Photo: Jennifer Iserloh.

Tamari almonds make their way into my banana-nut breakfast smoothie as they add a hint of saltiness against the sweetness of really ripe bananas. But as unexpectedly good as they may taste, I was in for another shocker: As I recently reviewed my grocery bill, I realized that those tamari almonds were almost $2 a bag!

Since I had a bottle of low-sodium tamari taking up space in the cupboard, I shopped for the plain, raw almonds with the skins on and tried my hand at homemade tamari almonds.

Almonds are touted as the most diet-friendly nut because they are both high in protein and heart-friendly, due to high levels of monounsaturated fat that makes them very filling. While they are high in fat, they are one of the few foods that are high in the "healthy" fat or, more scientifically, monounsaturated fat. So, like olive oil and avocados, almonds have been proven to help stave off heart disease and diabetes and to help lower bad cholesterol.

They are also high in vitamin E and magnesium, which improves blood flow and is crucial for healthy hearts. Keep the skin on to get double the amount of antioxidants compared to the blanched variety.

Tamari Almonds

5 cups whole almonds with skin (or two 12-ounce bags)
1/2 cup reduced-sodium tamari soy sauce
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
Pinch of granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Place the almonds in a large bowl along with the tamari, Worcestershire and sugar. Toss until well coated. Spread the almonds out on two baking sheets with sides.

Bake almonds, stirring the almonds a few times throughout baking, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool almonds completely on pans then transfer to an airtight container.

Learn more about Jennifer at skinnychef.com, and read her exclusive Slashfood blogs every Monday and Friday.