and let most the oil strain back into bowl place “oiled” almonds onto a plate with a paper towel on it coat well with seasoning mix, place on dehydrator trays, repeat with all the almonds. You should have leftover seasoning mix to use another time or for other things. Dry almonds at 105 for a few hours, overnight or until they are no longer greasy/wet.
Take dried almonds and dip ½ cup full in the olive oil mixture take out with fork or strainer and let most the oil strain back into bowl place “oiled” almonds onto a plate with a paper towel on it coat well with seasoning mix, place on dehydrator trays, repeat with all the almonds. You should have leftover seasoning mix to use another time or for other things. Dry almonds at 105 for a few hours, overnight or until they are no longer greasy/wet.
I was wondering what kinds of nastiness could be hiding under "natural flavorings." Are you saying that MSG is one?! So annoying!
ReplyDeletepaws: Yes many times MSG can be hidden in natural flavorings! Good brands will have in parenthesis where it comes from like "natural flavorings (from strawberries)" or something like that I will usually be okay with that but if it just says natural flavorings I usually don't buy it.
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