EAT WILD - BLACK WALNUTS

I’ve spent many hours walking or boating along the rivers of Texas in search of tasty, wild foods. Even on a leisurely tubing trip, I keep my eyes peeled for that next ripe dewberry, the ubiquitous wild onion or the just-fallen pecan. But one of the most exciting wild edible producers I’ve floated under is the towering black walnut tree. Though more common in East Texas, the gourmand-cherished black walnut (Juglans nigra) also grows right here in Austin. We are also blessed with two other native edible walnuts—the Arizona walnut (Juglans major) and the little walnut (Juglans microcarpa)—but the black walnut bears the largest nuts.

A large, deciduous tree, the black walnut tends to have a straight and tall single trunk. Its leaves look a lot like pecan leaves—pinnately compound, which means several long, narrow leaflets extending off each side of a shared green midrib. The black walnut fruit is usually the size of a golf ball or larger, and is yellowish-green with black spots when ripe. 

Black walnuts typically ripen during September through November, and fall from the tree when they’re ready to eat, making them easy to gather when scattered on the ground. Once the nuts are collected, the real work begins. First, remove the green husks by stomping on them or smashing them with a board on a solid surface (be sure to wear gloves because the juices can stain). Once the green husks are removed, the walnut is revealed. Crack open the shell with a hammer to retrieve the nutmeat. Allowing the nuts to dry or “cure” for a few weeks before cracking may improve the flavor and will make it easier to pry the nutmeat from the shell. Once the nuts are cracked, pick out the nutmeat and eat it raw, roast it or use it like any other nut. In addition to containing high amounts of antioxidants and beneficial fats, the black walnut has more protein than any other nut.

The black walnut’s unique sharp and sour-sweet flavor can demand top dollar. It tastes nothing like the common English walnut; it’s much more aromatic and tastes like an expensive perfume. (Strange, yes, but the taste is hard to describe—author Samuel Thayer once likened it to really good paint.) Whether used in baking or sprinkled on ice cream, black walnuts are a free and plentiful delicacy for the adventurous forager. And for those less inclined to forage for wild food, there are several places to buy wild-harvested and commercially shelled black walnuts online or in retail stores.


Written by Amy Crowell

Black Walnut Cookies

Description

Remember, black walnuts don’t taste like English walnuts at all. These cookies are rich, buttery and full of the perfume-y black walnut flavor.

Ingredients

At a glance

Course/Dish

Cookies / Brownies / Bars

1 c. butter, softened
½ c. brown sugar
1/3 c. sugar
½ t. vanilla
1 egg
¾ t. cinnamon
½ t. salt
¾ t. baking soda
2 c. rolled oats
1 c. flour
1 c. chopped black
walnuts

Methods/steps

Cream the butter, sugar, vanilla and egg together. Combine the dry ingredients and add to the wet, then mix until combined. Drop a heaping tablespoon full of cookie dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350º for 10 minutes.

Thailand Death from Rhino Horn - HOAX

I had been hearing rumors about the man dying in Thailand after consuming poisoned rhino horn.  I looked around on the internet for an article.  Nothing seemed legit, but I did come across this article I've copied/pasted below.  I feel pretty amped up over this one... what is your opinion?  Feel free to leave a comment.  Thanks, Britt Hosmer Peterson Tuesday, 24 August 2010 19:46

ALEISHA TISSEN JOHANNESBURG - It’s a hoax; nobody has died after consuming poisoned rhino horn. Endangered Wildlife Trust Rhino Security Network’s Faan Coetzee yesterday put to rest rumours suggesting that a Bangkok man had died after purchasing “purposely contaminated” rhino horn on the black market. Coetzee He said the malicious information probably likely originated in South Africalocally, adding it is “unprofessional” to spread such untruths it. “Such false information has the potential to harm South Africa’s reputation and the fight against poaching. We are dealing with highly organised criminals who won’t fall for this, let’s be honest,” Coetzee told The Citizen. He said he had liaised with a contact in Thailand who confirmed the report was untrue adding Thai authorities were not on high alert for possible further poisonings. Reports on the supposed incident suggest the contaminated horn to be from a private game farm in the North West province. Ed Hern, owner of the Rhino and Lion Reserve in Krugersdorp made international world headlines recently with for his plan to lace his rhinos’ horns with cyanide. Hern confirmed he had heard rumours there had been a of the death in Bangkok. Hern added that following on legal advice, he had been persuaded not to use poison but to rather attempt to use a substance that would act as an irritant to the consumer. “An irritant is now being tested, the substance will make the consumer ill rather than killing them,” he said. Zulu Wildlife Forum’s Tim Condon commented on the rumour saying despite the ethical furore the poisoning of rhino horn could trigger, it was a “positive way to fight back to help save the rhino, no matter how illegal – after all, the poachers and the ‘rhino mafia’ and corrupt politicians or official’s’ acts are also very much illegal.” However, Coetzee said poisoning horn to tackle poaching was a highly illegal approach. “It will be murder if you purposely poison horn and someone dies as a result. We don’t need to be criminals to solve this problem,” he said. aleisha@citizen.co.za www.citizen.co.za

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