Let’s face it… most acorns are hard to crack. Here are my two favorite methods:
Get a large tin cookie sheet and a river rock that weighs a couple of pounds. Watch your fingers and crack away.
The second way is my favorite. Get a Texan Nut Sheller. It will get your acorns cracked. Be CAREFUL. This nutcracker is razor sharp. Literally. So, keep it away from children.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
Some folks turn their nose up to acorns as food, but acorns are to be respected. They sustained Native populations for thousands of years. They are not poisonous but you must leach them first. Added to recipes, they are delicious. Many a dish is made better by the addition of acorns. Gather ‘em, crack ‘em, leach ‘em, cook ‘em and eat ‘em.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
I’m often asked what acorns taste like. They have their own distinct flavor, so it’s hard to tell, but the closest I can come is that they taste a little bit like olives. Of course, they must be leached first, but then they can be cooked in a myriad of ways.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
What will happen if we all eat acorns from the trees that grow around us? Will we become one with the earth? Hope so…
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
WHITE OAK or FORK-LEAF WHITE OAK or RIDGE WHITE OAK or STAVE OAK:
Some of these oaks live to be 800 years old. They grow in the eastern half of the United States, (including parts of Canada, parts of the Midwest and parts of the South). It attains its greatest size in the valleys of the western slopes of the Allegheny Mountains and the bottomlands of the lower Ohio Basin. The acorns are “sweet-meated” and mature during early autumn, carrying no acorns through the winter. The shiny, brown acorn is three-fourths to one inch long, with about one-fourth its length in a shallow cup attached directly to the twig or by a very short stem.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
Once acorns are leached, you’ll be surprised at the flavor that they impart. Whether it be to your scrambled eggs, your lasagna or to your favorite chocolate cake recipe. They are a natural flavor enhancer. It’s a lot of fun to get your friends and all the kids together to collect acorns. Peanut butter acorn cookies are a fan favorite.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
It’s that time of year and for some people it’s a whopper. Acorns falling everywhere. The rodents are scurrying to get their share. Birds are diving and insects are attracted to the food fair (fight sometimes). You can get into the action. Get yourself a basket and collect acorns. Try your hand at some of the gourmet meals that can be prepared once you’ve leached your stash. Get one with the earth and find out what’s cooking.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
Acorns can be leached in a shorter period by various methods, like constant water running through them, but I like to leach them in the refrigerator for at least a week. Leaching large quantities in big bowls or buckets is fine too, but difficult to keep refrigerated.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
This is a great year for acorns. Reports are coming in. The birds, squirrels and other mammals are having a hoe down. What will your role be? You can rake them, but you can also bake them. Find out how and join the hoe down.
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
Leached acorns can also be dried and stored. During the drying process, be sure to stir them daily to keep the grains of acorns from sticking together, otherwise, it forms little “acorn rocks.”
Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:
suellenocean 