Almonds – Sweet and Nutritious Nutty Fruit

Do you love nuts? Consider adding almonds to your daily healthy habits! Although it is commonly accepted that it belongs to the group of nuts, almond (Lat. Prunus amygdalus) is actually a member of the bony fruit group – such as plums, cherries, apricots or peaches.

Almond has always been highly regarded for its great health benefits and its cultivation has expanded throughout the Mediterranean. In 100 AD Romans showered newlyweds with almonds as a fertility charm, 500 hundred years later almond trees flourished in areas around the Mediterranean sea and their harvests fed explorers travelling the Silk Road to China.

In the 18th century, Spanish missionaries brought it to California, which in the meantime became one of the largest almond producers in the world.

If you have ever eaten almond, maybe you’ve found one or two bitter ones. No, they weren’t bad, it’s just there are two types of almonds – sweet one that we consume generally and bitter almond. As bitter ones don’t taste so well we don’t use it in cooking (although it’s a good source of vitamin B17 and shouldn’t be eaten in large amounts).

We love sweet almond, not just because it tastes so good but also because of its health benefits. This is why we’ve chosen it as one of the ingredients in some of the B!teMe bars.

Almond – a sweet treasure of vitamins and minerals

Almonds are a useful and healthy food, containing a large portion of the daily recommended amount of vitamins, minerals, fibers and amino acids.

Almonds boast an impressive nutrient profile – 100 g of almond has about 575 calories. It contains 22 g carbs, 21 grams of protein (which is 42% of the daily recommended amount for an adult) and 49 grams of healthy fat (31 grams of monounsaturated fatty acids and 12 grams of polyunsaturated fatty acids).

Let’s not forget all other great nutrients such as minerals and vitamins. It contains also vitamin E (131% of recommended daily value), riboflavin (60% DV), manganese (114% DV), magnesium (67% DV), phosphorus (48% DV), copper (50% DV), calcium (26% DV), iron (20% DV), potassium (20% DV), zinc (21% DV).

So when thinking about a healthy snack between meals, a hand of almonds is a good choice. You can also find it in derivative forms like almond milk and almond flour, that are used as dairy or wheat alternatives.

Almonds in BiteMe Bars

We have added almonds to Salty Brunch, Mediterraneo and Cocoa Jazz B!TE ME bars. Both bars we suggest for after workout as they contain a good amount of proteins, fats and minerals that always help with recovery and performance. All our bars are made from raw ingredients, without gluten, no sugar added and no artificial sweeteners. Just pure natural food.

Note: If you are allergic to almonds please be careful when choosing B!TE ME bars.