HEALTH

 
In the world of nuts, the almond is king. Working almonds into your diet can help battle obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and this wonder nut even regulates blood pressure and cholesterol. Almonds are an easy source of vitamin E and eating two servings a day can actually make you consume less calories overall. 
 
And believe it or not, dark chocolate is actually good for you, too. Note to self: try not to get carried away. Dark chocolate in moderation fights heart disease and keeps blood pressure and cholesterol in check. 
 
I decided to make the Emerald Cocoa Roast Almonds 100 Calorie Pack my lunchtime desert, and felt good that for once I wouldn’t be stockpiling Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chocolate chip cookies, or ice cream sandwiches in my stomach.
 
My tongue had the impression that these would be thickly-coated almonds in a smooth and rich dark chocolate. But these nuts are lightly dusted with cocoa, rather than doused in chocolate. I wasn’t that impressed with Emerald’s bag o’ nuts—at first. 
 
Halfway through the bag, the light coat of chocolate began to remind me of hot chocolate. Once I adjusted to only having a tiny taste of chocolate, I was actually pretty satisfied. And I’m not craving anymore chocolate, so I’d say this taste test was a success.
 
So here’s my verdict: If you are in the midst of a serious chocolate craving this snack is not for you. But if you want to beat your sweet tooth to the punch and deliver a healthy burst of the sweet and nutty, then pick these up. I like that they can be a snack or a dessert, and I love that they won’t ruin my dinner. Now I just have to make sure I don’t eat the whole box.

These snack-sized packs are hitting the streets in January, but you can get containers of the Cocoa Roast Almonds in grocery stores now.

by Adrienne Kasper | 2/1/2016