Explore a new cooking frontier with healthy cooking powders.  These superpowders boast nutritional superpowers, and we’ve got the scoop on them all!

1. Chlorella

Chlorella is an emerald green single-celled freshwater algae that grows naturally in lakes and ponds.  It’s full of cleansing chlorophyll and made up of at least 60% crude protein.  Chlorella’s nutrients include all nine essential amino acids, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin B12, vitamin C, and Vitamin E.  Whoa!  Who knew nature could pack so much into a single-celled algae!

Chlorella’s powerful nutrients make it a natural detoxifying agent, immunity-booster, hypertension reliever, and infection fighter.

Chlorella’s taste is similar to that of green tea and adds a subtle flavor to smoothies, salad dressings, sauces, juices, pesto, and guacamole.  You can also get more creative and whip up green eggs & ham!

2. Spirulina

Spirulina is a blue-green algae that commonly grows in freshwater lakes and ponds.  It’s considered a complete protein because it contains an ideal balance of all 9 essential amino acids.  This superfood is also loaded with vitamins A through E, iron, potassium, and antioxidants.  It has 26 times as much calcium as milk and is a more potent antioxidant than blueberries.

Health benefits of this superpowder may include a boost in metabolism, blood pressure stabilization, and a decrease in LDL cholesterol.

Like chlorella, you can add spirulina to smoothies, juices, sauces, dressings, and guacamole.  Or, for the more adventurous cooks, try it in a spirulina pate or a chia spirulina fresca.

3. Maca Powder

Maca powder is made from maca, an adaptogenic root known for its dynamic natural effects, including boosts in energy, relief from stress, and increases in libido.  Adding maca to your daily diet can promote better endocrine system health and may even relieve ulcers, mild depression, and menopause symptoms.

Maca powder is high in protein, boasting 4 grams in just ½ ounce.  It also serves up a dose of calcium, iron, magnesium, selenium, and seven essential amino acids.

Maca has a mild taste that blends well into baked goods, such as breads, pancakes, and muffins.  Just add maca to your baking flour and mix well!  You can also sprinkle maca over your food or stir it into juice, smoothies, or yogurt.

4. Moringa Powder

Moringa leaf powder is one of nature’s most nutritious foods, filled with nutrients and antioxidants.  The powder contains seven times the Vitamin C found in oranges, four times the beta carotene of carrots, three times the iron of spinach, four times as much calcium as milk, three times the potassium of bananas and more fiber than oats.

This superpowder couldn’t be easier to use!  Just mix a teaspoon into juice, beverages, smoothies, or yogurt.

5. Acai Powder

Our organic acai powder is made from super-fruit acai berries, which have more antioxidants than almost any other fruit.  The powder also contains high levels of fatty acids, amino acids, and dietary fiber.

Acai powder is a feisty fighter of free radicals.  The nutritional benefits are preserved in the freeze-drying process of preparing our powder.

Mix the powder into smoothies, fruit juices, yogurt, and desserts for a slightly tart, tropical taste.

6. Wheatgrass Powder

This powder is made of all natural wheatgrass, a potent leafy green vegetable.  Our non-GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) wheatgrass powder is chock full of beta-carotene, calcium, chlorophyll, fiber, iron, and vitamin K.

Preliminary studies on wheatgrass powder suggest that wheatgrass may help to reduce total cholesterol.  Wheatgrass powder may also detoxify, increase metabolism, reduce highblood pressure, and act as a natural sleep aid.

Wheatgrass powder has a slightly grassy taste with a hint of sweetness.  Mix a tablespoon of wheatgrass powder with juice, smoothie, or water, or sprinkle the powder into a creamy salad dressing.

It’s almost time to paint the town green! St. Patrick’s Day is coming up next weekend, and now is the time to place your order for your favorite green goodies. Surprise your family with a scrumptious selection of green candy or bring in a special batch of treats to make your co-workers happy.

Here are a few of our favorite St. Paddy’s Day sweets:

Leprechaun’s Delight 
We cover sunflower seeds with a kelly green chocolate coating for a snack that is salty, sweet and green all over.

Green M&Ms
No more picking through a bag of M&Ms just to find the color you want! Now you can buy a 1 lb. bag of your favorite milk chocolate candies that are all decked out in green for the holiday.

Green Apple Gummy Bears
Our green apple gummy bears are perfectly bite-sized and just the right blend of sweet and tart.

Mint Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans
Chocolate and coffee lovers, rejoice! These tasty candies are the best of both worlds — high-quality espresso beans dipped in mint chocolate and bits of ground coffee.

Pear Fruit Slices
Our pear fruit slices are a new spin on an old favorite. Each bite has a juicy and refreshing pear flavor.

What is your favorite green candy?

Follow our St. Paddy’s Day Pinterest board 

What can you make with Nuts.com products? What can’t you make?!

We love when customers photograph their tasty creations and share them with us on the Nuts.com Facebook page. We invite you to post yours, too!

Here are five photos of tasty customer creations to inspire you to make your own:

“I received my bags of pistachio flour the other day, and I immediately made the most scrumptious pistachio macaroons imaginable.” – Amy Shaffer

“A bag of your organic artisan flour, salt, dry active yeast, cool water = Best bread ever!” – Jenny Tardif

“We only use Nuts.com Almond Four in all our Macarons!!” - Le Pop Shop

“Order arrived. Chai Bubble Tea.” – Bianca Alicea

Find Black Tapioca Pearls (boba) and Bubble Tea Straws here, as well as other flavors of bubble tea!

“Thank you!!!
I love my lowcarb bread using your lowcarb bread mix.
European Style Bread
Ingredients:
2 cups vital wheat gluten flour
1 package dry yeast (Rapid Rise/Highly Active)
1 cup warm water (95-105°F)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg (room temperature), beaten
2 Tablespoons Splenda
2 Tablespoons butter, melted

I use my bread maker on plain/1loaf/light crust.
It comes out delicious every time.” – Kennda Varnum

What are the best things that you’ve made with our products? Share them in the comments!

Earlier this week, we shared the good news that eating a Mediterranean diet full of nuts, fruit, vegetables, legumes, fish and olive oil has powerful health benefits, lowering the risk of heart attacks, strokes and deaths from heart disease. The landmark new study, published on the New England Journal of Medicine’s website this week, even supports drinking a glass of wine with meals, so pour yourself a glass of your favorite red and try one of these delicious Mediterranean diet recipes. Your heart and your taste buds will approve!

1. Pasta with spinach, garbanzo beans and raisins

You can prepare this simple weeknight dinner almost entirely from ingredients you already have in your kitchen — pasta, garbanzo beans, golden raisins, fresh spinach, olive oil and parmesan cheese. Soak dried garbanzo beans overnight and use them in place of canned beans (they are inexpensive and tasty).

2. Lamb chops with pistachio gremolata

These flavorful lamb chops only take a few minutes of preparation and cooking time. Mix salt, cumin, coriander, ground cinnamon and black pepper together and sprinkle over the lamb chops. Cook in a skillet over medium-high heat, and sprinkle with chopped pistachios, parsley, cilantro, lemon rind, salt and garlic.

3. Goat Cheese, Cranberry and Walnut Canapes

These goat cheese canapes are an impressive appetizer or side dish that you can throw together in a few minutes. Coat baguette slices with olive oil and spread with goat cheese mixed with dried cranberries and thyme. Top with walnut halves seasoned with cinnamon and salt and pepper.

4. Quinoa Salad With Pears, Baby Spinach and Garbanzo Beans

This hearty quinoa salad is gluten-free and vegetarian and a snap to make. Cook quinoa on the stovetop; when it is finished, add baby spinach, sliced pears, chopped parsley and garbanzo beans. Finish with toasted pecans and a maple-balsamic vinaigrette.

What Mediterranean diet recipes do you love to cook at home? Share your favorites in the comments.

Big news this week for health-conscious eaters: A major study found that a diet rich in nuts, fruits and veggies, fish, and olive oil — known as the Mediterranean diet — lowers the risk of heart attack and stroke for those at high risk of heart disease. The researchers behind the study say that while more research is needed to show that the diet also benefits those at low risk for the disease, that is what they expect to find.

The New York Times explained why this landmark study is making headlines:

Heart disease experts said the study was a triumph because it showed that a diet was powerful in reducing heart disease risk, and it did so using the most rigorous methods. Scientists randomly assigned 7,447 people in Spain who were overweight, were smokers, or had diabetes or other risk factors for heart disease to follow the Mediterranean diet or a low-fat one. 

The article goes on to say:

One group assigned to a Mediterranean diet was given extra-virgin olive oil each week and was instructed to use at least 4 four tablespoons a day. The other group got a combination of walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts and was instructed to eat about an ounce of the mix each day. An ounce of walnuts, for example, is about a quarter cup — a generous handful. The mainstays of the diet consisted of at least three servings a day of fruits and at least two servings of vegetables. Participants were to eat fish at least three times a week and legumes, which include beans, peas and lentils, at least three times a week. They were to eat white meat instead of red, and, for those accustomed to drinking, to have at least seven glasses of wine a week with meals.

Compared with those eating the low-fat diet, the extra-virgin-olive-oil group showed a 30% lower risk of having a heart attack, stroke or dying of heart disease after five years, while those consuming the Mediterranean diet with more nuts showed a 28% lower risk of these outcomes.

Chances are, you have heard a friend or colleague or family member talking about the “paleo diet” within the last year. So what’s it all about?

This eating plan is based on the idea that modern processed foods are making us unhealthy and that people should instead eat wholesome foods that our hunter-gatherer ancestors would have presumably eaten about 10,000 years ago. These foods include fresh meats (preferably grass-fed, free-range or wild), seafood, fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts and healthy oils (olive, coconut, avocado, macadamia, walnut and flaxseed) but exclude dairy products, cereal grains, legumes, refined sugars and processed foods.

Dr. Loren Cordain, author of The Paleo Diet and a number of other books, sums it up on his website:

With readily available modern foods, the Paleo Diet mimics the types of foods every single person on the planet ate prior to the Agricultural Revolution (a mere 333 generations ago). These foods (fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and seafood) are high in the beneficial nutrients (soluble fiber, antioxidant vitamins, phytochemicals, omega-3 and monounsaturated fats, and low-glycemic carbohydrates) that promote good health and are low in the foods and nutrients (refined sugars and grains, trans fats, salt, high-glycemic carbohydrates, and processed foods) that frequently may cause weight gain, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and numerous other health problems.

Want to explore the paleo diet? Whip up one these three tasty paleo-friendly recipes to give it a try.

1. Stuffed Grape Leaves (Dolmas)

These bite-sized stuffed grape leaves offer a satisfying blend of sweet and savory flavors — ground lamb, pine nuts, raisins or currants, dried mint and fresh parsley. Serve them as a hearty appetizer or as a main course.

2. Muesli Scones

If you can’t bear the idea of giving up pastries, these muesli scones will ease your anxiety. The recipe uses blanched almond flour as a base, adding dried cranberries, dried apricots, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pistachios and honey or agave nectar for a natural crunchy sweetness.

3. Beef and Vegetable Chili

This chili recipe makes enough to feed a crowd, but you might not want to share! Each bowl is full of flavor from beef, fresh vegetables and chili peppers, coconut oil, chili powder, sea salt, cumin, oregano, thyme and topped with a rich dollop of coconut milk.

What are your favorite paleo diet recipes? Share them in the comments!

Yesterday was National Chocolate Mint Day! There’s a reason that Thin Mints are the bestselling flavor of Girl Scout cookies: people love chocolate mint. The refreshing peppermint perks up the rich, creamy chocolate and awakens the senses. Peppermint offers many health benefits, including aiding digestion and soothing the stomach, and improving respiratory function.

There are so many ways to enjoy mint chocolate! Here are five of our favorites.

1. Andes Mints

You don’t need to wait for housekeeping to put this on your hotel room pillow! They’re individually foil wrapped, so you can take them on the go, pack a treat in your child’s lunch bag, or store a few in your desk drawer at work. Each bite-sized bar features a layer of mint-green cream sandwiched between two layers of chocolate.

2. Mint Cookies Malted Milk Balls

Add mint to malted milk balls and you have yourself a crispy, minty treat. If you like Whoppers and are also a fan of mint, give these a try. For coffee lovers, Mint Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans have a similar creamy coating with a coffee kick.

3. Mint Chocolate Chip Astronaut Ice Cream

Devour this classic ice cream anytime, anyplace! No freezer is necessary, because it never melts — except in your mouth! If you’ve enjoyed astronaut ice cream before, you know that it’s freeze dried so that astronauts can eat it in space. The creamy, crunchy texture of mint chocolate chip ice cream cannot be beat.

4. Mint Lentils

Don’t let the name fool you – these are candies, not beans! Shaped like lentils, these mint chocolates have a colorful candy shell. You can even browse our candy by color and order these to match the colors of your wedding or special event.

5. Chocolate Mint Coffee

Flavored coffee lovers, rejoice! The scent of chocolatey mint coffee brewing is sure to perk you up  in the morning. The chocolate mint flavor mingles subtly with this smooth coffee to please your palate.

Browse our full selection of chocolate mint goodies!

It’s still the season for comfort food, when chilly temperatures make you crave hot and hearty stews, sauces and casseroles. Comfort food might bring to mind rich, meat-based dishes like beef stew and chicken pot pie, just like Mom used to make, but did you know that vegetarian meals can be just as filling and satisfying? Try incorporating more vegetarian recipes into your diet to explore new flavors and improve your overall health.

A recent study from scientists at Oxford University suggests that vegetarians are 32 percent less likely to be hospitalized or die of heart disease than their meat-eating counterparts.

According to the Dr. Oz Show blog:

Researchers followed a total of 44,561 men and women living in England and Scotland for 11.5 years on average; 34% of those persons were vegetarians. Throughout the study, the researchers assessed the participants’ diet, smoking habits, exercise habits, body-mass index, blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

After adjusting for potential compounding factors, like age, alcohol consumption and physical activity, they found that vegetarians had a 32% lower risk of being hospitalized or dying from heart disease. They even found that those who were vegetarians for at least 5 years during the study enjoyed similar heart-healthy benefits.

The blog also says if you are considering a vegetarian or vegan diet, you should be careful to get enough protein and vitamins in your diet: “make sure to include good sources of plant-based proteins in your diet from tofu, quinoa, tempeh, or white beans.” Here are a few delicious vegetarian recipes using some of those healthy ingredients.

Vegetarian Soup with Cannellini Beans and Kale

Cannellini beans, a staple in Italian cooking, are full of protein and iron and are melt-in-your-mouth good in soups and stews. This soup recipe combines the beans with fresh kale, fresh vegetables and herbs and a little bit of spice, and you can prepare it easily in a pressure cooker or on the stovetop.

Vegetarian Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers are a snap to make and a great way to feed a hungry crowd. Peppers are often filled with ground meat and rice, but this recipe offers a flavorful and vegetarian alternative: quinoa, carrots, onions, sunflower seeds, dried parsley, dried basil, dried oregano, paprika, dried marjoram, dried thyme and cayenne pepper.

Vegan Slow-Cooker Navy Bean Soup

This soup recipe is perfect for a busy weekday because the slow cooker does all the work. Just soak dried navy beans in water overnight, rinse, then slow-cook with diced tomatoes, carrots, celery, broth and spices (including parsley, paprika and black pepper).

What are your favorite vegetarian recipes? Share them in the comments!

We love a good excuse for snacking, and February is full of them! Treats abound on Valentine’s Day, of course. But wait, there’s more! Here are three other February holidays that will keep the snacks coming all month long.

1. Chocolate Month

How do we love thee, chocolate? Let us count the ways. Chocolate is packed with powerful nutrients and mood boosters, as well as antioxidants to protect the body’s cells. It’s also wonderfully versatile, as you can see from our selection of chocolates and sweets! Try these chocolatey goodies:

Chocolate Covered Nuts

Whether you love macadamia nuts, peanuts, hazelnuts, or pistachios, you’ll love them even more when they’re covered in chocolate!

Fudge

There’s a flavor to please every palate: Maple Walnut Fudge, Rocky Road Fudge, and Caramel Pecan Fudge are just a few!

Colored Chocolates

Are you buying chocolate to celebrate a special occasion, like a wedding or a team sporting event? Choose your colors! Candy choices include Jordan almonds, M&Ms, and more!

2. National Fiber Focus Month

Fiber is crucial to a healthy digestive system. Many of our snacks are high in fiber and tasty, too!

Dried Fruit

Satisfy your sweet cravings with dried fruit like dried plums, Turkish figs, and dried apples!

Nuts

Almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, and pecans (in that order!) all pack in a healthy dose of fiber. Sprinkle them on your cereal or combine them into a trail mix to take on the go.

3. National Snack Food Month

Snack to your heart’s content this month, whether you’re looking for something crunchy, salty, spicy, or sweet! You’ll find it all in our selection of snacks. Here are a few suggestions.

Fruit & Veggie Chips

Veggie Chips are a great alternative to potato chips because they’re full of nutrients! Our assortment includes sweet potato, squash, carrot, green bean, and taro. We also offer exotic treats such as beet chips, plantain chips, and mushroom chips!

Sampler Packs

Sampling is delightful, because you can try many different types of snacks. These sampler packs bundle together a bunch of individual samples, and you can decide which you like best! Try our Spicy Sampler, Raw Sampler, or Heart Healthy Sampler, to name just a few!

Which snacks are you enjoying this month?

Valentine’s Day is less than a week away, but don’t worry: there is still plenty of time to order a special treat for your sweetheart, your family or your officemates. (Hint: we have next-day shipping options!) Earlier this week, we wrote about five of our favorite Valentine’s Day gift ideas, and here are five more:

1. Conversation Hearts

Remember giggling over conversation hearts when you were in elementary school? If you were bold, you slipped a “Be Mine” or “Kiss Me” heart into the Valentine of the boy or girl you liked. These classic Valentine’s Day candies are still a sweet, thoughtful and edible way to show someone you care.

2. Berry Medley Gift Tin

Red is the color of love and passion, and our Berry Medley Gift Tin is overflowing with three beautiful shades. Give your Valentine a big dose of sweetness (more than two pounds!) with milk chocolate covered dried strawberries, dried bing cherries and dried cranberries.

3. Aphrodisiac Mix

Our custom-selected Aphrodisiac Mix is the perfect blend of natural flavors and chocolatey goodness. Treat your special someone to dark chocolate covered strawberries, raw almonds, tart cherries, milk chocolate covered bananas, banana chips, dried strawberries and dried papaya.

4. Chocolate Covered Delight Circle

Our Chocolate Covered Delight Circle is as pretty as it is tasty. The round wicker tray is chock-full of jumbo buttercrunch mix, pastel chocolate covered apricots and cranberries, chocolate covered espresso mix and powder dusted chocolate almonds that will disappear before you know it.

5. “Just For You” Gift Basket

Your Valentine will be enamored with this gorgeous hand-woven wood basket overflowing with sweet and salty goodies, including butter toffee pecans, almond crunch, southern heat mix, gourmet chocolates, veggie chips, wasabi peas and milk chocolate cashews.

What are you giving your loved ones this Valentine’s Day? Browse more Valentine’s Day gift ideas.