Ah, back-to-school time! It seems like summer began yesterday, and already it’s time to hit the books again. The past few months just flew!

Here at NutsOnline, we know that transitioning back to class can be difficult. We’d like to make the start of a fresh school year a bit sweeter for one lucky person, so we’re hosting a Back-To-School Giveaway!

Everyone, from preschoolers to college students, needs energy to keep moving throughout those long school days. We think trail mix is just the thing to get your brain running at full speed. That’s why the winner of this very special giveaway will receive a custom trail mix of their choice, with up to four ingredients!

Know someone who’s headed back to school and deserves a treat? We’d love to hear about them! Leave a message on our Facebook wall or contact us via Twitter. Tell us who you would give the custom trail mix to, why they deserve it and what ingredients you’d include.

We’ll draw the name of the lucky winner on Aug. 31 at noon. The winner’s favorite scholar will receive a 5 lb. bag of the custom trail mix described in their entry, compliments of NutsOnline!

Our custom trail mix is a super-special treat, and the combinations seem endless. Choose from a wide selection of our premium nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, sweets, seeds and snacks to create the perfect mix that your loved one will adore!

Get your entries in for a chance to win! Please, to keep things fair, limit it to one entry per person. The contest is only open to residents of the United States and Canada.

Good luck everyone, and we hope that all the special students in your life have a fantastic school year!

The Celiac Diva reviewed NutsOnline’s gluten-free products and gave us her highest score: five hair tosses! Watch it for yourself below or at her website.

Welcome to The Nutty Scoop’s newest feature, the Nutty Business Spotlight! From time-to-time, we’d like to introduce you to a business that uses NutsOnline’s awesome products to make their creations. Humans aren’t the only creatures who enjoy NutsOnline’s premium products! Cat Jepsen uses our dried fruits to create a special treat for her equine friends.

Deco's Monster Mash is made with NutsOnline's premium dried fruit.

Cat started making her product, Deco’s Monster Mash, as a holiday gift for the horses in her barn, and the idea really took off. The mashes, which Cat describes as “super oatmeal for your horse,” contain a combination of nutritious grains and are topped with a sweet surprise: dried fruit from NutsOnline!

The gourmet bran mash comes in a variety of flavors, including Applepaloosa, Buckin’ Bananaberry, Tropical Trot and Peppermint Piaffe. Cat worked with a classically trained chef to develop the gourmet bran mash, which contains no preservatives, fillers or extra sugar. The product helps aid in hydration and can be used to get finicky eaters to take supplements or medications.

All of the ingredients in Deco’s Monster Mash are natural, for good reason: Customers want to make sure they’re giving their animals the best-quality food. “The equestrian set is very sensitive to natural and healthy products,” Cat said.

Cat said that a big part of the reason Deco’s Monster Mash is so appealing is the bright appearance that NutsOnline’s dried fruit gives the mixes. “I love the quality and color of your products,” she said. “That’s why my little product has flourished. Nothing sells if it is not also quite pretty and your fruits are beautiful!”

Cat’s horse Decoupage was the inspiration for Deco’s Monster Mash, and he serves as the product’s spokeshorse today. On her

Decoupage, the spokeshorse for Deco's Monster Mash.

website, Cat says: “As a high-performance dressage horse, he’s the kind of guy who must stay hydrated and could never be happy with those other ‘puny’ mashes that are on the market.” The hearty mash was created just for him, and it sure does keep his energy up!

Cat said that NutsOnline’s products have truly made a difference in Deco’s Monster Mash. “This started as a fun, nutritious holiday gift to the horses in our barn and has blossomed into a company all its own, and you have been there with me every step of the way.”

If you have an equine buddy in your life, Deco’s Monster Mash may be just the thing for him!

Though we offer quite a few mainstream snack options at NutsOnline, we’re always on the lookout for yummy treats that our raw foodies can enjoy. Well, we sure have found some! Our raw, sprouted nut and seed mixes are bursting with flavor that just about anyone can appreciate. And, for a limited time, these mixes are 15 percent off. It’s the perfect time to give ‘em a try!

Our raw, sprouted mixes start off as premium nuts and seeds. They’re germinated by soaking in water overnight. This process activates dormant enzymes and nutrients and transforms fats into healthful amino acids. The live enzymes help our bodies more easily digest the nuts and seeds, and reap the benefits of their spectacular nutrition.

After the germination process is complete, the mix is air-dried at low temperatures and seasoned. The resulting product is a delicious mix that can be enjoyed as a sweet or savory treat!

The savory varieties of this raw, sprouted snack are sure to make your taste buds tingle. Cilantro lime pistachios and pepitas are seasoned with just a hint of jalapeno spice. Rosemary garlic pistachios and almonds have the smooth, rich flavor of olive oil. Sesame teriyaki almonds and cashews are spicy and sweet, with hints of wheat-free tamari, ginger and maple. Sun-dried marinara almonds and pistachios offer a fantastic Italian flair that’s awesome on salads.

We also offer sweet blends that are perfect for dessert or a mid-afternoon snack attack. Our raw cacao almonds and raisins, as well as our raw cacao Brazil nuts and mulberries, have a smooth chocolate flavor. Maple mesquite pod walnuts are glazed with pure maple, Peruvian mesquite flour and warming spices. White chocolate chip almonds, cashews and cacao nibs are a truly decadent treat tossed with cacao butter and agave.

Have you tried the raw, spouted nuts mixes yet? What do you think? We’d love any feedback you’d like to offer about these awesome snacks!

Mad Maggie's, all decked out for the Fourth.

Welcome to The Nutty Scoop’s newest feature, the Nutty Business Spotlight! From time-to-time, we’d like to introduce you to a business that uses NutsOnline’s awesome products to make their creations. Today, let’s take a little trip to North Andover, MA, to visit a sweet ice cream shop called Mad Maggie’s.

This nutty business sells homemade ice cream, and owner Steve Reppucci says that they pride themselves on offering unique flavors that are made with the highest-quality ingredients. It’s this drive for quality that led Steve to NutsOnline in the first place. Unhappy with the nuts he was getting from his suppliers, Steve sought out a company that could keep him flush with fresh ice cream toppings and mix-ins.

“I use NutsOnline for a couple of reasons,” Steve said. “First, the nuts are fantastic, always fresh and crisp and customers notice the difference. Secondly, your shipping is so quick that I tell friends that you’re our ‘offsite warehouse’ — I can place an order Monday through Thursday and know that they’ll show up with the UPS delivery the following day, so I don’t need to order weeks ahead of time. “

A young customer enjoys her sweet treat.

Mad Maggie’s goes through a variety of NutsOnline nuts each week, including walnuts, pistachios, pecans and almonds. The ice cream artists at the shop are regularly mixing up specialty flavors and old favorites that require the nuts. They add about two quarts of lightly crushed nuts to each five-gallon container of rich homemade ice cream.

Steve said he also likes trying other products when he’s experimenting with new flavors. His Cappuccino Espresso Bean ice cream, which is a customer favorite, includes a generous sprinkling of NutsOnline’s dark chocolate-covered espresso beans.

However, some experiments work out better than others. “I tried using your buffalo peanuts awhile back, but just couldn’t come up with a flavor that worked for ice cream,” Steve admitted.

Though Mad Maggie’s offers a plethora of wacky flavors such as “Candy Store Floor” (a confection-laden creation invented by Steve’s 11-year-old son, David), it’s really the basic, pure flavors that make the shop’s offerings so sweet. In fact, Steve says that one of the most special varieties is their North Andover Maple Walnut, made with NutsOnline’s walnuts and locally harvested maple syrup.

North Andover Maple Walnut ice cream is a local favorite at Mad Maggie's.

“I humbly feel that we make the best Maple Walnut of anyone in the area (and we have a LOT of homemade ice cream makers here in Massachusetts),” Steve said.

Mmmm, we can just taste that sweet mapley goodness now!

The next time you’re near North Andover, we highly recommend that you take a little trip to Mad Maggie’s. This nutty business offers quality premium ice cream that’s sure to tickle your sweet tooth!

All photos courtesy of Mad Maggie’s Ice Cream. To see more, visit their Facebook page.

Baby Hope munches on some NutsOnline pecans. Photo courtesy of the North American Bear Center and the Wildlife Research Institute.

At NutsOnline, we’re devoted to using our business to promote a better world for everyone. Because of that, we’ve teamed up with several nonprofits throughout the country, giving our customers the chance to help us help others. One of those very special organizations is the North American Bear Center in Ely, Minnesota.

The North American Bear Center is devoted to promoting the long-term survival of bears by helping people move past their misconceptions about these creatures. They also work to preserve increasingly endangered bear habitats, halt bear poaching and rehabilitate injured and orphaned bears so that they can be released into the wild.

We offer 3-pound snack packs for purchase that are shipped directly to the North American Bear Center. The snack packs, which contain 1 lb. each of raw pecans, hazelnuts and Brazil nuts, are used by researchers at the center as treats while they’re working with the bears, including a cub in their care, Hope. You’ve sent more than 2,000 lbs. of nuts to the bear center already. Stupendous support, all!

These snack packs really do make a difference at the North American Bear center. In a recent research update, biologists at the center said: “The nuts you’ve been sending have been a godsend.  We’ve never had such fresh pecans and hazelnuts to coax bears into letting us adjust their radio-collars and change their GPS batteries (which we have to do every 10 days).  The bears strongly prefer your nuts over anything else we can offer.  You’ve made our job easier than ever, and little Hope loves them.”

And that isn’t the only way our customers have shown their spirit of giving! A few weeks ago, we reached out to you, urging you to vote for the North American Bear Center in the Chase Community Giving grant program. We’re so pleased to announce that the center came in third and will receive a $100,000 grant from the organization.

We really want to take this moment to thank all of our customers from the bottom of our hearts. Without your generous help, it wouldn’t be possible for us to as extensively help the North American Bear Center, as well as the other worthy causes we support. You all are top-notch!

Summertime tends to be a busy season for us and our families, and we’re sure it’s the same way for you, too. Between vacation road trips and scrambling from one activity to the next, we make sure that we have snacks in the car at all times (especially those of us with little ones)!

These are a few of our favorite on-the-go treats for busy times such as this. They’ll tide you over between meals, whether you’re stuck in traffic or embarking on an hours-long journey. For added convenience, divide the snacks into single-serving containers ahead of time.

1)      Trail Mix: Trail mix is our main go-to snack during the summer. It’s filling and contains a variety of dried fruit, nuts and other tasty ingredients. You may want to steer clear of mixes that contain chocolate candies or flavored baking chips, as they will melt in the sun. Some of our favorite NutsOnline trail mix blends include the sunny Tropical Mix, peanut-packed Power Mix and ever-popular Deluxe House Mix.

2)      Dried Fruit: Dried Fruit is a fantastic on-the-go treat. It’s not terribly filling so it won’t spoil your dinner, but it does give you a sweet boost when you need it most. And if you have little ones who beg for candy and other sugar-filled snacks, dried fruit may be a great compromise! All of our dried fruit is fantastic on its own, but we really think our Berry Mix is where it’s at. It’s packed with seven different berries, including our famous dried strawberries!

3)      Fruit and Veggie Chips: Our all-natural fruit and veggie chips are a crisp, satisfying snack and a fantastic substitute for greasy potato and corn chips. The lightly salted veggie chips include gems such as green beans, carrots and taro. Slightly sweet fruit chips are a tropical delight, with melon, banana, pineapple, papaya and mango in the mix.

4)      Freeze-Dried Fruits and Veggies: Freeze-dried fruits and veggies contain nothing but the produce items they’re made from, making them a fabulous snack for toddlers to munch. The Simply Organic Mixed Veggies contain a cornucopia of farm-fresh ingredients such as sweet corn and crispy carrots. The Simply Fruit Cocktail offers up a melt-in-your-mouth array of bananas, berries, peaches, apples, pears and grapes.

5)      Energy Squares: Our bite-sized energy squares are good to keep on hand for days where meals may be delayed. They’re quite filling and provide a nutrient-packed punch for work and play. Organic Chia Energy Squares are fantastic fuel for athletes. Mixed Berry Blast Energy Squares and Honey Vanilla Energy Squares have just a touch of sweetness, with no delicate ingredients that could get melty or gummy in the car.

Refreshing iced tea is a fantastic beverage to drink throughout the summer. It keeps you hydrated while providing you with so many flavor combinations that you’ll never be bored! We think that making iced tea can be elevated to an art form, and we really love to experiment with different types as the summer wears on!

To make a basic pitcher of iced tea, boil 2 quarts of water and measure out 5 tbsp., plus 1 tsp., of loose tea into a large pitcher. Pour the water over the loose tea and steep the beverage for five to 10 minutes before straining it and storing it in the refrigerator. Serve the tea over ice, sweetened with sugar, agave syrup or honey.

Of course, we offer a variety of fruity and minty teas that offer an extra punch of flavor. Lemon spice tea is particularly thirst-quenching, and black currant tea will remind well-rounded tea drinkers of the popular British brew. Raspberry tea and blackberry tea are both bursting with fresh berry flavor. Spearmint tea can be especially cooling on blazing afternoons.

Of course, you can also make your own delicious flavored teas infused with dried fruit. Try brewing up a pitcher of our Ceylon black tea or Japanese Sencha green tea. Right before you pour the water over the leaves, toss a handful of dried fruit in the pitcher. They’ll leave a delightfully subtle, but mildly sweet, flavor in the beverage. Some of our favorites to add to iced tea are sweet dried strawberries, slightly tart whole dried cranberries and summery bing cherries.

Another iced tea concoction that’s popular, particularly in the South, is Lebanese iced tea. This rose-scented beverage has pine nuts floating in it for a rich, unexpected treat. Simply pour out a cup of brewed, chilled black tea and add ½ tsp. of rose water and 1 tsp. of pine nuts to the brew. Sip it through a straw to get the nuts from the bottom of the glass.

We’ve got tons of quality loose teas to choose from on NutsOnline.com, so swing by and peruse the selection. Create your own refreshing beverages and sip your way through the heat of summer!

Father’s Day is a very special holiday to us at NutsOnline because of the strong family legacy that the company embodies. Here, Jeffrey Braverman, founder of NutsOnline.com, says a few words about what working with his father, Kenny, in a family business means to him:

“Father’s Day is coming up and it gives me pause (amidst the holiday rush) to reflect on how wonderful it is that I get to see my dad every day at work.  In general it’s pretty easy to take people for granted, and even more so when you see them every day.  Also, working with family can get tense (OK, very tense) at times, but it is a real blessing to be able to spend this much time together.

Since he was a boy, my dad has worked incredibly hard in the nut shop to take care of his family, just like Poppy Sol did before him. (Read about my dad here.) Even though NutsOnline is my baby, my dad was the one with the trust and foresight to let me take the keys.  Dad, I am grateful, and I love you, for everything.”

When we get a craving for something sweet, we reach for a handful of dried fruit. Though fresh fruit has its unique benefits, dried fruit is also a great way to get nutrients, fiber and vitamins.

Most dried fruits are significant sources of fiber, which promotes colon health, lowers cholesterol and controls diabetes. Dried apples, for example, contain five grams of fiber per serving and dried apricots offer up four grams per serving. Most berries are also fairly high in fiber. Our berry mix, which includes sweet strawberries, blackberries, cranberries and cherries, packs in three grams of fiber per serving.

Dried fruits also offer the same basic nutrient boost as their fresh counterparts. Dried strawberries are a super source of vitamin C, potassium and folate. Whole dried cranberries have powerful proanthocyanidins that promote urinary tract health and help prevent stomach ulcers and gum disease. Dark raisins are 70 percent pure fructose, which makes them an excellent and easily digested high-energy food. They’re a particularly fantastic snack to munch on before playing sports or going for a run.

Dried fruit also gives you a chance get a taste of exotic fruits, as well as fruits that aren’t in season. Goji berries, which are grown in the Himalayan Mountains, spoil quite quickly and are rarely sold fresh in the United States. The dried version of the superfood allows you to access the berry’s unique immune-boosting antioxidants. Moist Turkish figs and plump Medjool dates are special treats that you don’t see every day, and our brand-new dried pomegranates are loaded with vitamins.

Though dried fruit is more calorically dense than fresh fruit (largely because of its sugar content), it also keeps you feeling fuller longer. The low water content in dried fruit makes it a convenient healthy snack for on-the-go kids and adults. Best of all, the sweet taste of most dried fruits can satisfy your craving for sugary treats, and the fruit is far better for you than cake, cookies or candy.

If you are on a special diet, it’s best to consult your doctor before including dried fruit in your regular menu of snacks. The sugar content can relegate dried fruit to an occasional treat for some, particularly those who are following a low-carb plan.

Learn more about our full selection of dried fruit here.