If you’re in California, you have to get your hands on some organic, raw almonds (you know, the real unpasteurized ones). It is the home state of almonds after all, or at least in the US? Crazy as it sounds, a lot of almonds sold in the grocery stores aren’t really ‘raw’ despite the misleading labeling. The FDA-led enforcement for this ruling was attributed to a couple linked outbreaks of salmonella back in 2001 and 2004. So a few isolated cases have now been used as an excuse for the government dictating the rules of engagement within the almond industry. Clearly the issue isn’t about the almonds though because Californian producers can still export unpasteurized overseas and you can still buy raw almonds direct from producers. I’m not about to delve into the real issue here, like the price control wars and unfair regulations disadvantaging the small players in the market. Let’s save those ones for when we talk over a glass of wine together.
So what’s wrong with the ‘pasteurization’ process?
Other than basically bastardizing the nut, Mercola explains,
” Even the use of the term “pasteurized” is used in a misleading way, because according to the Almond Board of California (ABC), no heating is used during the pasteurization process, but rather a process referred to by the FDA as “terminal gas sterilization” with propylene oxide.
Propylene oxide is a highly toxic flammable chemical compound, once used as a racing fuel before it became prohibited for safety reasons. It is also used in thermobaric weapons. It is an epoxide, which is not GRAS (generally recognized as safe for human ingestion).”
Who wants to be eating jet fuel with their snack of almonds? Not me thankyouverymuch.
So why not just eat the almonds raw?
By soaking and sprouting your almonds, you break down the naturally occurring phytates that shield the nut. These phytates actually bind to nutrients in our bodies which inhibits our ability to absorb all their nutritious goodness. Not the effect we’re going for here folks.
What do you do with soaked almonds?
Once you have soaked your almonds, you can’t just leave them half wet in a jar or you’ll have a potential mold problem on your hands. You have three choices at this point. Either eat the almonds right away, store them in the fridge in water for a couple of days (changing the water daily), or you dehydrate them. By dehydrating the almonds, you can prolong the shelf life of your soaked almonds without damaging the structure of the natural fats. It’s a gentle, low heat process that simple extracts the moisture, leaving a delicious and super crispy nut! Win win!
I’ve made them into sugar-free sweet treat by adding the coconut oil, cinnamon and vanilla.
Seriously, cinnamon almonds should be a bigger deal than they currently aren’t.
Just to add a bit of sass to the little guys.
Ingredients
- Almonds
- Organic Vanilla Extract
- Cinnamon
- Coconut Oil
- Fresh Lemon Juice
Instructions
- In a bowl, place the almonds and add a few squeezes of lemon juice. Pour in enough water to fully submerge the almonds.
- Soak the almonds for 12- 24 hours.
- After soaking, drain and allow to dry for an hour or so in open air or pat dry with a paper towel.
- Add around a tablespoon or two of melted coconut oil (or enough to cover all the almonds) and a drop or two of the vanilla.
- Sprinkle a generous amount of cinnamon and mix well so all the almonds are evenly covered.
- Now spread across the dehydrator sheets.
- Turn on the dehydrator to the ‘nut’ setting, or around 115 degrees F.
- They will need to dehydrate for around 18-24 hours to get crispy but this will depend on your dehydrator and the amount.
- You can monitor them throughout this process and have a little taste test. No judgement here!
Notes
Use as many almonds as you see fit and your dehydrator allows for. The recipe can easily be adjusted by taste. My 5-tray yielded about 10 cups worth.
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