The Hickory Nut, Yum Yum

When I moved to my current home in Kansas I discovered this odd tree.  I had several of them, towering things with broad leaves and ’shaggy’ bark, and they had these nuts in the fall with a four part husk on the outside.  I was intrigued.  I was born and raised in the rather desolate plains of Nebraska, where trees are precious things hardly ever seen as tall as these wonderful towers.  The greatest tree I had ever seen as a young adult was a cotton wood, a majestic tree in its own right.  I set out to put names to the unfamiliar flora around my home and found myself the proud caretaker of several varieties of hickory, most notably the distinctive shag-bark hickory. I had of course heard of hickory.  ‘Hickory smoked’ is often used on packages of various meats, and the wood, I knew, was a hard wood and supposedly was good for axe handles and the like.  The nuts however-I didn’t even know the darn things had nuts!  So I went on an information expedition.  Armed with books from libraries, the Arbor Day foundation website, and the websites of many happy hickory horticulturists, I soon found myself obsessed with this tree.  I have five distinct varieties (there are many varieties, and sub varieties of the tree) and I learned that the elevated pecan was actually a variety of the lowly hickory.  Who knew?  And that they are all part of the walnut family of trees, of which I also have several.  My first year, I cracked a few and collected a few and ate a few, wondering what to do with the wonderful bounty that I found dropping in my back yard.  They were way easier to crack than the black walnuts and I think tastier. After three years they have become a part of my families diet, just as they were for the Native Americans that lived in this area before me. Nutritionally they are a source of vegatable protein and vegatable fat, fiber, magnesium, and thiamine.  

After you pick the nut from the husk float them in a bucket of water.  The ones that float are probably empty or have weevals (not many seem to).   Wash the ones that sink and then let them dry a week to make it easier to shell them. 

  Here’s some of the wonderful, and easy things you can do with this fantastically tasty and healthful nut.  I won’t try to write down all the little recipes I use.  These are easier.  Make sure that no one is in anyway allergic to tree nuts before serving them any yumminess with hickory nuts.  Dead guests are unhappy guests.

Easy as pie:  For those of you who dig baking during the holidays a hickory nut can be used just as a walnut or pecan.  Take your favorite pecan pie recipe and substitute the hickory in the same quantity.  Make it a family experience by letting the children crack and pick out the nuts for the pie. 

Easier than pie:  Add 1/2 cup of shelled nuts to any boxed cake mix.  It adds an unexpected flavor and moistness (the oil from the nut), and you can pretend you’re being healthy.

Adding to the stuffing:  Pop 1/2 cup of shelled nuts into a boxed stuffing mix and get a wonderful surprise.  Add 1/4 a cup of cranberries to that and prepare to be delighted.

Cookie-Any recipe you can find that has nuts, can have hickory nuts as a substitute.  Yumm……

Add them to hot cereal or to pancake and waffle mix.

You can also add them to meat recipes, lentil loaf (a vegetarian entre), or really anything else.  They roast well, cook well and just yummy to crack and eat. 

Experiment and enjoy!

For more: 

How to Make Walnut Ink

A Science Experiment with Pine Cones and Water