by Blue Diamond has been selling almond-related products for years including a wide variety of flavored almonds that are perfect for snacking. I had previously tried the Bold varieties and rather enjoyed those, and I recently noticed them advertising the new “Xtreme” flavors. It took me a while to track them down, but these offer a good addition to the Blue Diamond’s snack collection with a nice kick of heat.
On their website, these are referred to as “not for the faint of tongue” and come in three flavors: Cayenne, Ghost Pepper, and Carolina Reaper. On the cans, there are four levels of flame indicating the hotness of the almonds. Cayenne comes in at two out of four flames, Ghost Pepper is three out of four, and Carolina Reaper is (you guessed it) four out of four. The first of these that I was able to locate was the Cayenne flavor which you can buy by the can from Amazon.com. Then I found both that and the Ghost Pepper flavor at Target (the latter is now available by the can on Amazon as well). Have not located the Carolina Reaper almonds in the store yet, but will continue to keep an eye out for those.
The Cayenne Pepper flavored almonds deliver a nice kick from the featured chili along with some smokiness and a bit of sweetness as well. These also have a pretty strong onion flavor, almost to a fault. The spicy flavors come through first, but the nuts finish off with that onion taste and it lingers. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, and if you like onion-flavored snacks you should enjoy these, but I would prefer they tone that down a bit. It’s not a deal-breaker, though. As far as the spice level, I would put these at a medium heat, or maybe a touch higher. They have a good kick that lingers for a bit, but they won’t set your mouth on fire.
The Ghost Pepper nuts have a similar taste, though without the heavy onion overtones. They have noticeably more tang that comes from the tomato powder and a bit more sweetness (sugar is higher up on the ingredients) and they still have that nice smokiness. Of the two flavors I tried, I definitely prefer this one and it packs a little more heat as well. I would say that it is approaching the hot level, though still nothing that will send you running for a fire extinguisher. I look forward to trying the Carolina Reaper almonds when I find them as I expect those to deliver even more of a burn.
Blue Diamond also has the Bold line of flavors which include Sriracha, Sweet Thai Chili, Habanero BBQ, and Wasabi & Soy. None of the three that feature chili peppers pack much heat, but they are all quite tasty. My favorite of that group, though, is the Wasabi & Soy (and the classic Smokehouse flavor is what put them on the map). The company advertises their almonds as “smart snacking”, and the nuts do have health benefits as well as plenty of good nutrients. But go easy on the portions as one serving packs in 170 calories and 15 grams of fat. Seeing as these are quite addictive, it is easy to go beyond that single serving when you get to munching on these almonds.
Blue Diamond products are widely available in grocery stores, but the Xtremes have not become a staple on shelves just yet. As mentioned above, I had trouble locating these, and it was a couple of months or more after I heard about them before I was able to purchase a can. My local Super Target had the Cayenne and Ghost Pepper in stock on my latest visit, but no sign of the Carolina Reaper. So far the only option I see for that latter flavor is to buy it in bulk. I do expect it will hit the shelves at some point, though, and I do recommend this for some enjoyable spicy snacking!
Tale of the Tape:
Cayenne Pepper
Ingredients: Almonds, cayenne and onion seasoning (onion powder, salt, chile peppers (including cayenne & habanero), sugar, extractives of paprika and annatto (for color), extractive of spice), vegetable oil (almond, canola and/or safflower).
Serving Size: 28 nuts (1 oz)
Calories: 170
Fat: 15g (1g Sat/0 Trans)
Protein: 6g
Carbs: 5g
Sodium: 140mg
Ghost Pepper
Ingredients: Almonds, ghost pepper seasoning (salt, spice, sugar, paprika, tomato powder, onion powder, yeast extract, citric acid, natural flavor (including extractives of ghost pepper), maltodextrin, extractives of paprika, vinegar solids, beet juice concentrate, extractives of annatto, vegetable oil (almond, canola and/or safflower).
Serving Size: 28 nuts (1 oz)
Calories: 170
Fat: 15g (1g Sat/0 Trans)
Protein: 6g
Carbs: 5g
Sodium: 140mg
