Featured Ingredient -- Walnuts

Walnuts are one of the healthiest (and tastiest) foods you can and your family can eat.

Nutritional expert after expert have declared walnuts one of the healthiest foods you can eat. In March 2004, based on 10 years of research supporting the heart health benefits of walnuts, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration jumped on the bandwagon and approved a qualified health claim for walnuts, the first ever for a whole food.

Walnuts high levels of omega-3 fatty acids make them unique among tree nuts and peanuts. Walnuts are the only nut that contain a significant amount of omega-3 fatty acids. No other nut even comes close. Eating a handful of walnuts every day is one small step you can take to protect your heart.

Buying and Storing Walnuts
Fresh walnuts taste and smell sweet and mildly nutty. When walnuts are harvested, handlers keep them in cool, dry storage until they are shipped to retail stores.

Walnut meats naturally come in different shades, from the extra light to darker amber colors. This is part of nature and doesn’t affect quality. You will find dark and light walnuts on the same tree or in the same orchard. In general, commercial bakeries prefer the lighter shades because their appearance is often more desirable. On the other hand, ice cream companies prefer the dark shades because they often have a more intense flavor.

Ninety-nine percent of walnuts grown in the United States are grown in California specifically throughout the Central Valley of California and in Coastal Valleys, from Redding in the north to Bakersfield in the south. California walnuts are also known as English or Persian walnuts.

The black walnut, on the other hand, is a Native American species. Currently the black walnut is used mainly as a rootstock for English walnuts. The meats are tasty, but a lot of work to crack and remove from the shell.

There are over 30 varieties of walnuts grown in California; however, two varieties—Chandler and Hartley—account for nearly 60 percent of total production.

In-shell Walnuts:

• Available in bags or in bulk
  
• Best Seasons – fall and winter
  
• To preserve freshness, crack right before using

Shelled Walnuts:

• Available in bags or in bulk
  
• Sold as halves, halves and pieces, pieces, and chopped, among other forms

Walnut Storage Tips

• Store shelled walnuts in a sealed container in a cool place, with low moisture and away from sunlight. Refrigerator storage is good, but if you have larger quantities, freezer storage is best. Walnuts from opened packages keep well for up to six months when they are cold (refrigerator) stored in sealed containers. Walnuts are good to eat when opened for up to a year when kept in the freezer.
  
• Cold is the walnuts best storage friend. Walnuts go rancid when exposed to warm temperatures for long periods of time. Heat causes the fat in walnuts to change structure, which creates off odors and flavors. Fresh walnuts smell mildly nutty and taste sweet. If your walnuts smell like paint thinner, you know they’re rancid. And if they’re rancid, you should throw them away!
• If you buy walnuts in sealed packages, you can store the walnuts in that original packaging. Once you open the bag, transfer the walnuts to an airtight container to maintain freshness.
• If you buy bulk walnuts, either in-shell or shelled, place the walnuts in an airtight container for long-term cold storage.
  
• When storing walnuts in your refrigerator, store them away from foods with strong odors (e.g. fish, cabbage, onions) as walnuts can absorb the flavors of other foods.
  
• One final tip: Wait to shell or chop walnuts until you’re ready to use them. The same applies for ground walnut meal; don’t grind your walnuts until you’re ready to add the walnut meal to your recipe. This will help maintain great flavor.

More on Walnuts

• Walnuts and Health -- Get the Facts on how walnuts help fight heart disease, cancer, and other aging diseases.
• Toasting and Blanching -- How to Toast and Blanch Walnuts
• Walnut Trivia -- Everything you;ve ever wanted to know about walnuts but didn't know who to ask.

Too Many Walnut Recipes!
Thanks to the California Walnut Board, we've just significantly beefed out our library of walnut recipes at FabulousFoods.com, most with gorgeous full color photographs and full nutritional information, so even dieters can plan them into their calorie budget. There are recipes for breakfasts, breads, smoothies, appetizers, sandwiches, salads, soups, main courses, side dishes and desserts. We've just added over 80 new walnut recipes to the site (you're seeing some of the photos in this post)!
Click here to browse through the recipe choices and start cooking with walnuts!