Nix nuts and seeds from your no-no list! Eating 1-ounce of nuts (about 1/4 cup) at least five times a week may significantly reduce your risk of developing coronary artery disease, according to many recent studies.
What to avoid
I avoid buying commercially roasted nuts because many companies roast nuts in refined,
often hydrogenated polyunsaturated vegetable oils that can suppress your immune system
and increase your risk of developing a long list of degenerative diseases. Food processors usually use high temperatures that further damage the oil and the nuts. Some companies add salt, sugar, sulfites, and other preservatives that extend the shelf life and stimulate you to eat more of their products. My motto: buy food as close to the way God and mother nature made it as possible. For nuts that means raw––-in the shell or shelled.
Shopping tips for nuts
Look for whole raw nuts or nut halves. Don't buy slivered or crushed nuts and nut pieces because more surface oil exposed means more risk of spoilage. If possible, buy nuts sold in a refrigerated case. There's a store near me that sells them that way and they look and taste fresher than nuts sold at room temperature in other stores. Once home, store all nuts and seeds in the refrigerator or freezer. If they've been out at room temp for 4 to 6 months (2 to 3 months in the summer), I would toss them. They're probably rancid.
Roasting or toasting
I love the rich flavor of nuts that have been dry roasted or toasted. This takes only a few minutes of hands-on prep. It enhances the flavor of nuts and seeds and actually provides nutritional benefits. Cooking actually nactivates substances in raw nuts that can inhibit your digestive enzymes. You don't need to add oil during this process because nuts already derive 70 to 80% of their calories from fat.
How to expertly toast nuts
1. Remove shelled, raw nuts from the refrigerator or freezer. Allow them to stand at room
temperature for at least 1 hour for uniform toasting.
2. Position an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.
3. Spread the nuts in a single layer in a shallow-rimmed baking pan. If toasting more than
one kind of nut, use a separate pan for each variety. Place the pan in the oven and toast
until the nuts become lightly golden and aromatic. This should take 10 to 15 minutes for
large nuts and 5 to 7 minutes for small nuts such as pine nuts. Because the nuts on the
outside of the pan will toast faster than the nuts on the inside, shake the pan or stir 2 or 3
times during cooking.
4. To check remove a nut from the oven after about 10 minutes and cut it
open. Check every few minutes until they turn a light golden brown all the way through.
Watch closely so they don't burn.
5. Wrap walnuts or hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel; rub to loosen the skins, and then
remove the nuts and discard the skins. Allow the nuts to cool before chopping or pulsing
in a food processor or a mini-chopper.
6. Transfer cooled nuts to wide-mouth jars, label and date, then cover and refrigerate. If
possible vacuum seal the nuts in wide mouth quart jars to retain even more freshness. Use
the nuts within 2 to 4 months for the best flavor.
What about soaking and drying nuts?
Many raw foodists soak nuts overnight or longer before eating. However, soaked nuts still contain enzyme inhibitors that can trigger digestive distress and they lack the crispy
texture and roasty flavor of nuts that have been toasted in the oven. Is there a better way?
Absolutely! Sally Fallon, founder of the Weston A. Price Foundation and author of Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbooks that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition, developed the perfect alternative. Her recipe called for drying the nuts on rimmed baking sheets in a warm oven set at no more than 150˚F for 12 to 24 hours.
About 10 or 12 years ago I read Sally's recipe, loved the idea of it, but I didn't want to tie up my
oven for 12 to 24 hours, so I modified her recipe using a food dehydrator. It worked beautifully and I saved energy and still had use of my oven. These nuts taste like they've been toasted but because they're dried at a low temperature–––200˚ lower than conventional recipes–––more of the fragile fatty acids in the nuts remain intact and undamaged.
If you have a large food dehydrator with multiple trays, you can make a double or triple batch of a single kind of nut or make a batch of several kinds of nuts at once, placing each variety of nuts on a different tray during drying. I use an Excalibur Dehydrator, which has a lot of room. I find easy to use and to clean. Before that I used a SnackMaster Food Dehydrator (I wore two of them out!).
Crispy Nuts
Prep: 15 minutes Soaking: 8 to 12 hours Drying: 12 to 24 hours Yield: 4 cups
I love the rich, nutty flavor and crips texture of these soaked nuts dried at a low
temperature. They make a great addition to green salads, chicken or turkey salads, and
fruit salads. They make a great topping (when coarsely chopped) for poached fruit, old
fashioned oatmeal, baked winter squash, roasted sweet potatoes, or steamed or sauteed
carrots. They also taste great served with an apple, banana, or grapes for a snack or dessert.
Note: This is my modification of Sally Fallon's recipe for Crispy Nuts from her book Nourishing Traditions.
FYI: One handful of nuts packs 350 to 400 calories. So go easy if you're not trying to
gain weight or you're trying to lose weight.
Ingredients:
4 cups raw nuts or nut halves, pick one kind:
Almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecan halves, pistachios, or pine nuts
1/2 to 1 tablespoon unrefined sea salt, such as Celti®c, Lima®, or Real Salt® or 1 or 2
tablespoons wheat-free tamari soy sauce
Warm water to dissolve the sea salt + additional water to cover the nuts
1. Place raw nuts in a 2 1/2- to 3-quart glass or stainless steel bowl. Dissolve sea salt in
1/2 cup hot filtered water, then add 3 to 4 cups additional cool or room temperature
water. Stir and pour over nuts. Add more water as needed to cover.
2. Let nuts sit out all day or overnight at room temperature, uncovered or topped with a
bamboo sushi mat, which allows air to circulate. Do not cover the bowl with a lid.
3. Drain nuts in colander (if using large nuts) or a fine mesh strainer (for smaller nuts).
Do not rinse. Spread nuts on food dehydrator trays without overlapping. Dry at 140 to
150˚F for 12 to 24 hours or until crispy.
4. Allow nuts to cool, then transfer to glass jars. Label and date the jars using masking
tape and marking pens. Cover jars and refrigerate or freeze. If you have a Food Saver
and wide-mouth canning jars, you can vacuum-seal the nuts in the jars to retain even
more freshness. Use within four to six months.
Variations:
* Crispy Seeds: Replace nuts in the recipe above with green pumpkin seeds or
sunflower seeds. Prepare as directed above using a fine mesh strainer to drain.
* How to drying: If you do not have a food dehydrator, spread the drained
nuts on rimmed baking sheets at dry in your oven at no more than 150˚ F, stirring
occasionally.
I use a dehydrator also for my crispy nuts. Much easier :)
Posted by: Erica | February 28, 2009 at 03:38 PM
Who sells soaked and then dehydrated nuts?
Posted by: Scott Burch | October 17, 2010 at 08:20 PM