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Posted by NightMist on July 15, 2006, 8:19 pm
We have mostly ignored the big old butternut tree at the corner of our
kitchen for years. Just snarled at it for drawing squirrels to us.
DH has decided that this year we should make a serious go at getting
some nuts from it.
Now that is definitely a fine notion, butternuts are a good rich nut.
You might call them white walnuts or oilnuts where you live.
Normal procedure with husking butternuts is to dry them, kick the
dried husks off, give them a wash, and dry them again. If you have
to, and you have strong hands and good gloves, you can strip the
undried husks off like you would black walnuts.
Thing is, we live in town. So we don't have a lot of space for
drying, nor a proper drying shed. I'm thinking about putting together
an old style indoor slat and cheesecloth dryer, I have a design for
one in one of my cookbooks. I'm not sure how much that will do in
terms of finished nuts though. If I put them on the kitchen roof the
squirrels will make off with them, to say nothing of the mad scramble
if it rains.
I have joked with DH that we had just ought to crawl up into the
kitchen ceiling and nab the ones the squirrels harvest. That bit of
space makes a fine nut drying place and the squirrels figured that out
before ever we moved in!
In fact last time we had butternuts off that tree was when they
replaced my kitchen roof. The numbwits that did the work gave me no
warning and didn't come in and take down the suspended ceiling tiles
before stripping the old roof. So the first time they dropped
anything it came right through my ceiling knocking a couple tiles
askew, and letting what felt like a gross ton of butternuts fall
directly on me where I was rolling out pie dough. While I was
"speaking gently to them" ( in terms that would make a sailor pale),
the DDs gathered up all the nuts, and they and DH had a fine old time
while he taught them how to tell the eatable ones from the rest.
So anyway, if anybody has any clever walnut husking techniques they
could share, I would appreciate it.
NightMist
just nattering on today
--
The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.
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Posted by frood on July 15, 2006, 8:44 pm
I saw an epidode of Good Eats that showed how to make a food dehydrator with
a cardboard box and a fan. Something like this might work for you. Or
there's the British-style drying cupboard, usually built over the hot water
heater.
--
Wendy
http://griffinsflight.com/Quilting/quilt1.htm
De-STUFF email address to reply
show/hide quoted text
> We have mostly ignored the big old butternut tree at the corner of our
> kitchen for years. Just snarled at it for drawing squirrels to us.
> DH has decided that this year we should make a serious go at getting
> some nuts from it.
> Now that is definitely a fine notion, butternuts are a good rich nut.
> You might call them white walnuts or oilnuts where you live.
> Normal procedure with husking butternuts is to dry them, kick the
> dried husks off, give them a wash, and dry them again. If you have
> to, and you have strong hands and good gloves, you can strip the
> undried husks off like you would black walnuts.
> Thing is, we live in town. So we don't have a lot of space for
> drying, nor a proper drying shed. I'm thinking about putting together
> an old style indoor slat and cheesecloth dryer, I have a design for
> one in one of my cookbooks. I'm not sure how much that will do in
> terms of finished nuts though. If I put them on the kitchen roof the
> squirrels will make off with them, to say nothing of the mad scramble
> if it rains.
> I have joked with DH that we had just ought to crawl up into the
> kitchen ceiling and nab the ones the squirrels harvest. That bit of
> space makes a fine nut drying place and the squirrels figured that out
> before ever we moved in!
> In fact last time we had butternuts off that tree was when they
> replaced my kitchen roof. The numbwits that did the work gave me no
> warning and didn't come in and take down the suspended ceiling tiles
> before stripping the old roof. So the first time they dropped
> anything it came right through my ceiling knocking a couple tiles
> askew, and letting what felt like a gross ton of butternuts fall
> directly on me where I was rolling out pie dough. While I was
> "speaking gently to them" ( in terms that would make a sailor pale),
> the DDs gathered up all the nuts, and they and DH had a fine old time
> while he taught them how to tell the eatable ones from the rest.
> So anyway, if anybody has any clever walnut husking techniques they
> could share, I would appreciate it.
> NightMist
> just nattering on today
> --
> The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.
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Posted by NightMist on July 16, 2006, 12:26 pm
You, Georg, and Jessamy, have given me suggestions that when combined
yield the slat and cheesecloth drier. It is a loose sort of a box
with slide out slat shelves hung over the stove in a cheesecloth bag.
Even Roberta's suggestion of going vertical comes in as the shelves
are stacked several high.
I reckon I was on the right track after all. I just have to sort out a
safe place to hang them.
NightMist
On Sun, 16 Jul 2006 00:44:59 GMT, "frood"
show/hide quoted text
>I saw an epidode of Good Eats that showed how to make a food dehydrator with
>a cardboard box and a fan. Something like this might work for you. Or
>there's the British-style drying cupboard, usually built over the hot water
>heater.
>--
>Wendy
>http://griffinsflight.com/Quilting/quilt1.htm
>De-STUFF email address to reply
>> We have mostly ignored the big old butternut tree at the corner of our
>> kitchen for years. Just snarled at it for drawing squirrels to us.
>> DH has decided that this year we should make a serious go at getting
>> some nuts from it.
>> Now that is definitely a fine notion, butternuts are a good rich nut.
>> You might call them white walnuts or oilnuts where you live.
>> Normal procedure with husking butternuts is to dry them, kick the
>> dried husks off, give them a wash, and dry them again. If you have
>> to, and you have strong hands and good gloves, you can strip the
>> undried husks off like you would black walnuts.
>> Thing is, we live in town. So we don't have a lot of space for
>> drying, nor a proper drying shed. I'm thinking about putting together
>> an old style indoor slat and cheesecloth dryer, I have a design for
>> one in one of my cookbooks. I'm not sure how much that will do in
>> terms of finished nuts though. If I put them on the kitchen roof the
>> squirrels will make off with them, to say nothing of the mad scramble
>> if it rains.
>> I have joked with DH that we had just ought to crawl up into the
>> kitchen ceiling and nab the ones the squirrels harvest. That bit of
>> space makes a fine nut drying place and the squirrels figured that out
>> before ever we moved in!
>> In fact last time we had butternuts off that tree was when they
>> replaced my kitchen roof. The numbwits that did the work gave me no
>> warning and didn't come in and take down the suspended ceiling tiles
>> before stripping the old roof. So the first time they dropped
>> anything it came right through my ceiling knocking a couple tiles
>> askew, and letting what felt like a gross ton of butternuts fall
>> directly on me where I was rolling out pie dough. While I was
>> "speaking gently to them" ( in terms that would make a sailor pale),
>> the DDs gathered up all the nuts, and they and DH had a fine old time
>> while he taught them how to tell the eatable ones from the rest.
>> So anyway, if anybody has any clever walnut husking techniques they
>> could share, I would appreciate it.
>> NightMist
>> just nattering on today
>> --
>> The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.
--
The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.
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Posted by Jessamy on July 16, 2006, 3:34 pm
ohh that sounds like a handy thing to have in the house :-)
I'm glad I was of help - I didn't think what I came up with would be helpful
but mentioned it just in case :-)
--
Jessamy
In The Netherlands
Take out: so much quilting to reply.
Time to accept, time to grow, time to take things slow
www.geocities.com/jess_ayad
http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jessamy_thompson/my_photos
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You, Georg, and Jessamy, have given me suggestions that when combined
yield the slat and cheesecloth drier. It is a loose sort of a box
with slide out slat shelves hung over the stove in a cheesecloth bag.
Even Roberta's suggestion of going vertical comes in as the shelves
are stacked several high.
I reckon I was on the right track after all. I just have to sort out a
safe place to hang them.
NightMist
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Posted by Roberta Zollner on July 16, 2006, 4:45 am
No husking advice. But you could dry them vertically in old nylon stockings
hung in a well-ventilated room. (Maybe run a fan for a while.)
Roberta in D
show/hide quoted text
> We have mostly ignored the big old butternut tree at the corner of our
> kitchen for years. Just snarled at it for drawing squirrels to us.
> DH has decided that this year we should make a serious go at getting
> some nuts from it.
> Now that is definitely a fine notion, butternuts are a good rich nut.
> You might call them white walnuts or oilnuts where you live.
> Normal procedure with husking butternuts is to dry them, kick the
> dried husks off, give them a wash, and dry them again. If you have
> to, and you have strong hands and good gloves, you can strip the
> undried husks off like you would black walnuts.
> Thing is, we live in town. So we don't have a lot of space for
> drying, nor a proper drying shed. I'm thinking about putting together
> an old style indoor slat and cheesecloth dryer, I have a design for
> one in one of my cookbooks. I'm not sure how much that will do in
> terms of finished nuts though. If I put them on the kitchen roof the
> squirrels will make off with them, to say nothing of the mad scramble
> if it rains.
> I have joked with DH that we had just ought to crawl up into the
> kitchen ceiling and nab the ones the squirrels harvest. That bit of
> space makes a fine nut drying place and the squirrels figured that out
> before ever we moved in!
> In fact last time we had butternuts off that tree was when they
> replaced my kitchen roof. The numbwits that did the work gave me no
> warning and didn't come in and take down the suspended ceiling tiles
> before stripping the old roof. So the first time they dropped
> anything it came right through my ceiling knocking a couple tiles
> askew, and letting what felt like a gross ton of butternuts fall
> directly on me where I was rolling out pie dough. While I was
> "speaking gently to them" ( in terms that would make a sailor pale),
> the DDs gathered up all the nuts, and they and DH had a fine old time
> while he taught them how to tell the eatable ones from the rest.
> So anyway, if anybody has any clever walnut husking techniques they
> could share, I would appreciate it.
> NightMist
> just nattering on today
> --
> The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.
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> kitchen for years. Just snarled at it for drawing squirrels to us.
> DH has decided that this year we should make a serious go at getting
> some nuts from it.
> Now that is definitely a fine notion, butternuts are a good rich nut.
> You might call them white walnuts or oilnuts where you live.
> Normal procedure with husking butternuts is to dry them, kick the
> dried husks off, give them a wash, and dry them again. If you have
> to, and you have strong hands and good gloves, you can strip the
> undried husks off like you would black walnuts.
> Thing is, we live in town. So we don't have a lot of space for
> drying, nor a proper drying shed. I'm thinking about putting together
> an old style indoor slat and cheesecloth dryer, I have a design for
> one in one of my cookbooks. I'm not sure how much that will do in
> terms of finished nuts though. If I put them on the kitchen roof the
> squirrels will make off with them, to say nothing of the mad scramble
> if it rains.
> I have joked with DH that we had just ought to crawl up into the
> kitchen ceiling and nab the ones the squirrels harvest. That bit of
> space makes a fine nut drying place and the squirrels figured that out
> before ever we moved in!
> In fact last time we had butternuts off that tree was when they
> replaced my kitchen roof. The numbwits that did the work gave me no
> warning and didn't come in and take down the suspended ceiling tiles
> before stripping the old roof. So the first time they dropped
> anything it came right through my ceiling knocking a couple tiles
> askew, and letting what felt like a gross ton of butternuts fall
> directly on me where I was rolling out pie dough. While I was
> "speaking gently to them" ( in terms that would make a sailor pale),
> the DDs gathered up all the nuts, and they and DH had a fine old time
> while he taught them how to tell the eatable ones from the rest.
> So anyway, if anybody has any clever walnut husking techniques they
> could share, I would appreciate it.
> NightMist
> just nattering on today
> --
> The wolf that understands fire has much to eat.