Eat almonds from Granada. They are versatile, healthy and very very tasty"Almonds can bring many benefits." I really do love them. And we are reaching the culmination of the 2011 Almond's Season. The almonds are being harvested as I write this, but their growing season actually starts in the months of February and March. These early months are the time when the lovely hyacinth type scent of the almonds pervade the whole valley. The flowers actually grow before any leaves and so the trees put on a wonderful show for us all.
These are our delicious almonds from Granada Almond blossoms are white or pink, depending upon the variety. But their scent seems to be exactly the same no matter what the colour of the flowers are. Within weeks of growing the blossom petals fall, the leaves grow, and young almonds begin to form. As the summer progresses, the fuzzy hulls harden and grow to protect the nut inside. And then in July and August the husks begin to open and widen so that the shells on the nuts can be exposed to the sun and air to allow them to dry and mature. And then the almonds from Granada are harvested, de-hulled and dried and then prepared for eating How Almonds Are GrownAlmond trees are botanically related to peaches, plums and cherries. Most almond trees are grafted to a peach rootstock to ensure a strong growth. And as they are not self pollinating, two varieties are often grown in alternate rows so that the bees can easily fly from one to the other.Even though the trees are very hardy and will survive dry and cold conditions, just one severe frost as the fruit is setting will result in no almonds for that year. To avoid this problem some later flowering varieties have been developed to ensure better cropping. Lucky Almonds from GranadaThink Good Luck - think almonds!Almonds have been given at weddings as a symbol of fertility and happiness since Roman times. And according to folk lore, marzipan, which is made from almonds and sugar, was first made after a particulary bad famine in Spain when a rich community of nuns decided to grind up the vast amounts of almonds they stored away when they decided to feed the needy. Almonds Granada - Food Of The GodsGrowing almonds from Granada Province is one of the most important farming activities of the region. Sixty almond trees can produce between a hundred and two hundred kilos of almonds each year. Almonds from Spain are second only to the USA in the world's almond production, averaging over 75,000 tonnes per year. Nut production is mainly in the regions of the Mediterranean including Andalucia and the Granada province.Almond waste is traditionally used on fires in winter, incinerated or just dumped, but recent experiments have shown that it is possible to use the shell residues as a substitute for peat in soilless crops. To find out more about how almonds are grown, go to harvesting almonds Almonds are very healthy to eat too. They are a good source of protein, magnesium and vitamin E. Eating the nuts regularly can also help to reduce cholestorol levels. And a couple of handfuls of nuts contain about the same amount of calcium as half a cup of milk and a similar amount of fibre as an orange and an apple put together. But what are almonds Granada used for? Well, besides shelling them and eating them whole as a nutritious snack, we also love almond soup (Sopa de Almendras). However, one of my most favourite ways of enjoying almonds is to eat an Almendrado. This is a chocolate and almond covered ice cream on a stick. Yummy! Related links
"Best of" pages....
To catch more information about almonds Granada subscribe to our newsletter. To go to the top of this page click on almonds Granada To find out all about Granada go to Granada information To locate any webpage on this site go to our site map
|
