Healthy Eating : California Almonds

Last month I challenged myself to cook "30 Dishes in 30 Days"...

30 dishes that I'd never cooked before.

Part of my challenge was also healthy eating....

cooking in a healthy way, finding ways to incorporate new foods into my diet, eating more vegetables & finding healthy snacks.

For the last three weeks, I have snacked daily on almonds....23 almonds to be exact.

I enjoy eating nuts so it wasn't hard....the biggest challenge was remembering to eat them each day!

I seem to be out & about, away from home & not always eating at regular times, increasingly these days. I really needed to find a snack that was both healthy & convenient....

my mother has long been extolling the benefits of nuts to me, so it seemed ideal.

Why almonds? 

Well, the benefits are many....

they are rich in vitamin E, magnesium & healthy mono-unsaturated fat.

they are the nut highest in protein, fibre, vitamin E, calcium, riboflavin & niacin

they are a natural source of protein

23 almonds = 30g protein, the ideal portion size to stop cravings & give you an energy boost

almonds are rich in nutrients & are cholesterol-free

they provide several essential key nutrients that help support a healthy heart 

I either ate my almonds at home or when I was out I kept them stored in a small tin which I prepared each day - easy!

I initially thought I would trial this for three weeks but actually I've really enjoyed the almonds and will continue with them....

I often find that I forget to take my daily multi-vitamin but I rarely never forget to snack.      

   I felt much better knowing that my snack was a healthy one.

I snacked on the almonds every day....

mostly I ate them plain but I also tried them with natural yogurt, with raisins & I even roasted them.

I felt healthier simply by having a routine & a "go-to" snack which was ready to eat.

I found eating by eating them mid-afternoon & very early evening, I avoided an energy slump. 

It also meant that I kept away from the biscuit tin - those particular times being the times I was most likely to head for it.

 

Disclaimer: California Almonds has asked me to take part in the Snack Happy Challenge. 
They have provided me with all I need to complete the challenge. For more information about healthy snacking please visit www.AlmondBoard.co.uk