walnuts?

[silentmeow]

Drying Walnuts?

Help needed here...just picked up a lot of english walnuts from our tree and decided to try and dry them for use later. Most of the hulls or green skins are off. Do I just let them air dry outside for a bit or what? I live in the country so we have lots and lots of night creatures, my cats keep the small 4-foots away but one never knows, drying them outside sound counter-productive! I'd like to use them in a fudge or something. This is my first time with my own nuts so any informations would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Michael in FtW]

You don't want to "dry" them!

Walnuts in the shell are good for 6-months upto 1-year as long as they shell has not dried out and split - stored in a ventilated container in a cool, dry, dark place.

Walnuts are very high in unsaturated fats - so they go rancid quicker than most other nuts. For long term storage - shell them and put the nut meats in an air-tight plastic freezer bag, something like ziplock freezer bags, squeeze out all the air you can and store them in your freezer for 6-months to a year. If you have a vacuum sealer, something like a FoodSaver, they will last even longer.

To "freshen" then up before using - you can roast them in a 150-F oven for 5-10 minutes.