1051 What can I do with my Almonds ??!!!

Knock the almonds out of the tree with a long pole - ideally catching them in some sort of netting. The almond has an outer skin or husk. Pick this off by hand immediately when you pick the almonds since it stops them from drying properly.
Almonds from the tree need to be dried before storage because otherwise mould forms. Therefore after husking, lie the almonds on a flat dry surface out of rain but where air circulates well. Mix them around frequently and open one or two periodically to see if the kernels of the almonds are dry and brittle (i.e. no longer rubbery).
Keep the almonds in their shells and they can be stored at room temperature for many months (assuming you dried them adequately). If you want to be extra sure then you can freeze your almonds for a couple of days in the freezer before storage. This will kill any pests which may be hidden in the shells. You can also break the kernals out of their shells and freeze them for a year with no great loss of flavour and it takes a lot less storage space.

Thanks so much...i'll get onto it a.s.a.p.......got up this morning to a very 'black' sky...looks like a storm although forecast just says cloud and wind........could certainly do with some rain !!!!...but we've been fooled before and it has passed us by !!! Forecast also says up in the 90s by Friday !

I take it I don't dry these in the sun..just somewhere well aired ?
Many thanks
Lyn

If you dry in the sun the whole process is a lot faster.

Lyn

Just done a 5 day forecast on BBC weather website and its forecasting 95 degrees for friday for the Brindisi area. phew!!!!!! :)

Am behaving, although I did have a reply ready... ;)

I saw on an Italian food website a product of almonds in honey - would not know what is done to the almonds before they are suspended in honey (incidentally hazelnuts got the same treatment) but it looked interesting.

Also, the French make an apricot jam with slivers of almonds in it - it does something wonderful for the flavour of the jam so if you are so inclined, give it a go.

Hi, I haven't tried this myself but I've bought them in a shop in Ostuni. Apparently you get some fresh ripe figs, cut them in half but keep the two halves joined at the base and then you dry them in the sun - not too dry. Then you put a blanched almond into one side and cover it with the other half of the fig. Then you have to bake them very slowly, I don't know for how long. This is so you don't you get ants in them - but you could perhaps miss this part out, or dry them in the sun a bit more. As I said I haven't tried this myself and if you do, I would be interested to know how you get on. Good luck, Eddie

Been harvesting our Almonds again today...anyone know exactly how to do Sugared Almonds....don't see them much in Uk now ...do the Italians still give them as gifts at weddings?

Anyway,as usual i digress...does anyone know how to make them...thought they would make nice little pressies.....also , where can I buy Muslin Bags ???haven't seen any in all my usual haunts....thanks..in advance !! :)

I dont know how to make sugared almonds, I'm afraid, but...
We've got over 40 almond trees on our patch (and you think you've got a problem with too many almonds !!!!) and last year after shelling them I blanched them and removed the brown skin thing and coated them in a touch of oil and salt and roasted them. They were really nice , but it takes ages to get all the different shells and coverings off them. I also tried to honey roast them (added honey instead of oil and salt ) and they were okay but not as nice as the salted ones.
Have you thought of making marzipan with your almonds ? Homemade marzipan is much nicer than shop bought ,bright yellow stuff. If the comment about freezing the almonds is correct then I suppose you could freeze the marzipan too and stick it on your christmas cake when the time comes !!
If you get any good suggestions or ideas pass them on to mee as I cant begin to imagine what I'll do with ours. I thought about popping them in pretty selophane bags tied with a ribbon and giving them as presents at christmas, but apart from a few doddering old aunties I cant think who'd appreciate them !!!
Fiona

One of the staff here is from Palermo, and she brought in these almond sweets that were essentially just almond paste rolled in flaked almonds or powdered sugar. Very sweet but very nice.

Is home made marzipan simply what I know as almond paste or is it something else altogether?

I think almond paste and marzipan are the same thing. The thing I'm refering to is made with ground almonds and icing sugar (I'm not sure if there's anything else in it ). My mum used to make it for the christmas cake !

I love almonds, can we do a swap for walnut? we have loads here!!

Anyone know what to do to produce the almond stuffed olives you can buy in Greece? - presumably you just stick the almond in the olvice ... or is there a hidden something else??

Kathy

...I love walnuts...so we have a deal next year ...if you are in Puglia that is !!!! :)

I'd appreciate a little advice on the harvesting and dehusking of walnuts. How to avoid the dye and after shelling how to keep them to avoid mould or is it better to only shell them at the time of use?

[QUOTE=Cassini]I'd appreciate a little advice on the harvesting and dehusking of walnuts. How to avoid the dye and after shelling how to keep them to avoid mould or is it better to only shell them at the time of use?[/QUOTE]

Walnuts discolor when stored with husks attached and their flavor is ruined. Wear gloves when removing husks because dye from the husks stains. Remove husks by applying pressure to the nut's ends. Pound side to side with a hammer while wearing safety glasses. Husks also can be softened in a container of water, then peeled.

After hulling, rinse the nuts, preferably outdoors since nuts stain.

Next, check for insect feeding, get rid of the bad ones (I was told that placing the nuts in water that the good ones will sink, but this is not always the case, so it's better to just look)

Do not compost walnut husks. Juglone, a chemical released by walnut trees, is toxic to some vegetables and plants, such as tomatoes.

Curing--The nuts must be cured. This prepares them for storage and allows flavor to develop. Stack the clean, hulled nuts in layers two or three nuts deep. Place them in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area, out of direct sunlight for two weeks. When nuts are dry enough to store, kernels break with a sharp snap. If cured improperly, mold forms.

Storage--After curing, store unshelled nuts in a well-ventilated area at 60 degrees Fahrenheit or less. Cloth bags or wire baskets discourage mold. Keep the relative humidity fairly high, about 70 percent.

Additional information:

To shell nuts, soak them in hot water for 24 hours. Drain and soak again for two more hours. Cover the nuts with moist cloths until you're ready to crack the shells.

To toast, bake nuts at 215 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes.

If stored at room temperature, use within a few weeks.

Shelled nuts can be refrigerated up to nine months. They can be frozen for up to two years.

Re; advise on drying walnuts...does same apply to almonds 'cos i dried mine in the sun !!!!! :rolleyes: I also then froze them for about a week as per someone elses advise.
Have now blanched some, ground some and kept some in shells for christmas...have I wasted my time ??????? :o

Almonds are harvested once their hull has opened and the green hull is immediately removed in order to prevent mold growth and the nuts are then dried in the sun or in dryers.

Maximum duration of storage

Temperature Relative humidity Maximum duration of storage
-3 - 0°C 65 - 70% 12 months

This is the information I found on the subject. I think you're fine Lyn :)

Removed husks as we picked them, dried in sun for about 4 days , then froze for about 4 days.

seems to have worked . :)
Thanks for reassurance greatscott ! :)

Thank you very much for the detailed information. Next season we will know what to do.

Well I'll be be blowed. Just did a yahoo Search 'cos I wanted to know that if I put my sun dried and then frozen almonds into string bags and store them in our Lamia ( old store house ) how long they will keep and check up on a couple of things.

Inundated this year !!!!:rolleyes:

Read through a load of stuff which simply didn't answer my queries , was just about to get fed up and then I spied ....Almonds/Italymag !!!!

It was the post I started in February 2005 and do you know what..it had the best information on the subject from all the other stuff I had just ploughed through !!!!
Well done chaps !!!!:)

Only thing is I'm still not sure how to store them in their shells long term. I can't keep them in the freezer because there are just so many this year and I am not kidding they will fill my small chest freezer. can't give them away as Everyone round here has almonds and all the market stalls etc are full of them !!!!

I am going to make a load of Almond Liquer (Amaretto type) which I made last year and it was delicious but I want to do it in batches as the shelling is a nightmare , so want to store as many as I can in their shells and make sure they keep OK. Also want some for Christmas /cakes etc.
I want to keep them in their shells and use them as and when I need them for all sorts of stuff. Last year I blanched a load , stored then, went to use them and they have gone mouldy....a hell of a lot of work for nothing , so this year I thought I would store them in their shells and use them as and when.

I wondered about the string bag idea as that is how we used to buy them in the UK before they started putting them in wrapper bags.

Any ideas greatly appreciated.

String bags will work fine Lyn.. plenty of ventilation and keep them cool. They should last for months that way.

Think about it.. almonds are more or less ready NOW.. but the vast majority are EATEN at Christmas.. four months away.. so, how do large producers store and ship them? In BIG 1cwt string sacks! Honestly. :)

BTW. Lots of things from this Forum come up on Google.. try Googling your screen name and see what happens! :eek:

I haven't ever kept almonds over a long period, but I was advised that after taking off the green furry husk, they should be laid (in their hard shells) out on newspaper (or some sort of aereated grid would be better) in the sun to fully dry off - and then they should store in some dry ventialted place for quite a few months. String bags sound good - but I think the important thing is to get the shells very dry before you put them in the bags. I would think giving them a shake now and again to get some air through them during storage wouldn't do any harm.

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]If you have a food processor why not grind up the nuts and store in clean glass jar or tupperware?

I add ground almonds to korma sauces to thicken them and also you can make pesto using almonds instead of pinenuts.

Becky[/SIZE][/FONT]

Thanks both..that is what i thought, just wanted it clarified Now where do I find the string bags !!!!!!:rolleyes:

Actually , thinking about it I did buy a very large net bag with a zip which is meant to be used as a fly protector for food..you slide a large plate or dish inside and simply zip it up ...very effective for buffets etc......I think they would be ideal. I would get a load in one bag so could buy a quite a few , fill them fairly full and hand them on the huge nails in the store room and just give them a shake every now and again.....think it would work.????......they are very strong......will try one and let you know !!!!!!

Thanks Becky ...I did do that and it was successful and Alex cooks Indian Food ( one of his little hobbies !!) ..it was the blanching that disappointed me ...but now I shall just do them fresh-ish.

Thanks Chaps !!!!!:) :cool:

Lyn,

Go to the local supermarket/greengrocer and ask them if you can have the net sacks that onions are delivered in. They are made of strong nylon string.. usually orange.. but you can fit 25kgs of almonds in each sack - no need to shake them.. just turn them over every two weeks. Half fill if 25kgs is too heavy.. :D

I've frozen my shelled walnuts and they work really well. I take a few out to scatter on a pizza with Gorgonzola, Mozzarella and fried up Norcia sausage meat. I guess the same would apply to almonds...

In the Dordogne, one October, we encountered the walnut harvest.
The locals dehusked them in large party-like groups, and then they were laid out to dry, on large open wire mesh racks.
The local pattiserie made wonderful walnut tarts, open, with the walnut halves set in a soft toffee.
The undried kernals were almost spreadable and delicious with our sundowners. We never bought these, since there were kilos of windfalls all around.
As stated earlier, they will not keep unless dried. We found they went mouldy in only a few days.
I expect almonds are just the same.

Your question regarding Almonds reminds me of a letter that appeared in the Good Food Guide last year.

Someone had written in saying they had often seen packs of bitter almonds in their local Asian shop but having bought some and tried to eat them as a pre dinner snack which tasted foul, what should she do with them.

the response was "Do not eat any more! Bitter Almonds are extremely poisonous and are used mainly in the manufacture of perfume!!"

Poor woman probably thought she was being very exotic!

On the subject of your nuts a really nice way to serve them as a snack is to put some spices in a small bag, eg chilli or whatever, roll the nuts around and then either dry fry of roast for a couple of minutes. very yummy but probably very calorific too.

Jackie

I have a recipe for chilled almond soup. Sounds lovely, although I've never tried it. Sounds just right for a hot day:

Serves 4

200g unblanched almonds
200mls olive oil
3 cloves garlic
I dessertspoon sherry vinegar
340mls cold water
Salt to taste

Blanch the almonds by covering with boiling water, leave 3-4 mins. Drain and squeeze nuts out of their skins. Put nuts in a blender and pour in olive oil (it should just cover the almonds, if not, add a bit more). Add peeled garlic, vinegar and salt and blend until smooth. With motor still running, slowly add cold water until the thickness is to your liking. Chill in the fridge until you eat it. To serve, stir in a few ice cubes and garnish with grape halves and thin slices of apple.

[QUOTE=gilly]I have a recipe for chilled almond soup. Sounds lovely, although I've never tried it. Sounds just right for a hot day:

Serves 4

200g unblanched almonds
200mls olive oil
3 cloves garlic
I dessertspoon sherry vinegar
340mls clod water
Salt to taste

Blanch the almonds by covering with boiling water, leave 3-4 mins. Drain and squeeze nuts out of their skins. Put nuts in a blender and pour in olive oil (it should just cover the almonds, if not, add a bit more). Add peeled garlic, vinegar and salt and blend until smooth. With motor still running, slowly add cold water until the thickness is to your liking. Chill in the fridge until you eat it. To serve, stir in a few ice cubes and garnish with grape halves and thin slices of apple.[/QUOTE]

WOW I just adore all nuts and that recipe sounds so wonderful Gilly. I must copy and paste it into a document for the next hot, sunny day, whenever that might be!!!