Spring means green almonds. Now is the time to enjoy this culinary novelty raw or cooked, in salads, pasta, stews and pickles. I have been playing around with green almonds for decades. (Please read more about green almonds here.)

Here’s a quick refresher and some easy ways with green almonds. Right after almond trees bloom in February and March, their small green buds form. From March through May, the buds grow into plump green pods. By summer, the pod browns, a shell forms with the nut inside. In countries and regions where almond trees grow, people have found ways to celebrate the season by eating the early green almond buds, commonly referred to as green almonds.

This season I have been enjoying early green almonds in some simple preparations. Thanks, as always, to my friends at Stewart and Jasper, who send me green almonds to play with in our kitchen. This is where you can buy them to experiment with in your own kitchen.

Eating whole green almonds with charcuterie and cheese such as this sliced Italian prosciutto is customary. The whole green almond is sour and crunchy, a nice contrast with the salty ham. We also cut them open to eat just the kernel. It is bright, fresh taste reminds me of a cucumber.

Here I’ve shaved green almonds over thin slices of jambon de Bayonne, a type of French prosciutto. I also enjoy them shaved over greens in a salad.

Think of dishes where you like something fresh and crunchy. And slightly sour too. Garlicky spaghetti aglio oglio or spinach ravioli are great foils for green almonds because their tartness contrasts with the richness of the olive oil. The other day, I cooked spinach ravioli for two. While the ravioli was cooking,  I melted four tablespoons of butter with grated zest of a lemon. I tossed the cooked ravioli with the butter and slices of green almonds. Plus lots of black pepper and grated Parmesan cheese.

The sliced green almonds add a texture and a bright flavor contrast to the tender pasta.

Hope you’re intrigued!

Kitchen Notebook

The season for green almonds is short.  It lasts from March until June. Almond growers talk about the three stages of the green almond pod. Mid-April, as I write, ends Stage One, when the buds are super tender. We’re entering Stage Two when you can still eat the whole green bud but it will be firmer. You can cook whole Stage One and Stage Two green almonds too. Stage Three means the green pod will probably be too tough to eat.  But you will discover a tiny edible almond inside. That’s what I call fresh almonds. They have a delicate texture and mild flavor.

Stewart and Jasper, almond, nut and stone fruit growers in California are selling green almonds from their web site. Jason Jasper, as he has generously done for many years, sent me these green almonds to enjoy. He knows my mania for them.