Almonds--A Tasty Way to Better Health!

The California Almond Growers Exchange, the world's leading producer of almonds, are constantly on the lookout for changes in food trends and focus on providing healthy, tasty recipes. To this end, they often publish little cookbooks, one of which landed in my possession--thank you, Aunt Annie.

We want to include more almonds (nuts, paste, flour, milk) in our diets because of their low fat content and high nutrition-to-calorie ratio. They store well, for months, if placed in tightly sealed containers in the central portion of the refrigerator.

Here are three recipes from this little treasury that I think you'll like. And if you have any almond tips or recipes you could share, please do. We're all in this together, as I say, so let's share the good stuff. And until next time, happy cook'n!

STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS (serves 6-8)
1/2 C rice
1/2 tsp salt
1 head cabbage (about 3 lbs)
Water
Spicy Filling (recipe follows)
1 lb thin-sliced bacon
1 C beef broth
1 C dairy sour cream
2 Tbsp flour
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce

In saucepan, add rice and the 1/2 tsp salt to 2 C boiling water and cook for 10 min; drain and reserve for Spicy Filling. with sharp knife remove cabbage core and blanch cabbage, core side down, in a kettle of boiling water to cover, for 10 min., or until it is softened. Drain cabbage and refresh it under cold water. Carefully remove the leaves to a towel to dry and trim away and tough ribs. Prepare Spicy Filling.

Place 1/3 C of filling in center of cabbage leaf, fold in sides and roll up; fasten with toothpick, if necessary. Wrap a slice of bacon around the roll. Repeat until all of meat mixture is used. Arrange rolls in one or two baking dishes, just large enough to hold them in one layer. Pour broth over rolls and bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hr. and 30 min., or until bacon is browned.

In bowl, whisk together sour cream and flour until smooth; add the tomato sauce and mix thoroughly. Spoon off excess fat from the baking dishes and pour sauce over rolls. Return rolls to oven for 15 min. more.

SPICY FILLING:
Drained rice
1 C toasted slivered almonds (see info. below)
1 lb Italian sausage
1/2 lb lean ground beef
2 eggs
1/2 C half and half
1/2 C chopped onion
1/2 C bread crumbs
1/4 C minced parsley

Mix thoroughly.

BROILED STUFFED BURGERS (serves 4-5)
1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
Salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
Dash Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 C grated Monterey Jack or Swiss cheese
1/4 C finely grated onion
1/4 C chopped almonds
2 Tbsp minced parsley

Season ground beef with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Worcestershire; shape into 8-10 thin patties. Combine cheese, onion, almonds and parsley, mixing well. Divide cheese mixture evenly among one-half of the patties, placing in center of meat. Top with remaining patties; pinch edges to seal tightly. Broil, about 4 inches from heat, 4-6 min. on each side, or until desired doneness is reached.

HAM & ALMOND PITAS (makes 3 sandwiches)
3 C finely chopped ham (about 1 lb)
1/2 C chopped and toasted almonds (see info below)
1/3 C sliced green onion
1 pkg (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/2 C mayonnaise
3 pita breads
Lettuce, shredded

Combine ham, almonds and onion. In small bowl blend cream cheese and mayonnaise; add to ham mixture and mix well. Halve pocket breads; fill each with about 1/2 C filling; top with lettuce. (NOTE: shredded chicken or turkey could easily be substituted for the ham.)

HOW TO TOAST ALMONDS:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spread in single layer in shallow pan. Bake 15 min., stirring often, or until they begin to turn color (DON'T wait for them to become golden brown.) After removing the almonds from the oven, their residual heat will continue to toast them slightly.