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Almonds, The Survivor Nuts Excerpt from August 2002 newsletter Patsy Flanigan
The almond is one of the most ancient of nuts. It is mentioned in the Bible a number of times, and has been found in Bronze Age sites in Greece and Cyprus.
Makes sense then, that such an ancient nut would be known world wide, and indeed research shows that the almond was an important commodity and trade item in Europe by 716 AD. Excavations from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius that occurred in 79 AD, have turned up carbonized remains of almonds.
Powdered almonds were used to make creamy sauces and almond based confections such as nougat and marzipan, in medieval times. Almonds and walnuts were used to make milk alternatives. The nuts were blanched with boiling water to remove the brown skins, then they were pounded into a powder and soaked in water to make the milky drinks.
Almonds require a warm climate to blossom and set fruit, but if they blossom too soon, and the weather turns to frost again, the crop can be lost. Fortunately, California's central valley is an ideal place to grow almonds, and has in fact, become the world's leading producer. More than half of the supply of California almonds, are exported, which helps our balance of trade. Yet there are still lots of almonds left to meet the increasing demand at home.
Almonds still have many uses today, and have even been found to be helpful in weight control. This is due to the fact that a few natural unsalted almonds each day make a weight control diet more satisfying, while adding good nutrition at the same time. Calories are factored in, of course. In the markets, almonds are most commonly available as whole natural and blanched, slivered blanched, sliced natural and chopped. In addition, almond milk and almond "butter" are now becoming commercially available.
Since many people are not able to digest cow's milk, or even soy milk, almond milk is a nutritious alternative. We thought you might like to try your hand at making your own almond milk. See the recipe on the back for directions You may come up with your own variations using other sweeteners.
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