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Nut: Mixed Nuts

Flourless Orange Cake with Caramelized Orange Nut topping

Ingredients

  • 2 oranges, washed
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • 6 eggs
  • 2 ½ cups almond or hazelnut meal
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Topping

  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 ounces water
  • 2 cardamom seeds (optional)
  • Zest of 2 oranges
  • 2 oranges, peeled and finely sliced (reserve juices)
  • 2 ounces pistachios
  • 2 ounces pecans (or pine nuts or macadamias)
  • ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons Crème Fraiche, to serve

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, add oranges and simmer for 2 hours.  Remove oranges, allow to cool. Cut oranges into chunks, removing seeds and place in a blender. Puree, including skin, until smooth.  This can be done a day ahead of time if desired.
  2. Preheat oven to 320°F.  Grease a springform 8–9-inch cake tin and line base with baking paper.
  3. Beat eggs and sugar until pale golden and creamy.  Fold ¼ of the egg and sugar mixture into the orange puree. With a spatula, fold in combined almond meal and baking powder gently (do not deflate) to combine. Next, add half of the remaining egg mixture until mostly combined and then fold in the remaining.
  4. Spoon into prepared tin and bake in center of oven for 1¼ hours or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
  5. Allow to cool in pan on a wire rack, then run a knife around the edge before turning out of pan. Cool completely and store in a sealed container for up to a week.
  6. To make topping, place sugar and water in a small saucepan and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to come to a simmer then add cardamom seeds and cook until syrup is golden. Add oranges with any juice and cook for 2-3 minutes.
  7. Bake nuts in a 350°F oven for 6-7 minutes until golden.  Place oranges in a bowl with any syrup and gently stir in the nuts. 
  8. To serve, place a slice of cake on plates, top with caramelized orange nut mixture, orange zest and a spoon of Crème Fraiche.

Macadamia and Pine Nut Bars

Recipe courtesy of Nuts for Life (www.nutsforlife.com.au)

Ingredients

  • 3 large ripe bananas, mashed
  • 2 cups rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup macadamias, chopped
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • 1/4 cup shredded coconut
  • 1/4 cup cranberries
  • 1 tsp cinnamon or mixed spice (optional)
  • 1/4 cup almond milk (if required)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
  3. Place all ingredients into a large bowl and mix well until all the ingredients start to come together. If you find the mix is too dry, add the milk.
  4. Once the mixture comes together, spoon it onto the lined baking tray and flatten the mixture down with the back of a spoon.
  5. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until it starts to brown on top.
  6. Allow to cool, then slice into 16 bars.

Tip: Keep uneaten bars in a sealed container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.

Walnut, Almond and Cashew Sweet Potato Brownies

Recipe courtesy of Nuts for Life (www.nutsforlife.com.au)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup cooked, mashed sweet potato
  • 1 cup tahini paste
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla bean extract
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 cup almond meal
  • 1/4 cup walnuts (chopped)
  • 1/4 cup cashews (chopped)
  • 1/4 cup cacao powder
  • 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Line a brownie tray with parchment paper.
  3. Place the mashed sweet potato into a large mixing bowl and combine it with the tahini, maple syrup, and vanilla bean extract. Stir well to combine.
  4. In a separate small bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, using only 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips (the remaining chocolate chips will be sprinkled on top).
  5. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and fold together.
  6. Pour the brownie batter into the lined tray and top with remaining chocolate chips.
  7. Bake for 25-30 minutes until cooked through.
  8. Allow to cool and slice into small pieces.

Tip: Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container. To make this dairy-free and vegan, use dairy-free chocolate chips.

Chocolate Nut Brittle

Recipe courtesy of Nuts for Life (www.nutsforlife.com.au)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of mixed nuts – (e.g., walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews, hazelnuts and macadamias)
  • 7 ounces of chocolate
  • 2 tablespoons of nut butter (e.g., almond butter)
  • 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

  1. Roughly crush nuts – this can be done by placing them in a high-speed blender or food processor and quickly pulsing (be careful not to make them into a nut butter). Alternatively, place them into a snap lock bag and roll with a rolling pin, or roughly chop with a knife.
  2. Line a baking tray with oiled parchment paper.
  3. Spread the crushed nuts evenly over the parchment paper and then set aside.
  4. Melt your chocolate – this can either be done in a microwave, stirring a few times, or on a stove top using the double boiler method.
  5. Once melted, quickly pour hot chocolate evenly over nuts to completely cover. Drizzle with nut butter.
  6. Place in the freezer for a few hours or overnight.
  7. Remove from freezer, lift out brittle and break into pieces.

Tip: Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month or freeze for up to 3 months.

Apple Galette with Nut Pastry

Ingredients

Pastry

  • 1 cup raw macadamias, almonds, hazelnuts or pine nuts, or a mixture, frozen or chilled
  • ¾ cup plain flour
  • ¼ cup corn starch
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 egg, beaten, plus one for glaze
  • 2-3 tablespoons chilled water

Filling

  • 4 large baking apples, cored and sliced into ¼ inch slices
  • Juice and zest of ½ lemon
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • pinch of salt

Crumble

  • ¼ cup rolled oats
  • ¼ cup flour
  • ½ cup chopped pecans, walnuts, pistachios
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons soft butter

Instructions

  1. To make pastry, place the nuts, flour, cornstarch and sugar in a blender and process until nuts are finely ground. Add egg and pulse to combine, then add water in a slow drizzle until mix forms a dough.
  2. Transfer to a floured board and knead gently until smooth.  Wrap in plastic and allow to sit in refrigerator for 30 minutes.  (Pastry can be made a few hours ahead of time).
  3. Place apples and remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix with hands until apples are thoroughly coated in mixture.
  4. To make crumble, combine oats, flour, nuts, and sugar in a bowl. Cut butter into small pieces and add to mix. Rub in with fingertips until evenly distributed.
  5. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Lay a sheet of parchment on a baking tray.
  6. Roll the dough out to a rough oval to fit tray, about ¼ inch thick.  Carefully lift onto parchment.
  7. Lay apples over pastry, leaving 2-3 inches at edge.  Fold pastry over apples, creating pleats to enclose the filling.  Whisk remaining egg with a teaspoon of water and brush evenly over pastry.
  8. Scatter crumble mixture over apples then transfer to the oven.
  9. Bake 45-55 minutes or until golden brown and caramelized.

Mediterranean Carrot Soup with Raisin Nut Agrodolce

Description

Nuts add a silky texture so you don’t need to add anything else for a luscious creamy soup. 

Ingredients

  • ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, finely diced
  • ½ teaspoon all spice
  • ½ ground coriander
  • ½ cup dense nuts such as hazelnut, macadamia, Brazil or a mixture
  • 1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • ¼ cup Greek yogurt, to serve

Raisin, Nut and Cumin Agrodolce

  • 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • Juice from 1 lemon
  • 4 tablespoons golden raisins
  • 4 tablespoons nuts – pistachios, pine nuts and walnuts work great with these flavors

Instructions

  1. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat, add fennel seeds and toast for 1 minute.  Add olive oil, garlic and spices and cook 1 minute, until aromatic.  Add nuts and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring until nuts are aromatic but not browned.  Add carrot and stock and bring to a boil.
  2. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes or until carrots are soft but haven’t lost their color.  Cool slightly, then place carrots in blender with half the liquid. Puree, adding remainder of liquid as you puree until desired consistency.  If still too thick, add some more stock, wine, or for a creamy version, milk. 
  3. Season to taste and return to heat.
  4. To make Agrodolce, toast cumin seeds in a dry pan on medium heat until aromatic, about 1 minute.  Add honey, stir to just melt, then stir in lemon, golden raisins and nuts. Remove from heat.
  5. Spoon soup into bowls, top with a swirl of yogurt followed by Agrodolce.

Vegetable, Rice and Nut Burgers with Tomato Salsa

Description

A nutty alternative to the typical burger!

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 shallot, chopped
  • ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 8 ounces mixed mushrooms, shiitake, cremini, portobello, diced (shiitake will add the depth of umami)
  • 1 teaspoon chopped sage leaves
  • ½ cup grated carrot or butternut squash
  • ¼ cup chopped parsley
  • ½ cup finely chopped nuts of choice
  • 2 cups cooked rice (brown, black forbidden, short grain)
  • Juice and zest of ½ lemon
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • ½ cup mixed nuts, processed to a fine powder (or buy nut meal such as almond or hazelnut)

Tomato Salsa

  • 2 ripe Roma tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts, diced macadamias and/or walnuts

Instructions

  1. Combine salsa ingredients and set aside.
  2. Heat half the olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Add the shallot, mustard and cumin seeds and sauté until aromatic, about 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and sage and sauté until soft and browned, 4-5 minutes, adding more oil if needed.  Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly, squeeze off any excess moisture.
  3. Place the sautéed shallot, mushrooms, nuts, rice, and ½ of the panko in a food processor. Pulse until just combined, but still coarse.  Add carrot, parsley, lemon juice and zest, and pulse just to mix in. Season to taste.
  4. Transfer to a large bowl and fold in the ¼ cup more panko. Test to see if mixture holds together to form burgers.  If too wet, add more panko.
  5. Combine remaining panko with nut meal.  Shape mixture into 4 burgers and roll in crumb. Place them on a large plate, cover and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
  6. Heat a non-stick or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Coat the bottom of the skillet with remaining oil and cook the burgers for 4-5 minutes each side, or until golden brown and crisp.
  7. While burgers are cooking, grill or toast cut sides of brioche, spread with Dijon and place lettuce on base. Top with a burger and a dollop of yogurt.  Spoon a mound of tomato salsa on top, add the top bun and serve right away.

Oven Roasted Veggies with Mixed Nut Crumble

Description

An easy and healthy side dish with lots of variations.

Ingredients

  • 2 medium fennel bulbs, white parts only
  • 1 cup quartered mushrooms
  • 2 small zucchini cut into ½ inch slices
  • ½ cup sliced basil, separated
  • 1 lemon, sliced
  • 6 Roma tomatoes, quartered lengthways (or a small tub cherry tomatoes, halved)
  • 2 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Crumble

  • 1 cup roughly chopped nuts of choice – hazelnut, walnut, almond, pecan, pistachio, Brazil, pine nuts, macadamia and cashew
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Lightly oil or line an ovenproof dish.
  2. Combine nuts, half the basil and parmesan cheese and set aside.
  3. Slice fennel in half lengthwise, remove the core and slice into 6-8 wedges.
  4. Place in a large sieve with the mushrooms and zucchini and the remaining basil.
  5. Drizzle olive oil over vegetables and rub all over so they are fully coated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  6. Add tomatoes and lemon.
  7. Place in ovenproof dish and bake for 25 minutes, then scatter crumble over top.
  8. Bake for 10 minutes further or until vegetables are tender and crumble is golden.

Alternative roasted vegetable and nut pairing suggestions:

  • Eggplant – walnuts and macadamias
  • Winter squash – pecans and pine nuts
  • Brussel sprouts – cashews and hazelnuts
  • Peppers and potato – almonds and pistachios

Mixed Nuts, Zucchini and Ricotta Pizza

Ingredients

Pistachio Pesto

  • ½ cup pistachios
  • 1 tablespoon shredded parmesan cheese
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
  • Juice and zest of ½ lemon

Pizza

  • 1 ball pizza dough (store bought or homemade—many pizza restaurants will also sell you a ball of pizza dough)
  • 1 zucchini, finely sliced (or finely sliced Brussel Sprout)
  • 3-4 leaves basil, sliced
  • ½ cup fresh ricotta
  • 2 tablespoons dried currants
  • 2 tablespoons roasted pine nuts, diced walnuts and pistachios
  • 1 handful arugula
  • Freshly ground pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 475-500°F.
  2. To make the pesto, place the nuts, parmesan and olive oil in a blender and pulse on and off to a coarse paste.  Add half the lemon juice and zest and pulse for a few seconds. Season to taste with salt.
  3. Stretch the dough to desired size for your pizza pan or stone.  Spread with pistachio pesto and arrange zucchini slices over top.  Bake for 5 minutes or until dough is starting to color. 
  4. Remove from oven. Mix ricotta with remaining lemon zest and spoon small dollops over pizza, top with basil and return to the oven.  Bake 8-10 minutes or until crust is golden (check the bottom).
  5. While still piping hot, scatter with currants, pine nuts, walnuts and a handful of arugula.  Drizzle remaining lemon juice and a little olive oil and fresh pepper on top and/or optional Pizza Sauce Topping.

Optional Pizza Sauce Topping:

  • 1 Thai Chili
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • 4 tablespoons honey

Directions: Mix ingredients and heat to just a simmer (do not boil). Drizzle on top of pizza and enjoy.

Flavored Nuts

Description

This is your chance to create your own nut delight, whether sweet, salty, bitter, sour or umami.  These nuts can be used just to nibble on their own, or as added flavor in a dish.  For example, pepper dusted cashews over a salad in place of pepper, honey cinnamon macadamias over cereal rather than sugar, or soy almonds in stir fry. There are many methods for flavoring nuts – here are a few ideas.

Roasted Nuts

There are a few different ways to add seasoning to nuts in the oven:

  1. Toss 1 cup of nuts in a teaspoon of oil, then dust with spices of choice – chili, cumin, turmeric, cardamom, nutmeg, all spice, Chinese 5 Spice, mustard powder or any other powdered herb.  Lay on a lined baking tray and roast for 15-20 minutes at 350°F until golden brown.
  2. Place nuts in a casserole dish, drizzle with olive (or preferred nut oil), and scatter fresh sprigs of herbs over top – rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage, bay leaves.  Even a few thin slices of lemon or orange zest work well.  Toss to combine.  Place in 350°F oven and bake for 10 – 15 minutes, tossing once or twice during cooking, until nuts are golden brown and aromatic. Cool and place in sealed jars with the seasonings and zest so flavors can develop.

Sauteed Nuts

This method provides more of a rich coating for nuts and is best used straight away or within a week. These are great on cheese platters and in rice, pasta and stir fries.

  1. Melt a mixture of 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a large sauté pan. 
  2. When melted, add a teaspoon of powdered seasoning such as in the roasted nuts, and stir until well blended.
  3. Add a cup of nuts of choice and stir to coat.  Cook over medium low heat, tossing pan constantly, until nuts are golden brown.  Pour into a strainer and allow to cool. 

Caramelized Nuts

Stove Top Version

  1. Place 1 cup of nuts, ¼ cup sugar and 1 tablespoon butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat, and cook, stirring for 5 minutes (seasonings such as cinnamon and nutmeg can be added while stirring).
  2. Pour onto parchment paper and allow to cool, then break apart with hands. Store in a sealed container at room temperature.

Oven then Stovetop Version

  1. Toast the nuts in the oven first. Next, make a traditional caramel in a saucepan with 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon butter and toss in the nuts when ready.  Try using a bit of Grand Marnier or other liqueur in the caramel and then pour onto parchment paper to cool.

Sweet Dusted Nuts

Whether it’s cocoa, mint powder, cinnamon or vanilla, making sweetened nuts is simple, and a great alternative to chocolate and candy. Sweet dusted nuts are great chopped and sprinkled on oatmeal, yogurt or ice cream.

  1. Toss nuts in whisked egg white, just enough to coat, then add powdered spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, all spice or ginger and a sprinkle of sugar. 
  2. Toss well then transfer to a lined baking sheet and bake on a low heat, 250°F, for 30-40 minutes or until golden and the mixture is caramelized on the nuts.

For cocoa or mint dusted:

  1. Soften ¼ cup honey until runny. Add a few drops of vanilla if desired then add 1 cup roasted nuts and toss to coat well. Strain off excess liquid. 
  2. Place cocoa in bowl, add nuts and toss to coat all nuts. The best way to do this is to lift and shake the bowl. Spread on a lined tray to dry. 
  3. For mint dusted, combine ¼ cup each: powdered sugar and corn starch. Add a few drops of peppermint essence.
  4. Add nuts to coat and proceed as above.