LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2018

FLAVOURS  HAZELNUTS

Hazelnuts are the fruit of a tree native to North America, Europe and Asia. The European varieties produce larger nuts with thinner shells than our native species and are the ones used for commercial crops. Turkey is the world’s largest producer of hazelnuts, and Italy’s Ferrero SpA (of Nutella fame) is the largest consumer of hazelnuts worldwide.

European hazelnut species are less hardy than our na- tive varieties and are susceptible to blights when grown in other regions, but there has been suc- cess with hybrids in the milder regions of North America such as Oregon and Washington, and there is an invest- ment in trials of this lucrative crop in Ontario, Serbia, Chile, Australia and South Africa. Buy Look for hazel- nuts with smooth glossy shells and no cracks. Shake them to make sure they don’t rattle (a sign that they are old and have dried out). Shelled hazelnuts should look plump and smell fresh. Use shelled nuts within a month of purchase, or wrap well and store in the freezer for up to a year.

PHOTO ©iSTOCK.COM/REPUBLICA

Flavour Matches On their own, roasted salted hazelnuts make a delicious snack, but they also pair well with lots of flavours. In the sweet realm, the combination of chocolate and hazelnut reigns supreme, but hazel- nuts are also great with caramel, coffee, coconut, bananas, peaches and berries. They go beautifully with the flavour of whole grains like oats. And on the savoury side, their rich flavour is a great foil for green vegetables such as beans, Brussels sprouts, spinach and lettuces or as a complement to squash, poultry and bacon.

How to Roast Bake hazelnuts on a baking sheet at 350°F (180°C) for 10 to 15 minutes or un- til they are lightly golden and skins have split (watch carefully as they can go from perfect to over-roasted pretty quickly). Pour nuts from baking sheet onto a clean kitchen towel and fold it over the nuts. Allow nuts to steam for a few minutes then rub vigorously between the two lay- ers of towels to loosen skins. Don’t worry if some skin remains stuck to the nuts.

HEALTH PROPERTIES HAZELNUTS ARE HEALTHY! THEY CONTAIN MORE FOLATE THAN ANY OTHER NUT AND ARE ONE OF THE ONLY NUTS TO CONTAIN VITAMIN A (A NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT WITH CANCER- PREVENTION PROPERTIES).

40  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2018