So the forecast for this last weekend was for snow in the SF Bay Area. They were even forecasting snow down to sea level. I was pretty excited. But there was no snow. I should have known better than to trust a weather forecast.
In other news, I finally roasted some California bay (laurel) nuts. As you might have read in another post, I collected some back in November. And I finally got around to roasting them recently. Flavors of Home suggested roasting them in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. It seems a little less might be better.
The first time I roasted them for a little longer and they tasted like burnt popcorn. I tried it again and took out the nuts at different times (between 25-35 min of roasting). Too little and they taste a little raw/bitter. Too long and they taste too burnt, but even when cooked right they still have the taste of burnt popcorn to me. When I told this to a friend, he immediately asked, "Burnt popcorn in a good or bad way?" Sometimes burnt popcorn is not so bad. So I would say burnt popcorn in a good way. I can really see eating a lot of them, but they definitely weren't bad. I have a few more nuts, so I'm gonna try one more round and experiment a little more.
For another blog post and video on roasting them check out FeralKevin. (Thanks for the link Katie)
Monday, February 28, 2011
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I've been totally fascinated with eating native plants and have been collecting information. I'm not sure if I've provided this link for you before: http://feralkevin.com/?p=295
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you could grind them into granules and make a sort of coffee with them. I think I've said it before, but glad you're trying all this out so I can just try the favorites when I get around to it!
ReplyDeleteThere was snow...a little around Twin Peaks about 10:45PM that was broadcast on local news...but it didn't stick in the City. It stuck here though, for a few hours.
ReplyDeleteGlad you tried the bay nuts, I was curious. I have live vicariously through your experiment at the moment, as the squirrels beat me to the nuts last fall. All I found were the hollowed out fruits! Sounds like maybe the nuts need more butter...or maybe caramel? :P
I love the idea of harvesting and eating native plants (well, at least from those that grow in my own garden). Roasting the bay nuts seem like a fun experiment that just makes you want to try more. I recently bought a book called "Seaweed, Salmon and Manzanita Cider: A California Indian Feast" which includes recipes like Sweet Elder Jelly, Rose Hip Syrup, Fried Yucca Petals, and Manzanita Cider. Hmm...toasted English muffins with a little butter and rose hip jelly and a cup of manzanita cider. Sounds like high tea to me!
ReplyDelete@Camissonia: I've been wanting to buy that book. Good to hear it's at least inspiring.
ReplyDeleteDown here our foothills and mountains definitely got the snow but nothing made it close to the coast. But boy it was a COLD couple of days! I'm sure up there it seemed like the perfect day for experiments with a hot oven. I forgot what we cooked to warm up--definitely nothing as adventurous as your roasted bay nuts.
ReplyDeleteChristine: Yes, you can make a coffee like drink from bay nuts. It work about as well as coffee too.
ReplyDeleteAt paleotechnics we've always thought that roasting at a higher temperature is important to remove the volatile oils without over roasting. You might try a little higher like 425 degrees F. Keep them moving frequently though. I recently posted some tips on baynut gathering and use at our blog http://paleotechnics.wordpress.com That article also links a larger one with much more detail.
ReplyDeleteI've never been able to get anything like coffee out of baynuts. more like cocoa maybe with the solids dissolved in the drink.
Steven