Spiced Nuts with Turmeric and Garam Masala
Nuts are a staple in the Brain Health Kitchen and one of the 10 brain healthy food groups in the MIND diet. I am a huge fan of buying nuts raw and roasting them myself. Raw nuts retain nutrients longer so they taste better and are better for your brain. It may be a little more work than buying them commercially pre-roasted (and by “work” I mean dumping nuts onto a baking sheet and putting them in the oven), but home-roasted nuts taste fresher, are more deeply flavored, and have such an inviting aroma. They are just, well, nuttier, in a very good way. And, they can be salted and spiced to your own preference.
For these Spiced Nuts with Turmeric and Garam Masala, I wanted to create a spicy nut mix for when I have people over for drinks. The spice combo of turmeric and garam masala, along with a very small spoonful of coconut sugar, creates a nut mix that has all the right contrasts: salty, spicy, sweet, and savory. They are perfect to nibble on when sipping a Pomegranate Negroni (my alcohol-free version of the classic), a glass of crisp white wine, or sparkling water with an abundance of freshly squeezed lime. Soon they became my favorite nut mix to tuck into my backpack when out hiking or skiing. When the holidays rolled around, I was packing the Spiced Nuts, with all their cinnamon-y aromas, into glass jars to give as gifts.
Garam masala means warm spice mix
The cinnamon flavor comes from garam masala, a spice mix from India that usually includes many of my favorite anti-inflammatory spices. Besides cinnamon, there’s nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, mace, peppercorns, and cumin. Feel free to use a good brand of pre-mixed garam masala from the grocery store. Or, make you own version based on whatever combination of those spices you have in your pantry using the note that follows my recipe below. Just be sure to seek out good turmeric for these nuts; a fresher spice will have more antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potency. (My top online source for high quality, single-origin turmeric is Diaspora; good supermarket brands are Morton and Bassett, Frontier, and Simply Organics.)
Why it’s better to roast nuts at home
Besides having superior flavor, home-roasted nuts are better for your brain than those that have been roasted in a factory. Commercially roasting nuts exposes them to high heat and inflammatory oils (like soybean, palm, and peanut) and additives, along with excessive amounts of salts. All this high heat processing creates advanced glycation end products, or AGEs, substances shown to be harmful to blood vessels and brain cells. In fact, factory-roasted nuts top the list of the foods with the highest concentration of AGEs. I’m not saying I would never grab a bag of roasted nuts at an airport kiosk if I need a quick snack, but I mostly avoid these types of nuts. (Read more about how cooking techniques impact the AGE content of foods here.)
Eating nuts may reduce heart disease, diabetes, and protect from Alzheimer’s
Beyond brain-health, the benefits of eating nuts are well-documented. There is evidence that eating nuts can cut your risk of getting cardiovascular disease or even dying from it. Also, snacking on nuts reduces the risk of adult-onset diabetes, and can help diabetics keep blood sugar levels stable and in an optimal range. More specifically, almonds, hazelnuts, and walnuts have been studied as neuroprotective foods that activate pathways that combat Alzheimer’s disease. In an intriguing animal study, feeding hazelnuts to rats helped them improve memory functions, reduced anxiety, and quelled the brain inflammation caused by amyloid and tau protein deposits.
Just like sourcing your spices, seek out high quality raw nuts to use in your kitchen. I find mine in the bulk bin of my busiest grocery store (it has a high turnover rate so they’re always fresh), and online at Costco and Thrive Market. Store nuts at room temperature for up to one month. Because the oil in nuts can make them go rancid with time, for longer storage keep them in the fridge (up to three months) or the freezer (up to one year.)
Servings |
cups
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- 3 cups mixed unsalted raw nuts (I like equal parts cashews walnuts, and almonds)
- 3 tablespoons avocado or extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons garam masala see note below
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground chile powder
- 1 teaspoon coconut palm sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 tablespoon chickpea flour
Ingredients
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- Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Combine the nuts and oil in a large mixing bowl and toss until evenly coated. Add the remaining ingredients and toss well so that each nut is evenly coated. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and smooth into an even layer.
- Bake until the nuts are fragrant and lightly toasted, about 30 minutes. Check the nuts after 15 minutes, give them a toss, and assess how fast they are cooking. If your oven runs hot, they may be done.
- Serve warm, or cool completely and save in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Note: If you don't have garam masala, use a combination of any of these that you have: cinnamon, cardamom, coriander, black pepper, cumin, and nutmeg. Mix together ½ teaspoon of each and measure out 2 teaspoons total for the recipe. Use leftover garam masala sprinkled on roasted vegetables, chicken or fish.
Look for pure chile powder with no other additives or flavors.
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