By Elizabeth Bonner
With 15 years in medical sales behind her and her young family’s future ahead, Jaime Foster was growing weary of work life on the road. “I wanted to find something that captured my spirit, my interests, and make a business out of it,” she recalls.
Jaime and her husband, Harry, share a passion for cooking and entertaining, which helped them decide on the food industry. An almond-butter recipe passed down through the generations proved the perfect family-defining focal point for their business, and in 2012, Georgia Grinders Premium Nut Butters was born.
Jaime’s grandfather Jim Hinsdale began honing his almond butter recipe in the ’70s, and at age 96, he is still making this simple yet satisfying recipe. It requires non-GMO almonds—hand-selected for their superior quality, slow roasted, and ground—and a finishing touch of natural sea salt.
Grandpa Hinsdale’s recipe became Georgia Grinders’ original almond butter, but they also adapted his formula to include flavors such as honey-roasted, maple-caramel, and salt-free. This year, they introduced peanut and cashew butters, and other selections are in the works.
Jaime hopes to make the value of nut butter known beyond its traditional role as a sandwich spread. “I love talking about everything we can do with nut butters—making sauces, different smoothies, ice cream, and appetizers. It’s endless,” Jaime says. In this web exclusive, Georgia Grinders shares two of its innovative and tasty recipes—Peanut Butter Ice Cream and Orzo and Vegetable Salad with Garlic Basil Cashew Butter.
Customers can visit the company’s website for more recipes and to purchase any of their nut butter varieties. Products are also sold through The Fresh Market and other specialty stores.
Get the recipes for Georgia Grinders’ Orzo and Vegetable Salad with Garlic Basil Cashew Butter and Peanut Butter Ice Cream.
- SALAD
- 4 cups Cooked Orzo Pasta, chilled
- 1 cup Shredded Carrots
- 1 cup Green Onions, chopped
- 1 cup Yellow Peppers, Julienned
- 1 cup Orange Peppers, Julienned
- 1 cup Red Peppers, Julienned
- 1 ½ cups Kale, Chopped
- 1 cup Zucchini, Julienned
- DRESSING
- ½ jar Georgia Grinders Cashew Butter
- 6 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup Basil, finely chopped
- ¼ to ½ tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
- ¾ cups Chicken Stock
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Mix Orzo with chopped Vegetables until blended throughout.
- Blend Cashew Butter, Garlic, Basil, and Red Pepper Flakes in a blender on medium for 1 minute until all ingredients are blended together. Add ½ cup of Chicken Stock and blend. Depending on desired consistency, add additional Chicken Stock and blend until dressing is creamy.
- Toss Orzo and Vegetables with Dressing until salad is lightly coated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- 4 cups Half and Half Cream
- 3 cups Non-Fat Dry Milk
- 3 cups Milk
- 1 ½ cups Sugar
- 1 12oz jar Georgia Grinders Peanut Butter
- 4 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- Pour the half and half, dry milk, and milk into a large saucepan over low heat. Cook until heated, stirring to dissolve the dry milk.
- Stir in the Peanut Butter and Sugar until smooth and sugar has dissolved. Make sure to stir constantly so mixture does not burn. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Cool mixture and refrigerate until chilled.
- Blend chilled mixture in two batches in a blender for two minutes before pouring into an ice cream maker.
- Freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions. Serves 8-10.