Top 10 Nutritional Boosters: Nuts

I am a nut fanatic. I have a shelf in my cabinets dedicated to nuts. The five nuts I keep on hand all the time are cashews, almonds, walnuts, pecans, and peanuts. I know peanuts aren't technically nuts but you get what I mean. I use cashews in things like cashew ricotta and to add into soups to make them creamy as well as just eating them for the heck of it. I also add them to pasta dishes sometimes to add a little extra texture. Pecans, walnuts, and almonds I use for all kinds of things. Below I have broken down the nutritional data according the USDA for pecans. While I don't put much stock in what the USDA deems as the "neccessary daily intake" represented as the percentages for the different items (another day, another blog post on that one) I think it gives you a good idea of how much is in there. The nutritional content is absolutely astounding!

Pecans
Amounts per 1 cup, chopped (109g)
Fats & Fatty Acids
Total Omega-3 fatty acids1075mg
Total Omega-6 fatty acids22487mg

Protein
Protein10.0g20%

Vitamins
Vitamin A 61 IU 1%
Vitamin C 1.2 mg 2%
Vitamin E 1.5 mg 8%
Vitamin K 3.8mcg 5%
Thiamin 0.7mg 48%
Riboflavin 0.1mg 8%
Niacin 1.3mg 6%
Vitamin B 60.2mg 11%
Folate 24.0mcg 6%
Food Folate 24.0 mcg
Folic Acid 0.0 mcg
Dietary Folate Equivalents 24.0mcg
Vitamin B120.0 mcg 0%
Pantothenic Acid 0.9mg 9%
Choline 44.1mg
Betaine 0.8mg

Minerals
Calcium 76.3mg 8%
Iron 2.8mg 15%
Magnesium132 mg 33%
Phosphorus 302 mg 30%
Potassium 447 mg 13%
Sodium 0.0mg 0%
Zinc 4.9mg 33%
Copper 1.3mg 65%
Manganese 4.9mg 245%
Selenium 4.1mcg 6%
Fluoride 10.9 mcg

You may have noticed I left out the fat and carbohydrates section if you are one of those people that pays attention to that. I think I need to take this opportunity to point out my feelings on carbs and fat. Here are my feelings:

I DON'T GIVE A CRAP!

Maybe that's a little rude but it is no less than how I actually feel on the subject when it relates to whole foods like nuts, grains, legumes, vegetables, and fruits. If it falls under any of those categories and has not been altered by man then I simply DO NOT care how much fat or carbohydrates are in there. Of COURSE you can get fat off of nuts but only if you eat them all day long. Of course you can overdo your carbs eating too much bread but only if you eat that all day long. Eating healthy is about balance, not about counting calories. I have never counted calories. I used to be slightly overweight in college and I did not lose the weight by cutting back. I lost it by changing my lifestyle with food choices and some exercise. Too much of any food group is a bad thing no matter what it is. However, you can more quickly and more radically damage your health by eating processed foods than you ever could on whole foods. That's my quick speil on fat and carbs. Nuts are MUCH too good for you to avoid because of silly notions like "they have too much fat."

I increase our nut intake by pulverizing them in my blender with some liquid and adding them to things like bread and pancakes. I add them to hot cereals whenever I make them. I enjoy chunky nut texture in just about anything but Novan doesn't appreciate the texture discrepancy so his are usually pureed. You could add pureed nuts to anything I think. They are expensive but well worth it I think. You can get much more out of these natural nutrition sources than your body could absorb from a multivitamin. Why not get the nutrition straight from the source? I also try to buy all my nuts raw. This ensures that they have not yet lost any nutritional value from cooking. Raw is always best when you can swing it. Consider always having a large variety of nuts on hand.