Chef Hayden Groves to Launch Macadamia Trail Mix Bar for National Nut Day on the 22nd October!

Nuts are good for you. Fact. Loaded with antioxidants and heart positive monounsaturated fats, they are key to a sustainable healthy lifestyle and a great source of fibre and protein. Hayden Groves, former National Chef of The Year, cycling fanatic and published author is working with Nutcellars to produce a raw macadamia Trail Mix bar with figs, dates and cacao.

It’s National Nut Day today (22) October. Bedford based macadamia nut suppliers, Nutcellars and multi variety nut importer, Liberation Foods are joining forces to launch the ‘Go Nuts For Nuts’ campaign to encourage more chefs and consumers to incorporate more nuts into their menus and diets.

Former National Chef of the Year, Hayden Groves is backing the campaign as nuts are a very important part of his diet as an accomplished cyclist who has not only completed the 3 Tours Challenge, cycling over 6500 miles over a gruelling three tours: Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana.

Hayden wholeheartedly accepted the challenge to create a trail mix bar showcasing macadamia that consumers can make at home, perfect for a snack before, during or after exercise or for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up.

Hayden used Nutcellars whole macadamia nuts and crunchy macadamia nut butter to create a delicious trail mix bar that he believes would be an ideal snack to give a healthy energy boost whenever required!

Hayden said

“I love using Nuts in my recipes, not just a fantastic source of Protein, vitamin E, omega 3 and 6, and essential minerals and fibre but they are truly delicious too.   I’ve used 3 different types in my recipe and the star of the show is the Macadamia which features in two forms; Nutcellars luxurious crunchy nut butter and generous whole macadamia nuts that really give a lovely texture through the bar. The addition of cocoa and coffee add a touch of bitterness to counteract the natural sweetness of the dried fruit. “

Hayden further experimented with a version that would be quite at home on any coffee shop counter as the perfect accompaniment to a coffee break, he added

“You can elevate this bar further for a café offering by rolling the mix a little thinner and topping with a salted peanut brittle for even more texture and variation.”

Dan Binks, Managing Director at Liberation Foods, the first Fairtrade nut company in UK, sources its Brazil nuts, cashews and peanuts from cooperatives in Nicaragua, Bolivia, Kerala, Malawi and Mozambique, said

“Its high-time we championed the deliciousness and versatility of nuts. I’m delighted that Hayden has used our Brazil nuts in his trail mix bar. Nuts make a great snack that is also very good for you and its great to be working with Hayden and Nutcellars macadamia to shine the spotlight on such a wonderful food item with its own special day!”

Andrew Emmott, Managing Director of Nutcellars concluded

“Having been involved with Liberation Foods since its inception we are thrilled to be working together on this “go nuts for nuts campaign” in the lead up to National Nut Day.  Working with smallholder nut farmers and gatherers, Liberation and Nutcellars are keen to highlight the fantastic provenance of our macadamia and versatility of our crunchy nut butter.  This fantastic trail mix bar really does them justice! “

Nutcellars plan to add Hayden’s bar to its extensive range of delicious macadamia nut products and are delighted with his recipe which is currently available here.

The potential health benefits of nuts must also be addressed. For the first time in a generation we have urgent dietary recommendations via the National Food Strategy. The strategy looks to an imminent EU exit whilst keeping a firm eye on the big issue of obesity in a COVID world. The main topic of the document focuses on ensuring children receive a diet rich with nourishment for the development of their physical and mental wellbeing. Given that research has shown that tree nuts lower cholesterol and blood sugar levels whilst improving metabolism rates they must be an integral part of the diet in meals or as a healthy snack. This is without the added bonus of being rich in tocotrienols – a form of Vitamin E – which may help protect from brain disease and certain cancers.

It’s not just Nutcellars’ Macadamia; there are smallholders and gatherers all over the world who would benefit from us using nuts more frequently as a balanced diet. Liberation Foods import Cashews from Kerala and Mozambique, Amazon nuts from the forests of Bolivia, Peru and Brazil, peanuts from Malawi and Nicaragua: each with their own wonderful characteristics that deserve to be a regular part of everyday life. We’d love to hear from you about how you are using nuts in your kitchen and diets. It’s time we all went nuts for nuts!

#gonutsfornuts