Lots of different styles and combos are possible but overall the terminology is familiar, the ingredients are easy to find and the recipes are simple. After wrapping up for the day, we had a couple of hours to ourselves before heading into town for four course dinner with wine pairings!

The food was delicious and I enjoyed chatting with Wendy Jo , Tina , Amaris , Molly, Angela and Kristi. Just like we had learned about the previous day, we saw the almonds on the tree ready to be harvested and then saw them being shaken from the tree, which was by far the coolest part.

So cool, right? Next we headed to the processing facility where we saw the almonds being sorted, sized and stored. The top photo is a GIANT pile of almond hulls that will eventually be used in cattle feed:.

Most of the sorting is done by machines but there is still some done by hand:. We learned that China is pickiest about the quality of their almonds. They had tons of amazing flavored almonds but the raspberry cheesecake was by far my favorite! Next, we hopped back on the bus and headed to the Almond Board headquarters in Modesto, CA.

We had lunch with the CEO, listened to a little presentation from him and then headed back to the hotel. We had enough of a break that I was able to squeeze in a workout, and then headed to the cocktail hour where I had a long chat with Sharon. I got so excited when I saw she was on the list of attendees!

She also loves Crossfit…so as you can imagine, we had lots to talk about! From there, we headed to our last dinner. It was a whirlwind couple of days, but I had wonderful time, learned a lot and met some great people. Be sure to check out all the people I linked to throughout the post and follow them on twitter for great nutrition, fitness and health advice!

Huge thanks again to The Almond Board for inviting me on the Almond Orchard Experience Tour! Get my free Table Talk email series where I share bite-sized nutrition information about carbs, protein, and fat, plus bonus information about snacks and sugar!

Lindsay Livingston is a Registered Dietitian and new mom from Columbus, Ohio. On her blog, she shares simple, healthy recipes, nutrition tips, workouts and snapshots of her life. Follow her on Twitter LeanGrnBeanBlog and Instagram TheLeanGreenBean and be sure to subscribe via RSS or email so you never miss a post!

Wow that trip and whole experience sounds absolutely incredible! What an awesome trip! I find that super fascinating for some reason. And I thought I knew a lot about almonds before;. Thanks so much for providing so much of the information you learned on the trip!!

as if I needed more reason to love almonds to pieces!!! What an amazing experience that must have been. Such a wealth of information. So so so awesome. I can completely relate with how you felt at first.

you deserve this! wow such an awesome trip and YOU are a superstar so you totally deserved to go! I love love love loved following along on twitter too. I found the whole thing really interesting—and I wasnt even there!! the nutritional value is the same throughout. This sounds silly, but I am absolutely fascinated by the US farming industry.

This is one of my favorite posts you have published! How awesome! You were seriously in my neck of the woods! What a fun experience! AND just another reason why bees are so important — without them, no almonds!

What a cool trip! What a great experience! I love all of the health information and agricultural information you shared about almonds. Sounds like it was a great experience and an informative one at that.

Great recap too, enjoyed reading the different things you were able to do as well as the little tidbits you shared about almonds 🙂. Oh my gosh Lindsay what an awesome experience.

This was such an interesting post…….. so glad you got to go and share with us the experience so we can learn from it as well! I just tried some toasted coconut almonds and absolutely loved them! The flavored ones are really nice…. especially for a picnic with a glass of wine 🙂.

Sounds like an amazing experience and obviously almonds are THE best. Fun that you got to meet some Canadian RDs too… yay for Canadians hehe Certainly lots to learn about almonds had no idea bees were necessary.

Thanks for the story, Lindsay! They really set you up in a swanky hotel room! Love the look of the place. Sounds like it was really fun and informative! Raspberry Cheesecake Almonds?! I was following your whole tour experience..

it was so interesting! I kept tell my friends random facts about almonds, and eventually they were like what the… Eventually I showed them the almonds still on the tree and they were super interested. They looked nothing like I expected them to! Sounds like such an amazing trip.

I was following along with your tweets and I loved it 😀. OMG how cool!!!!! Such a cool sounding experience — thanks for sharing. I learned a lot about almonds. Had no idea they were related to roses. Looks like such an awesome experience!

Glad you had fun! Thanks for all the information about Almonds that I never knew about 🙂. I love the almond-covered Post-It… I wonder RD discovered that at their desk one boring afternoon at work? Raspberry cheesecake almonds?! Holy yum! What an awesome opportunity—almond orchard sounds like heaven!

What an experience! I wish I was invited. It looks like it was fun, educational and very, very yummy! It sounds like an incredible experience. I learned so much from your bullet points about almonds…. who knew they were related to roses?? very interesting!

HOLY CRAP — so much info — who knew!!! Beautiful pics of the grounds! Ummmmm, the raspberry cheesecake almonds!!!! What a weekend! When you subscribe to my newsletter, you will receive e-mails a week filled with news and recipes to make your life healthier and less stressful.

Looks like a fun and informative trip! Does the same go for almond butter? Fingers crossed. Great question. Stay tuned…. I live in San Jose. Do you know of any orchards that one visit on weekends? i did a search and could hardly find one. Caroline is a freelance writer, nutrition communication consultant, and counselor with a holistic approach to healthy living.

Read More…. Skip to primary navigation Skip to main content Skip to primary sidebar Skip to footer Home Welcome! The Almond Orchard Blogger Team. Drying in the sun.

Get my Free E-book: 12 Simple No-Stress Breakfasts! Next Post: Sunday Inspiration: I Can. Comments Looks like a fun and informative trip! Footer About Caroline Caroline is a freelance writer, nutrition communication consultant, and counselor with a holistic approach to healthy living.

How to get involved Australian Almonds would love as many people as possible to participate in this tour. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Share your photos of the almond orchards on your ride and tag australianalmonds using the hashtag almondblossomtour ENJOY THE TOUR!

We look forward to joining you on this exciting adventure and seeing some amazing orchard photos. Latest news. Country roads, shady orchards, gnarled wine vines—these trails, drives, and unique farm tours provide close-up looks at California farms , gorgeous agricultural scenery, and plenty of places to stop and taste the bounty.

Make these detours across the Golden State, listed north to south. Tehama Trail , Tehama County. Follow country roads through picturesque olive groves and vineyards, stopping for wine tasting near Lassen Volcanic National Park , olive and olive oil sampling in Corning , and other farm-fresh foods along the way.

Sierra Oro Farm Trail , Butte County. Yolo County Farm Trail , Yolo County. A drive though this Central Valley region—focusing on the towns of Davis, Woodland, Capay and Esparto—is rich with olives, peaches, and lavender.

Sonoma County Farm Trails , Sebastopol. Take a self-guided tour of artisanal family farms and food producers dotting this celebrated wine region.

Find out where to take a farm tour at places like First Light Farm in Petaluma , or enjoy ultra-local ingredients at Zazu Kitchen and Farm in Sebastopol.

Marin Agricultural Land Trust , Marin County. Join guided tours of farms and ranches north of San Francisco ; learn about artisanal cheese-making, organic farming, and balancing nature with agriculture. Hidden Villa , Los Altos Hills. Fresno County Fruit Trail , Fresno County.

Follow farm roads through shady orchards to dozens of farm stands, local food producers, and friendly Central Valley towns. During the early spring, you can see a rainbow of fruit blossoms and by summer, feast on the peaches, plums, nectarines, and apricots, as well as their resulting pies, jams, and dried fruits.

China Ranch Date Farm , Tecopa. Sounds like such an amazing trip. I was following along with your tweets and I loved it 😀.

OMG how cool!!!!! Such a cool sounding experience — thanks for sharing. I learned a lot about almonds. Had no idea they were related to roses. Looks like such an awesome experience! Glad you had fun! Thanks for all the information about Almonds that I never knew about 🙂.

I love the almond-covered Post-It… I wonder RD discovered that at their desk one boring afternoon at work? Raspberry cheesecake almonds?! Holy yum! What an awesome opportunity—almond orchard sounds like heaven! What an experience! I wish I was invited.

It looks like it was fun, educational and very, very yummy! It sounds like an incredible experience. I learned so much from your bullet points about almonds…. who knew they were related to roses??

very interesting! HOLY CRAP — so much info — who knew!!! Beautiful pics of the grounds! Ummmmm, the raspberry cheesecake almonds!!!! What a weekend! It sounds like you had a fun and informative trip. Great pictures too! This sounds like an amazing tour and an amazing experience.

Who knew almonds could be so interesting!?! Loved reading your recap! Thanks for sharing! What an awesome opportunity!! Thanks so much for sharing, Lindsay 🙂 I am an almond lover through and through and loved all the fun facts!

I LOVED this post! I had never really thought about the behind the scenes of where an almond came from- this is so cool! I need to try those basil pesto almonds! Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Skip to main content Skip to primary sidebar 11 shares. Hi Friends! There was a guy waiting for us with a sign. We had a couple of hours to get settled before dinner so I had a snack and rested for a bit: Then I took a walk!

It was beautiful. A brief overview: Almonds are botanically related to roses. They grow on trees that blossom in the spring. In early March, the petals drop and nutlets push up on the branches where the blooms used to be.

Almond are not self-pollinating. They rely on bees to help them. Without bees, there would be no almonds! Renting bees for the orchard is the single biggest production expense for an almond farmer.

They set up bee boxes in the orchards and release the bees to pollinate the almonds. Most almond farms in CA are small family farms of less than 50 acres. Many farmers grow additional crops, have dairy cows or work full-time jobs in addition to farming almonds.

All of the almonds on a tree are ready for harvest at the same time, when the hull splits open. Farmers us mechanical shakers to remove the almonds from the trees! Almonds have an outer hull and a shell. The hulls are a valuable byproduct of the almonds industry and are primarily used in cattle feed.

Once the shell is removed, the almonds are sorted by size and other buyer specifications. A few things we learned: Up next was a quick snack break! After lunch we heard more about the benefits of almonds as a healthy snack: After wrapping up for the day, we had a couple of hours to ourselves before heading into town for four course dinner with wine pairings!

Wednesday we were up early for a trip to the orchards!