Almonds
Why Almonds are Stress-Soothers: Need a quick fix? Just a few almonds will keep your heart from racing when panic attacks. They help lower your blood pressure and keep oxygen flowing throughout the body.

More Tips & Tidbits:
Almond butter is a simple alternative to whole nuts. Instead of peanut butter, try almond butter as your new combo with jelly.
Almonds are really seeds of the fruit from the almond tree, not nuts.


Chocolate-Dipped Almond Rolls

Quick to make and quite impressive, these delicately crisp, crumbly cookies are sure to become part of your holiday baking tradition. They can also be left flat, rather than rolled, and drizzled with melted chocolate.

Ingredients
6 tbsp. (90 mL) butter
1/3 cup (75 mL) brown sugar
3 tbsp. (45 mL) corn syrup
3/4 cup (175 mL) finely ground almonds
1/3 cup (75 mL) all purpose flour
1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla
1/2 cup (125 mL) semisweet chocolate chips
1 tsp. (5 mL) solid vegetable shortening (not butter or margarine)

Cooking Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup. Bring to a full boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in almonds, flour and vanilla. Mix well.
Drop batter by scant teaspoonfuls, 3 inches (8 cm) apart, onto the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes until the cookies stop bubbling and become very slightly browned on the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for about two minutes. Using a thin spatula, remove one cookie from the baking sheet and place it, bottom-side-up, on a flat surface (like a cutting board). Gently roll it around a chopstick or thin wooden dowel. Slide off onto a tray and repeat with the remaining cookies. You'll have to work quite quickly because as the cookies cool they will harden and become difficult to roll. If this happens, you can slip the cookie sheet back into the oven for a minute or two to resoften them.
When all the cookies are rolled and cooled, combine the chocolate chips with the vegetable shortening in a small bowl. Microwave on high power for 30 seconds. Stir, then microwave for another 30 seconds, then stir until smooth. Dip one end of each roll into the melted chocolate, shaking off any excess. Place on a waxed paper lined tray and refrigerate until chocolate is firm.
Servings: 3-1/2 to 4 dozen cookies