Almond-Cranberry Corn Bread

Nut meals can replace up to one-fourth the all-purpose flour in baked goods. Almond meal's hearty texture works well in corn bread. Look for it at health food stores or from Bob's Red Mill (www.bobsredmill.com), or place about 1 cup blanched almonds in a food processor; process until finely ground. If you don't have a cast-iron skillet, you can also bake the bread at 400° in an 8-inch round cake pan for 16 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 1 wedge)

Ingredients

• 3  ounces  all-purpose flour (about 2/3 cup)
• 2/3  cup  yellow cornmeal
• 2/3  cup  almond meal
• 1/3  cup  sugar
• 1  teaspoon  baking powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  canola oil
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  sliced almonds
• 3/4  cup  fat-free buttermilk
• 1/2  cup  dried cranberries
• 2  large egg whites
• Cooking spray

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl.

3. Heat oil in a small skillet over high heat. Add almonds to pan; cook 2 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring frequently. Strain oil through a fine sieve into flour mixture. Set aside 1 tablespoon almonds. Add remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons almonds to flour mixture. Combine buttermilk, dried cranberries, and egg whites, and add to flour mixture, stirring until well blended.

4. Spoon batter into an 8-inch cast-iron skillet coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle reserved 1 tablespoon toasted almonds over top of batter. Bake bread at 400° for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

149 (0.0% from fat)

Fat:

5.4g (sat 0.4g,mono 3.3g,poly 1.4g)

Protein:

4g

Carbohydrate:

21.9g

Fiber:

1.9g

Cholesterol:

0.0mg

Iron:

0.5mg

Sodium:

218mg

Calcium:

45mg