Going Nuts at Lunch: A Healthy and Tasty Compliment
chidorianIt is all right to go nuts at lunch, especially if they are salted, roasted, and placed in a bed of lettuce. With all the choices in the lunch market, a small handful of nuts can make any lunch a sharing one. And what is better than sharing some nuts over a conversation. Nuts make everything better.
Recently, I had lunch with a small bag of pistachios and a fellow lunch breaker asked what they were. I was shocked as she admitted that she had never had them. Lunch is a perfect time to try something new, and we should begin with what trees share with us. So to add a little flavor and make a healthy alternative to pretzels or potato chips, I am serving a plate full of the world’s most famous nuts.
We do not have to be told that Nuts are healthy, but a few charts on this page can help us even feel better about our caloric intake of this protein packed treat. The Official Nut Website offers recipes that can add flavor to your dinners while making your culinary talents visibly exotic. This site also offers us a brief history and geographical origin of the most popular nuts. Finally, if you are worried about expenses, Nut Prices and Vitamin information will settle your anxiety showing that splurging on nuts will not make your financial advisor crazy.
To do my part in increasing nut consumption (amazingly many nuts are produced in America), I purchased a bag of mixed nuts. I am going to eat and describe the taste while offering just a bit of background information I garnered from the above websites.
Cashews: The nut shaped in a kidney is from Brazil, but also made in Africa, India, and Vietnam. This smooth tasting soft nut has the taste between a walnut and a peanut. This is rich man’s nut and was the first ones gone in a mixed nut can. Highly valued in my family growing up, the cashew for me remains both hearty and a treat for high holidays.
Almonds: This is the insecure nut that is still protected with a shell. Originated in China, California produces 80% of all edible almonds. This nut is popular for its health benefits. My almond had a big crunch and a sandy finish leaving your dry. It is a nut best served with chocolate of any kind. Rocky Road ice cream with almonds does great justice to this nut.
Walnut: This oldest nut from a tree gives a tender bite reward for the hard worker who freed it from its shell. Romans enjoyed the walnut and its wrinkles tell its age. This is the criminal nut and often associated with wise guys. But if you can get past its tough exterior, there is a reward of a nut that can dissolve in your mouth. Tony Soprano was a nice guy way down deep.
Brazil Nut: These are really seed inside a giant shell. They are crunchy and dark and taste in between a peanut and cashew. These are mostly used for cooking in South America, their homeland. They keep their skin and that can give you film inside your mouth after you are done. This vastly underrated nut is actually a seed, so as seeds go, one of the biggest ever.
Hazel Nuts: This is the ubiquitous nut and are produced in America, as well as Europe and Asia. This is a good looking nut and tasty but is unique in its sweet taste. It is not as sweet as a cashew or peanut, so I bet it would be great to cook with.
I would go on but my mouth is all mixed up with flavors and the mixed nuts are no longer looking like the pictures on the site. I say eat nuts, not only because it will make lunch last a little longer, but they are also filling and will leave a reminder in your mouth for a couple of hours.
Nuts make life better. I cannot imagine baseball without peanuts. I cannot imagine Christmas without walnuts. I cannot imagine a party without pistachios shells being littered on the table. Sharing shells, teaching how to break open the smiling nut (that is what the Chinese call the pistachio) and savoring the almond covered with Hershey’s chocolate bar by eating all around it, have been family traditions. There are enough nuts in the world to enjoy, so let’s share some for lunch.
Almonds, Brazil, Cashews, Hazel, Nuts, Peanuts, Pitstachios, Tony Soprano 
Reader Comments (4)
You are spot on too about the mobsters nut cracking remarks! Tony cracked a lot of nuts on that show and some of those wise guys deserved to have their "nuts" cracked!
Well done and I appreciate the nuttiness of this piece! Nuts of the world should unite! (Just not all in one place or that would maybe be more like Cuckoo's Nest...!).
Finally, one of the healthiest and tastiest nuts has been left off your list, so allow me to add it. Low in PUFAs and high in nutrients, the macadamia nut is delicious and can be consumed in higher amounts. It is pretty high in fat content though, so still exercise moderation.
For me though, the almond stands out to me because it has variations itself. Smoked, raw, salted, chocolate, etc. I love them all!