Lowfat alternatives, sweet or savory, to toasted nuts

[The Dairy Queen]

So, I'm starting to explore some more vegetarian-based cookbooks to expand my repertoire for cooking vegetable. I notice often these cookbooks use toasted nuts sprinkled on top as their protein. Since I'm usually serving these vegetable dishes as a side toa small amount of meat or tofu protein anyway, I'd like to substitute something else, lower-fat, crunchy for the nuts. I know the health benefits of the oils in nuts, etc., but, as you probably already know right now, I'm trying to lose weight and nuts cut into my precious available "discretionary" calories that I'd rather put towards say, a glass of wine.

I thought recently I saw a recipe for toasted garbanzo beans, but I can't now remember where I saw it. Would that be a good alternative? Anyone have a recipe for that or anything else that might be a good fit here?

Thank you!

~TDQ

[im_nomad]

there really is no substitue for the taste and texture of a nut, I too am dieting, but use half ounce quantities and chop them fine or what not.

That being said, for crunch....you could try wasabi peas (or the un-wasabied variety), toasted chickpeas, soy nuts....or for sweet, i recently found a container for maple toasted flax seeds, and i stir those into my yogurt. I've also heard people talk about hemp seed for the same thing.

[Rick]

Nomad, just so you're aware, flax seed needs to be ground in order to have any benefit. I didn't know that when I first bought flax seed . . .

[chowser]

Also keeping in mind that while flax seed is great for you and has healthy oils (as do nuts), they, like nuts, are high in calories.

[Tay]

I'd have to agree with nomad..
The dietary benefit of nuts,not to mention their unique taste./texture, makes their caloric value well worth the investment. and (sorry) A better 'value' than wine. :-}

[maplesugar]

EDIT: Sorry

[The Dairy Queen]

Thanks folks. I appreciate that your choices might be different than mine. Wine was just a for instance--I could go into the long list of preferences for the reasons why the different people in my household crave the things they do and would prefer to spend their precious few discretionary calories on those things rather than on nuts right now. Maybe it's a shaving of cheese or a dab of butter or a bite of chocolate and so on. Or, maybe it's because I want to participate in Cookbook of the Month and the particular cookbook chosen this month is a celebration of all thing fatty and delicious and I'm reserving my discretionary calories for a bite of one of the recipe I've prepared out of that cookbook.

Trust me, my diet is full of of "non-empty" calories. For about five months I've eaten almost exclusively poutry, fish, tofu and lean meats; fresh fruits and vegetables; legumes and whole grains; and low-fat dairy; and just a bit of olive or canola oil every day, along with lots of water. If you want to get a sense of what I've been eating, you can follow this thread. http://www.chowhound.com/topics/473398

I don't mean to be crabby or ungrateful for your insights and suggestions, but occasionally, I need a bite of something to meet a craving so I don't feel deprived. Or, occasionally, I find myself in a social situation where I help myself to a small slice of cake to help someone celebrate a birthday or marriage and I have to spend my calories on those things, not nuts.

But, this isn't a thread on "do you prefer nuts to wine or anything else", this is a thread on helping me find alternatives to nuts. I do appreciate your own insights, but my reasons are my reasons.

~TDQ

[hannaone]

To get a nutty flavor and some crunch try toasted rice.
Put some uncooked white rice in a pan over high heat (with no oil) and do the "popcorn" shake until the rice is a nice golden brown.
Transfer to mortar and lightly crush with pestle (or pulse in a grinder).
EDIT:
Some of the rice kernals will "pop" almost like popcorn, although they won't swell nearly so much, so you may want to have a cover.
If using the mortar and pestle, crush the rice, don't pound it or you will have a mess on your hands.

[Emme]

You might try dry roasted edamames - protein, crunch, and yumminess.

Also, different flavor, but for crunch factor, there are also sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds

[Emme]

one more thought... black beluga lentils are great and crispy after being pan toasted!

[chowser]

For sweet, you could do oatmeal or quinoa flakes as a streusel type topping. But, I've only seen that w/ butter or some type of fat.

I also love roasted chestnuts on things. Out of season, you can buy bags of them, vacuum sealed, in most asian grocery stores (even our Safeway carries them).

http://www.lesliebeck.com/ingredient_...

[modthyrth]

http://www.healthdiscovery.net/forums...

There's a link to a thread on roasting chickpeas for a great core snack.

I'm intrigued by the toasted rice idea--time to experiment!

[rose water]

The one chick pea recipe I've used was from Sunday Suppers (I recall that you have that on the way, no?) and called for frying, so I imagine that may be out for you. They were crispy and lovely to munch on though...

What about flax seeds? Dunno about their fat content. They'd provide the crunch, but not the flavor, alas. Good luck!

[soypower]

this might sound a little weird, but you can get bags of roasted barley and roasted corn (like cornnuts without the oil and sodium) in korean/asian markets which are normally used for making tea...i don't seem to have any corn tea on hand, but i tried a piece of roasted barley and it had a nice, nutty crunch to it...i think the roasted corn tea would be even better for a crunchy, nutty topping...

here's what the corn tea looks like:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oksusu_cha

and here's what the roasted barley looks like:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mugicha

and you can always make yourself a nice cup of tea as well...:o

)

also, i like to toast cheerios in a little bit of butter or olive oil...and i think you could probably get that sweet, crunchy taste from honey nut cheerios...

[alkapal]

soypower, fascinating to read the health benefits of the mugicha, too! thanks.

[beetlebug]

I don't know if this would be a good alternative to nuts on a dish. But, it is a satisfying snack. It seems to be healthy and it is tasty.

19 oz can of chickpeas (drained, rinsed and patted dry)

Spices (I fudge with what's handy)

cayenne pepper
garlic powder
dried oregano
kosher salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Place dried chickpeas on a cookie tray.

Spray with olive oil.

Bake for about 40 minutes, shaking occasionally.

They are finished when the chickpeas are dried out and crunchy.

Pour into a bowl and add the spices.

Stir and eat.

[Caitlin McGrath]

Here's a thread that has a bunch of ideas for making/seasoning roasted chickpeas: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/503492

[The Dairy Queen]

Thank you for that, Caitlin--I wonder if that's what I was thinking about when I thought I'd read something somewhere about roasted chickpeas? Hard to say, but thank you for linking it.

Thank you, everyone, for some terrific suggestions in this thread. Lots of fun ideas for me to experiment with!

~TDQ

[karykat]

Did anyone suggest bread crumbs? Or panko? Not sure how that would work but seems like it might.

[relizabeth]

Sometimes I toast some mung daal in a little olive oil/ pan sprayed with olive oil and salt and then sprinkle on Indian-y recipes. They have a very satisfying crunch.

We eat a lot of fruit crumbles in our house (good use for the apples from our fruit box that are kinda mealy). I toss the sliced fruit with a teaspoon of sugar (for about 3 apples) a pinch of salt, spray with my olive oil spray, and top with oats mixed with a pinch of salt and sprayed with more spray. Not as yums as one with a buttery nutty topping but v.g. when I need something sweet after dinner.

[4Snisl]

How about toasted wheat germ? Has a slightly nutty flavor and still has some fat, but not as much as nuts.
For a sweet version of crunch, Kashi Go Lean Crunch is incredibly crunchy....not necessarily for your savory dishes, but I like it instead of typical granolas for topping yogurt, adding to homemade snack mix, etc.

Just to break it down....

Dry roasted almonds (just picked a random nut)
170 kcal/oz
15 g fat/oz
http://www.calorieking.com/foods/calories-in-nuts-almonds-dry-roasted-no-salt-added_f-Y2lkPTIzMjExJmJpZD0xJmZpZD02MjYzNCZlaWQ9MjYwMTY5NTYwJnBvcz0yJnBhcj0ma2V5PWFsbW9uZHM.html

Wheat germ
108 kcal/oz
3 g fat/oz
http://www.calorieking.com/foods/calories-in-grains-wheat-germ-toasted_f-Y2lkPTEzNjQwJmJpZD0xJmZpZD02ODI0NyZlaWQ9MjYwMTczMDk4JnBvcz0xJnBhcj0ma2V5PXRvYXN0ZWQgd2hlYXQgZ2VybQ.html

Kashi Go Lean Crunch
about 95 kcal/oz
1.5 g fat/oz
http://store.kashi.com/golean_crunch....

Hope this helps! The caloric savings may not be that great if you're using a really small portion, but every bit helps, right?

ETA: Link to Calorie King website defaults serving portion to a standard serving, but you can easily adjust in right-hand field to a portion that you'd typically eat.

[alkapal]

i love, love, love kashi go lean crunch with honey, almond and flax seed! definitely a treat "crunch".