MDBCs 07 Nov 2022

It's healthy, it's delicious and it's an easy-to-make, go-to snack. Celebrate almonds covered with sweet and bitter dark chocolate on November 7 or Bittersweet Chocolate With Almond Day.

Made by dipping or rolling sautéed, roasted or caramelized almonds in melted chocolate, chocolate covered almonds were popular among the wealthy in the 18th century. Today, they are a quick snack perfect to take with on a hike, at a picnic or while on the go.

Ancient Nuts

Native to the Middle East and South Asia, almonds have been consumed by humans since ancient times. Archaeological evidence has shown that the almond fruit and nut was buried with Tutankhamun (King Tut) around 1300 BCE.

Today, almonds are grown and used in cuisine all around the world. The United States is the world's largest producer of the nuts, with the state of California taking the lion share's of all the almonds exported by the country.

Technically a drupe - a fruit with a fleshy body and hard seed - almonds are rich in Vitamins B and E and many essential minerals.

Best for Baking

Bittersweet chocolate is at least 35% chocolate liquor mixed with a minimal amount of sugar. In many parts of the world, it is also known as dark chocolate or semisweet chocolate. Bittersweet chocolate is used primarily for cooking and baking.

How to Celebrate?

Make your own bittersweet chocolate coated almonds. Experiment with flavors of this healthy snack - maybe add some cayenne pepper to give it a Mexican twist or use some rose essence and cardamom to make some Middle Eastern inspired bittersweet chocolate with almonds. Don't forget to share with family, friends and co-workers.
Get creative. You don't just have to make bittersweet chocolate coated almonds to celebrate this fun food holiday. Instead, why not whip up a dessert that has both almonds and bittersweet chocolate. May we recommend a chocolate ice cream with caramelized almonds or an almond chocolate cake?

Did You Know…

…that wild almonds can kill you? The bitter version of the nut contains a high dosage of cyanide and eating a handful can prove fatal. But rest easy, the almonds you get from the stores and for food preparation are the harmless sweet, domestic variety

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