I sprinkle these nuts in my cereal, oatmeal, and granola, I use them in homemade trail mixes, and I eat them plain by the handful!

Why I like them:

• The flavor. Most flavored nuts are either too salty (e.g., smokehouse almonds) or too sweet (e.g., honey roasted peanuts). And plain, raw or natural almonds are too bland for some people. But Blue Diamond’s Oven Roasted Almonds with Sea Salt are the perfect happy medium—just the right amount of flavor without all the unhealthy gunk. I love the roasted flavor, the crunch, and the delicious addition of sea salt. (The Oven-Roasted line also comes in No Salt, Vanilla Bean, and Cinnamon Brown Sugar. The No Salt ones are great, too—you still get the roasted flavor, so you don’t really miss the salt. I’ve never tried the vanilla or cinnamon ones.)

• The handy container. The Oven-Roasted varieties all come in special, easy-to-open containers (you twist off the top, which is great—I hate nuts where you pull back the sharp aluminum lid; I’ve cut myself twice that way!). The container also has a cool scale on the side so you can measure 1-oz portions. (Speaking of portion control, Blue Diamond does make whole natural almonds in 100-calorie packs, but the Oven-Roasted flavors only come in the large containers for now.)
• Their versatility. As I mentioned in my intro, I eat these several different ways! I usually eat them with breakfast food or by themselves as a late-morning or afternoon snack. Nuts are a great option for a morning snack because they help give you energy.
• The health benefits. Almonds are a good source of the antioxidant Vitamin E, as well as calcium, magnesium, protein, fiber, and heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.

–Lauren

PS Next up on the blog—a roundup of healthy chocolate brownies, and a review of Special K’s new crackers.

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