We love strawberry season! Bushels of fresh, juicy berries find their way into our kitchen each summer. We love to eat them as-is, add them to spinach salads and make delicious desserts and side dishes that feature this delectable fruit.

One of our favorite things to make  with strawberries is a deliciously nutty strawberry dip. This dip, made with chopped walnuts, cream cheese, whipped cream and honey, is delicious when paired with fresh strawberries, as well as other treats like fruit chips, cinnamon honey pretzel grahams, chocolate pretzel grahams and yogurt covered pretzels.

Start by putting an 8 oz. block of softened cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl. Fold in 1 cup of whipped cream, 1 tsp. of vanilla extract, 1 tbsp. of orange juice and 1-2 tbsp. of honey. Finely dice 1 cup of strawberries and stir them into the cream cheese mixture, along with 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts. Cover the bowl and chill the strawberry dip for at least 1 hour.

Serve the strawberry dip with strawberries, sliced apples, sliced pineapple, fruit chips, cinnamon honey pretzel grahams, chocolate pretzel grahams and yogurt covered pretzels. It’s a fantastic dessert for picnics, barbecues and summer parties!

If you want to give the dip a protein boost or a healthier twist, try substituting 1 cup of plain Greek yogurt for the whipped cream. Just remember to add a bit more honey (to taste) to compensate for the tart yogurt. You can also use 1/3-less-fat cream cheese in place of regular. It’s just as delicious, but a little more nutritious!

We’re just wild about the health benefits that almonds have to offer! High in calcium, zinc and protein, almonds are packed with nutritional benefits. Tests have shown that almonds can even lower the risk of heart problems. In fact, a study published by the American Heart Association found that the monounsaturated fat in almonds can help lower blood cholesterol. They’re also a fantastic source of magnesium, vitamin E, calcium, potassium, phosphorus and iron.

Though we do love munching almonds by the handful for a healthy and filling snack, we also enjoy making homemade almond milk. Unlike many brands of store-bought almond milk, homemade almond milk is free of artificial flavors and sweeteners, and does not contain stabilizers that can give the milk a thick, gloppy texture. Homemade almond milk is slightly sweet and quite creamy, with a delicate flavor that pairs wonderfully with cereal, coffee and baked goods.

To start, pour two cups of raw almonds in a bowl and add just enough water to cover the almonds. Soak the almonds for eight to 12 hours, or until they’re softened and plump. Drain the water from the almonds and divide the batch in half. Dump half of the almonds into your blender pitcher.

Add 3 cups of cool water, 1/2 tablespoon of organic agave syrup and 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract, if you want to make vanilla almond milk. Blend the mixture until it is mostly smooth, then pour it through a fine mesh strainer to strain out the crushed almond pulp.

Repeat the process with the second cup of almonds. (Most standard blenders can’t handle the full batch at once without making a big mess!)

Store the homemade almond milk in a covered container in the refrigerator. It will keep for four to five days. Make sure to give it a shake before pouring it; because homemade almond milk contains no thickeners or stabilizers, it will separate in the refrigerator.

Most importantly, enjoy!

One of our new favorite products has to be organic quinoa puffs. This all-natural, crunchy snack is fantastic with milk or yogurt, and it’s truly a tasty way to get the benefits of quinoa. One of our favorite ways to eat organic quinoa puffs is in a parfait made with Greek yogurt and dried fruit. Give it a whirl!

To start, sprinkle a small handful of the dried fruit of your choice in the bottom of a bowl or cup. (We love to use blueberries and goji berries!) Spread about 1/4 cup of plain Greek yogurt on top of the dried fruit. Drizzle about 1 tsp. of pure organic honey on top of the yogurt, then sprinkle a layer of organic quinoa puffs on the honey. Repeat the layers until the bowl or cup is full, and consume the parfait immediately so that the organic quinoa puffs don’t get soggy.

This parfait makes a wonderfully filling and satisfying breakfast or snack. The best part about the recipe is that you can improvise! Don’t have any dried fruit? Try it with fresh berries or sliced bananas instead. If you prefer flavored Greek yogurt to plain, use the flavor of your choice and omit the pure organic honey. You can even add a sprinkling of nuts to the organic quinoa puffs to give the parfait a little extra richness and crunch. It’s up to you!

Have you tried our organic quinoa puffs? What are some of your favorite ways to eat them?

One of our favorite Easter treats is jelly beans. In fact, we love them so much that we offer more than 20 varieties! We love to munch them by the handful, load them into plastic eggs and Easter baskets, and even use them to decorate cookies and cupcakes. However, one of our favorite uses for jelly beans is to bake up a big batch of jelly bean cookies! These citrusy-sweet cookies are similar to chocolate-chip cookies, except that instead of chocolate chips, they’re studded with sweet jelly beans.

To start, mix up a batch of your favorite chocolate-chip cookie dough, but make a couple of substitutions. Instead of vanilla extract, add 2 tbsp. of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of lemon zest. Mix 1 cup of jelly beans into the dough, in place of the chocolate chips. Bake the cookies according to the instructions, allowing them to cool completely before eating them.

It’s fun to try new varieties and different combinations of jelly beans in these cookies! Our original jelly beans, with flavors such as orange, coconut and cherry, are always wonderful. Jelly Belly 49 Flavors contain a delicious combination of classic and unusual flavors that will make every bite of your cookies a tasty surprise! Organic jelly beans, made with natural ingredients, are a fantastic choice, as well. You can even add your favorite flavors of Jelly Belly jelly beans to create yummy flavor combinations! (One of our favorites is Jelly Belly French Vanilla and Jelly Belly Tangerine.)

What are your favorite varieties of jelly beans? Do you have any special recipes for Easter treats?

National Chip and Dip Day happens to be today! With all this barbecue-worthy weather we’ve been having lately, we can’t think of a better reason to whip up a batch of dip to munch with veggie chips or veggie sticks. We love this creamy zesty dip, made with our yummy herbs and spices. It pairs perfectly with a dinner of grilled meat and veggies. Be sure to make enough for a crowd! Though this dip may seem simple, it always goes fast!

In a medium bowl, start by mixing together a creamy base of 1 cup of mayonnaise and 1 cup of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. Add 1-2 tbsp. of finely grated onion, 1 clove of minced garlic and 1 to 2 tsp. of your favorite seasoning blend from Nuts.com. Our favorites for this recipe are ranch seasoning, sour cream and onion seasoning and garlic and herb seasoning. Stir the dip until it’s mixed thoroughly, cover the bowl and refrigerate the dip for two to three hours. Pair this savory dip with regular veggie chips, veggie sticks, sweet potato chips or even okra chips! In fact, just about any of our varieties of veggie chips taste great with this creamy dip.

If you prefer our sweet and crunchy fruit chips, we’ve got a great dip recipe for you! Fold 1 cup of whipped cream into 1 cup of flavored Greek yogurt (such as strawberry, mango or vanilla). Stir in 1/2 cup of the baking chips of your choice. Some great choices include cinnamon chips and milk chocolate chips. Serve this sweet dip with a side of fruit chips for a yummy dessert or side that’s sure to please kids and adults alike!

Do you have a favorite dip recipe for veggie chips or fruit chips? We’d love to hear about it!

One of our favorite baked treats (especially during National Peanut Month) is peanut butter cookies. We can’t get enough of this classic cookie! One of our favorite simple peanut butter cookie recipes also happens to be gluten-free. These cookies, which include the nuts and chips of your choice, are fantastic to share with everyone!

In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 cup of creamy peanut butter (we love smooth, unsalted organic peanut butter) with 1 cup of granulated sugar. Beat in 1 large egg, 1 tsp. of baking soda and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. Add 1/2 cup each of chopped nuts (peanuts or pecans are both excellent choices) and baking chips (such as organic dark chocolate chips). The dough will be sticky and a bit loose.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop rounded teaspoonfuls of cookie dough onto the sheet. Press the dough balls lightly with the back of a fork to make the traditional criss-cross pattern on top of the peanut butter cookies. Bake the cookies at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly set and browned. Cool the cookies on a wire rack, then consume or store in an airtight container.

What are some of your favorite easy gluten-free cookie recipes?

We love any excuse to bake with deliciously nutty ingredients from Nuts.com, and St. Patrick’s Day is no exception! We shared our recipe for gooey butter cookies a few months ago, and we love these soft and delicious cookies so much that we decided to make a St. Patrick’s Day version. These cookies, flavored with pistachio nut paste, are sure to knock your socks off.

Start by creaming together one stick of softened unsalted butter and one 8 oz. brick of softened cream cheese. Add one box of white cake mix (or 3 cups of gluten-free vanilla cake mix), 1 egg and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. Stir the ingredients to make a soft dough, then blend in 1/4 cup of pistachio nut paste, two to three drops of green food coloring and about 1/2 cup of chopped roasted pistachios.

Scoop rounded teaspoonsfuls of dough into a bowl of powdered sugar. Roll the dough balls in powdered sugar until they’re lightly coated and place them on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake the pistachio gooey butter cookies at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-13 minutes, but keep an eye on them. The pistachio nut paste may cause them to brown a bit more quickly than the traditional recipe.

Cool the cookies completely on a wire rack, then store them in an airtight container. They should stay fresh for about two days. Yum!

Hi there! Yesterday was National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day, but since every day is National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day around here, we thought we’d share one of our favorite peanut buttery recipes! These frozen pops are rich and delicious, the perfect treat for a special dessert or snack.

To start, pour 2 cups of regular, almond or soy milk into a bowl. Whisk in 3/4 cup of your favorite smooth peanut butter. You could use unsweetened organic peanut butter, or kick up the recipe with one of our varieties of gourmet peanut butter. We especially love using organic dark chocolate peanut butter and caramel peanut butter in this recipe. If you’re using unsweetened peanut butter, you may also want to add a small amount of sweetener to the mixture. Stir the mixture until it’s smooth, then cover the bowl and refrigerate it for two to three hours.

Divide the ice pop mixture evenly among eight to 10 popsicle molds, and slide the molds into the freezer. Freeze the ice pops for at least four hours, or until they’re frozen solid. They’re delicious as-is, or dunked in melted dark chocolate wafers. If you choose to coat the frozen pops in chocolate, dip them in the melted dark chocolate wafers, then place the coated ice pops on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and put them back in the freezer for at least an hour.

If you or someone you love is allergic to peanuts, don’t fret! These ice pops are also fantastic when made with cashew butter, almond butter or sunflower butter. Try different types of nut butters until you find the variety you like best!

Chia pudding is one of our favorite treats. It’s smooth, a little sweet and quite delicious! It also has the added bonus of being fantastic for you. Chia seeds are packed with nutrition, and they’ve been shown to aid weigh loss, help athletes stay hydrated, reduce blood pressure and help control blood sugar.

Chia pudding is quite simple to make and, because it’s not cooked, even raw food enthusiasts can enjoy this delicious dessert!

Start by pouring 2 tbsp. of chia seeds into a mixing bowl. Add 1/2 cup of vanilla almond milk or soy milk, 1 tbsp. of nut butter (such as raw smooth almond butter) and a handful of chopped strawberries or half of a mashed banana. Stir the ingredients to combine, then cover the bowl and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes, or until it has thickened. Serve it with a sprinkling of ground cinnamon or organic cacao powder. Delish!

We love to mix it up by adding nuts, dried fruit or sweeteners to this chia pudding recipe. A tablespoon or two of walnut pieces or chopped raw pistachios give the pudding a fantastic richness and crunch. Dried blueberries, organic sour cherries and jumbo golden raisins all pair well with the pudding’s texture and flavor. Organic maca powder, organic agave syrup and honey can give the pudding a little extra boost of sweetness that you might enjoy. A little experimentation definitely pays off with this recipe. Let your imagination run wild!

Do you make chia pudding? What are some of your secret ingredients?

We love making homemade truffles, and Nuts.com’s premium ingredients makes it easy and fun to create these delicious, chocolatey treats. Whip up a batch for your loved ones this weekend! This recipe makes about 30 rich truffles, so if you have a houseful of chocolate enthusiasts, you may want to double or even triple it!

Start by beating 4 oz. of softened cream cheese with an electric mixer or wooden spoon until it’s smooth and fluffy. Add 1-1/2 cups of powdered sugar and set aside. Melt 1-1/2 cups of organic dark chocolate chips in a double boiler, and pour the melted chocolate into the cream cheese mixture. Add 1 tsp. of vanilla or a flavored liquor like amaretto or Grand Marnier, and stir to combine. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the mixture for at least two hours.

Scoop and form the refrigerated chocolate into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in the coating of your choice. Some of our favorites include organic strawberry powder, organic pomegranate powder and organic coconut. We also really enjoy truffles rolled in finely chopped, roasted almonds, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans or walnuts. Choose your favorite or make a variety of truffles. You won’t be disappointed!

Refrigerated the truffles in an airtight container until it’s time to eat them. Remove them from the fridge about an hour before consuming them to allow them to come to room temperature. Enjoy!