Fisher Nuts and Chef Alex Guarnaschelli Team Up with Great Tips for Cooking With Nuts {Prize Package Giveaway}

Now that the holidays are here, many of us have broken out the roasting pans, filled up the crockpots, and have made an extra tip (or two) to the baking aisle of the grocery store. Does it seem like every time you turn around you have another meal to make, dessert to share, or appetizer to whip up? Or is that just me?

Fortunately, Fisher Nuts has teamed up with Food Network Chef Alex Guarnaschelli, a regular judge on Chopped, to make our holiday cooking a bit easier with some simple twists for cooking with nuts during the season.

As the daughter of esteemed cookbook editor Maria Guarnaschelli, Alex spent her childhood surrounded by food. After years of schooling, work-study, and work as a sous-chef, Chef Alex became an executive chef and opened her own restaurant.

As well as her many national television appearances (The Today Show, CBS Morning Show and The Rachael Ray Show) and written features (The New York Times, Elle, New York, Time Out New York, and People), Chef Alex is a regular judge on the primetime shows Chopped and The Next Iron Chef and is a regular contributor to The Best Thing I Ever Made!

Needless to say, Alex Guarnaschelli knows cooking and her 10 Simple Twists on Cooking with Nuts are great for all of us! A few examples include:

• Crusty Crunch: Use nuts instead of breadcrumbs for added flavor and nutrition. For example, grind some almonds and use them to make a crust for meat or fish.

• No Regret Vinaigrette: Need a new vinaigrette? Roast a handful of nuts (for example, walnuts), and blend them with 3 parts olive oil and 1 part lemon juice.

• Flavorful French Toast: Coat slices of French toast with ground nuts just before browning the slices. This will add great flavor and texture.

• Spruced up Salads: Healthy greens are a great companion to nuts. Try topping a chopped Arugula salad with walnuts or adding pecans to Dandelion greens. Radicchio is delicious with almonds and apples. Using nuts can easily expand your salad horizon.

Yum!

In celebration of Fisher Nuts' partnership with Chef Alex, I was looking forward to trying out their Cooking With Nuts Prize Package to put together something tasty.

It didn't take long to decide that I was going to bake one of my husband's favorite nut-filled dishes, NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Chocolate Chip Pie. We were introduced to this pie by my stepmother years ago and it has been a favorite ever since — it is extremely easy to make and the results are delicious time after time!

NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Chocolate Chip Pie

Ingredients

1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
2 large eggs
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup butter, softened
1 cup NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped walnuts
Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 325° F.

Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in morsels and nuts. Spoon into pie shell.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between edge and center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Delicious! The Fisher Nuts walnuts proved to be crunchy and crisp and were just the right accompaniment to the chocolate and flaky crust of this pie. Even though we didn't have any vanilla ice cream on hand to top it off, it was still amazing bite after bite.

I'm typically not a fan of nuts and chocolate mixed together, but this is one dessert that I can't stay away from!

This holiday season and beyond, be sure to turn to Fisher Nuts for nuts of all kinds, including mixes for snacking and baking. Their commitment to quality and excellence ensures that all of their products are perfect for your favorite brownie recipe, used in a delicious breading, sprinkled across a fresh spring salad, and much more.

You can also head over for inspiration from Chef Alex's recipes and tips for cooking with nuts to make your holiday meals ones to remember. And, thanks to the generosity of Fisher Nuts, one person will be prepared to whip up some of Alex's tasty recipes or create some of their own, because...

One lucky person will win a Cooking With Nuts Prize Pack
from Fisher Nuts!

*Prize pack includes: (1) Wood Cutting Board, (1) OXO Whisk, (1) Food Network Silicone Spatula, (1) Food Network 5-Piece Stainless Steel Measuring Cups set, (1) package Fisher Nuts Naturals Slivered Almonds, (1) package Fisher Nuts Naturals Pecan Halves, and (1) package Fisher Nuts Naturals Walnut Halves & Pieces

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I am working with Fisher to share Chef Alex Guarnaschelli’s recipes and create my own original recipe using Fisher Nuts and tools they provided. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.