April is National Pecan Month and to celebrate we're dishing up some of our favorite pecan snack recipes along with a few fun facts about the only nut indigenous to North America.

As a matter of fact pecans make a naturally nutritious snack. Pecans are certified as heart healthy as a part of the American Heart Association's Heart-Check program. Just a handful a day of pecans can help to lower cholesterol and contains more than 19 vitamins and minerals.

Add a little kick of spice to your handful-a-day with this Peppy Pecans recipe. You can find the full recipe and directions here along with a step-by-step video here.

There's more to pecans than pie though. Pecan pie cracks the list of comfort food classics, but with a little twist this tasty treat gets a modern makeover.

Make pecan pie portable with this recipe from Stacey Little. Take the traditional pecan pie ingredients, make sure you have some vegetable oil for frying and powdered sugar to top it off and that's it. Find the full recipe for Deep Fried Pecan Pie and directions at SouthernBite.com.

On growing up around pecans, Little says, "as a Southerner, pecans are an important part of many recipes. Some of my earliest memories were picking up pecans in the front yard of my grandparent's house."

Pecans have always been a staple southern comfort food, but if you're not lucky enough to have a pecan tree in your yard, make sure to look for plump pecans that are uniform in color and size. If you're buying shelled pecans, they're best stored in the freezer where they'll last for up to two years!