Yes it’s true! I have been going nuts about nuts.
I found a place about two miles from our house that has fresh walnuts and hazelnuts grown on their farm. I bought about 5 pounds of each, and they put them through their cracking machine. Allie and I sorted out all of the nut meats from the shells and had some nice time together. We both agree that separating out hazelnuts is much more fun than walnuts.
Speaking of walnuts, I used to think that I was allergic to them. In the past I’ve had some scary situations where I’ve eaten just a bit of walnuts and my lips, tongue and mouth have swelled up. I was even issued an ‘Epi-pen’ which is a hypodermic needle loaded with epinephrine. Thank goodness I’ve never had to use it.
After reading Nourishing Traditions I suspected that I may not really be allergic to walnuts, but the phytic acid in the raw nuts. These are enzyme inhibitors that don’t allow your body to digest all of the goodness in the nuts that you are eating.
So I soaked some walnuts per Sally’s directions, then I dried them in a warm oven (you can also use a dehydrator). Then, while I was holding the Epi-pen, I smelled the whole batch.
Nothing happened.
Then I took a tiny piece of a walnut and ate it, all the while holding the Epi-pen.
Nothing happened.
That day I ate probably six walnut halves, which were the best tasting nuts I’ve had in a long time. My body was screaming out for those good omega-3′s that are in walnuts.
I still can’t eat walnuts outside of the house, and I still carry my Epi-pen, but now I am so thankful that I can at least have walnuts after soaking and drying them!
I hope you enjoy these nut recipes as much as I did. If you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment. I love hearing your thoughts!
Almond-Coconut milk (& Almond-chocolate milk)
Photo courtesy of mrjorgen on Flickr
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
My husband is convinced he doesn’t like the flavor of walnuts. I’ve been sneaking the “crispy” variety made from freshly-shelled nuts into his foods for a while now and he hasn’t complained. I think perhaps he was objecting to rancid oils in the already-shelled, bagged variety in the store. Side by side, it is easy to tell a difference between the buttery smoothness of a freshly-shelled “crispy” walnut and a bitter, dry pre-processed walnut!
Interesting. I used to react to gluten-containing grains in a similar way, but no longer react to those which have been properly prepared through souring or sprouting. Soaking alone sometimes still gives me trouble.
Jenny… so you soak long enough to sprout? Do you do that with any nuts or just grains?
Peggy… LOL… I commend your sneakiness. I need to work on this. I bet your hubby is sensitive to those off flavors too, that is good that he has the taste buds to say no to rancid foods. I think a lot of us have lost that.
Eh, he still doesn’t have the sensory intelligence to stay away from Mountain Dew, though…
I love the image of you holding your Epi-Pen. But you didn’t have to use it! What a terrific discovery!
Kim, I love that you are doing this blog, thank you! I have been learning to prepare and eat NT food for about 2 years, and it’s so nice to finally find some others to connect with.
Your story about the walnuts and the epi-pen cracked me up. (No pun intended, but a good one anyway!) I have a walnut tree that I finally figured out how to process the nuts from this year (my third try). Oh, they are delicious!! I have had problems with my mouth feeling strange after eating walnuts too, but not with these.
Thanks for the chocolate-almond milk idea too – I’ll have to try it!
I make crispy nuts all of the time. My husband takes a homemade nut mixture with him whenever he leaves the house and muches on them all day long. I use a dehydrator and love the way they make the house smell while they are drying!
Wow, what great information for those with suspected nut allergies! Glad you didn’t have any issues after soaking. And thank you so much for the terrific recipe ideas! We are always looking for new ones to try.