Nuts about a salad

Green beans with an Asian-style dressing get a flavour kick from crunchy toasted almonds

Fear of fat? - look no further. Nuts despite being high in fat (unsaturated) can be good for you.To put this into perspective, think of the oil in olives. Nuts like olive oil, play a part in lowering cholesterol.Of course, since nuts are high in fat, they are also high in calories, so I´m not saying start eating pounds of pistachios every day, but incorporate them in moderation into your diet, and enjoy.
This easy to make salad is a cracker, as a side order, a great picnic box filler, but also as a great springboard for combining with other ingredients such as salmon to make a more substantial meal.The saltiness of the nuts and the simplicity of the salad and its fresh zingy dressing doesn´t allow it much time on the plate before being devoured in its entirety.Well not in our house any way. As an alternative, if you want to go for haute presentation the nuts can be placed around the rim of the plate as an edible decoration.I served it this weekend as a companion to a light lunch of Pinchos Morunos.


Green bean salad with Coriander and Soy- glazed almonds
serves 4

1/3 cup Marcona almonds ( about 50g / 1.5 ounces )
4 teaspoons Soya sauce
500g green beans trimmed, cut into short pieces
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large garlic clove pressed
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
2 tablespoons thinly sliced spring onions 
1/3 cup fresh coriander leaves 


Put the almonds in a small non-stick frying pan.Stir over a medium heat until the almonds are lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.Increase the heat to medium high. Add 3 teaspoons of the soya sauce and stir until soya sauce has evaporated and coated the almonds, about 1 minute.Set aside and cool.
Cook the beans in a large pan of salted boiling water until just tender about 5 minutes.rinse well under cold water and drain well.
Whisk the oil and vinegar, garlic, ginger and the remaining teaspoon of soya sauce in a large bowl. Add the beans and toss to coat. season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the spring onions coriander and almonds over the salad and serve.


PANTRY POINTER: The almonds and beans can be prepared up to 6 hours in advance.Cover the almonds and store at room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the beans; return to room temperature before serving.