Healthy Nuts for Cooking and Snacking

By Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D., November/December 2010

Four favorite varieties are packed with healthy reasons to cook with nuts.

READER'S COMMENT:

"Yes, what about people with tree nut allergies? Are we out of luck and in bad health? What do peanuts offer? "

Almonds

Go for the almonds: a 1-ounce serving (23 nuts, 162 calories) has 37 percent of your daily value for vitamin E—a nutrient many Americans fall short on. You’ll also get calcium, fiber and some folate. A June 2006 study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry showed an ounce of almonds provides as many flavonoids—compounds that fight free radicals and reduce inflammation—as a 1/2-cup serving of broccoli or a cup of green tea.