Cooking Hints and Tips   

Nuts

Fresh nuts have glossy shells and should not rattle when shaken. They are easily shelled and free of the bitter taste common to stale nuts. Toasting nuts not only gives them a pleasing golden color but also intensifies their flavor and adds crunch. Shelling chestnuts: cut a slit in the flat side of the nut, cover with water and boil 10 minutes Use a paring knife to pry off the shell and membrane. To toast nuts, place about 1 cup (pine nuts, almonds, pecans, sesame seeds) in a pie pan and bake in a preheated 325 degree oven, turning occasionally, until nuts are golden brown (about 10 minutes). Do not burn! To toast nuts, place them in a medium skillet over medium heat. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often, until lightly browned. Cool before using. Nuts are likely to discolor and become bitter when frozen in a salad mixture. To chop nuts use a chef's knife. Holding down the tip end of knife, cut back and forth across nut halves until nuts are chopped to the size desired. To blanch almonds, drop shelled nuts into boiling water, remove pan from heat and let stand for 2 minutes. Drain and peel off the skins. If you are cracking nuts and shells get mixed in with the meats, place it all into a bowl of water. The shells will float and the nut meats will sink to the bottom of the bowl. To make Brazil Nuts easier to shell, store them in the freezer before using. Pecans have a high fat content and will become rancid if not stored properly. Once shelled, pecans will last up to 4 months in the refrigerator and up to 8 months in the freezer. Like pecans, Cashews have a high fat content and will become rancid if not stored properly. Cashews will last up to 24 months in the refrigerator. Immerse coconut in water for 1/2 an hour to remove its husk. Almonds are good for you; 1 cup of them contains more calcium than 1 cup of skim milk. They are high in fiber too. To toast sesame seeds: sprinkle a thin layer of sesame seeds in a skillet and shake or stir over low heat until they are a toasty golden color. To toast hazelnuts, spread in a single layer in a shallow baking pan. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until toasted, stirring occasionally. To remove hazelnut skins, place warm, toasted nuts on a clean kitchen towel. Fold the towel over the nuts and rub to remove the skins. When shopping for shelled walnuts, try to buy walnut halves. The larger the pieces the better control you will have over their use in a recipe. Coarsely chopped walnut pieces are often too small to pick up on a fork, a factor that is important when adding them to salads. If you buy walnuts in the shell, as a treat you may heat them in the shell in a low oven (about 250° F until fragrant) and serve them with fruit and cheese. Nuts can become rancid if kept in the pantry for too long. Store walnuts in the freezer for up to a year, so there is no fear of them going bad. They may also be kept in the refrigerator. Just keep them away from heat even if you plan to use them quickly. Before using walnuts in a recipe, especially if they have been frozen or refrigerated, spread them on a baking sheet and toast them in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes, until you can smell them. The toasting revitalizes the dormant nut oils, releases the nuts' wonderful aroma and gives them extra crunch. One ounce of walnuts, about 14 walnuts halves, contains 190 calories, 4 grams protein, 2 grams fiber, 0 cholesterol, 1.5 grams saturated fat, 2.5 grams monounsaturated and 13 grams polyunsaturated fat. Do your walnuts break into tiny pieces when you crack the nuts with a nutcracker? The best way to keep halves intact is to use a hammer. Stand the walnut on its pointy end and gently strike the top of the flat end on one half, perpendicular to the seam. Insert a knife into the seam and carefully work it around the nut to pull apart the shell. Store nuts in the freezer to retain their freshness. Nut Storage Hints Walnuts: Store shelled nuts in the refrigerator on the upper shelf will last about a year. Frozen walnuts will be good up to two years. If shelling your own, remove the papery section that is between the two halves-it's bitter. Pecans: Pecans absorb odors from food--store in airtight containers. Shelled pecans will last about 9 months in the refrigerator and up to 2 years frozen. You can also use them and refreeze without losing taste. In the shell they will keep in a cool, dry location for six to 12 months. Almonds: Shelled almonds should be stored in airtight containers in the freezer or refrigerator if not used in a couple of days. Freeze them for a year. You can toast them over medium heat in a heavy, ungreased skillet. Stir the almonds until they become golden brown. Hazelnuts: Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 year for the freezer for 2 years in airtight containers. To roast hazelnuts, spread the nuts in a shallow pan and bake in a 275 degree F. oven for 20-30 minutes, or until the skins crack. To remove the skins, rub with a textured rough cloth. Brazil Nuts: These aren't as commonly used as many of the other nuts, but they can be sliced, chopped, or ground and used in cookies, cakes, salads or stuffings. They can also replace macadamia nuts in recipes! Cashews: They spoil quickly at room temperature. Store them in the refrigerator in sealed containers for up to six months or in the freezer for a year. About Nut Butters Almond Butter Almond butter is grittier and more expensive than peanut butter, but it can substitute for peanut butter in many recipes. To make your own: Process two cups of blanched and toasted whole almonds in a food processor for a few minutes, add up to one teaspoon of salt, then process for a few minutes more. Yields a bit more than one cup. Substitutes: peanut butter OR cashew butter Cashew Butter This is an interesting alternative to peanut butter, though it's a bit pricey. To make your own: Blend in food processor two cups roasted cashews plus one to two tablespoons vegetable oil. Store it in the refrigerator. Substitutes: peanut butter OR almond butter Chestnut Cream (Crème de Marron) This is made with puréed chestnuts, brown sugar, and vanilla. It's used as an ingredient in several desserts, including Mont Blanc. Refrigerate after opening. Chestnut Purée (Purée de Marron) Europeans use this to make everything from soups to stuffings to desserts. You can buy it either sweetened or unsweetened. If you're not sure which one your recipe is calling for, get unsweetened purée and add sugar later if needed. To make your own: Simmer shelled and peeled chestnuts in milk or water over low heat for an hour (adding more liquid as necessary), then purée and press through a sieve. Hazelnut Butter This is similar to peanut butter, only it's made with roasted hazelnuts. To make your own: Combine one cup roasted and skinned hazelnuts and one or two tablespoons vegetable oil and salt and sugar to taste in a food processor or blender and mix until it has a spreadable consistency. Substitutes: chocolate-hazelnut spread Hazelnut Paste (Pasta Nocciola) This is used as a filling in candies and baked goods. Look for it in specialty shops or Middle Eastern markets. To make your own: Coarsely chop one pound roasted hazelnuts. In a food processor or blender, finely grind about 1/3 of the nuts at a time, until mealy. Add egg whites from 3 large eggs, 2 cups powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons hazelnut liqueur. Blend until paste forms. Wrap and store in a covered container, up to 2 weeks. Makes 2-3 cups. Substitutes: chocolate-hazelnut spread Nut Butter (Nut Spread) If you mix roasted nuts, vegetable oil, salt, and maybe some sugar in a blender or food processor for awhile, you'll get a smooth, spreadable paste called nut butter. Nut butters can be spread on bread or crackers, blended into savory sauces, or teamed up with chocolate to make desserts. Substitutes: hummus (as a spread) OR cream cheese (as a spread) Peanut Butter (Peanut Paste) High in protein and low in cost, peanut butter is a sandwich staple. It's often teamed with jelly, but honey, bananas, onions, and even pickles work well too. Natural peanut butter is made simply of peanuts, oil, and sometimes salt. It's not very popular with consumers, though, since it needs to be refrigerated after opening, and the oil tends to separate and rise to the top. Most shoppers turn instead to commercial peanut butters, which don't need to be refrigerated and don't separate. Unfortunately, these products are made with hydrogenated oils, which are bad for you. Since many people are allergic to peanuts, it's important to alert guests if you're serving something that's made with peanut butter. To make your own: Blend in food processor two cups roasted peanuts plus one to two tablespoons peanut oil. Store it in the refrigerator. Substitutes: cashew butter OR almond butter OR sesame paste (in savory Asian dishes) OR hummus OR chocolate-hazelnut spread Q Is it true that nuts are good for you, especially for your heart? A Yes, scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. According to the Food and Drug Administration, the nuts eligible for this recently approved health claim include: almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts and peanuts.

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