Filberts or Hazelnuts? Toss ‘em in your salads!

Depending on where you are from and how old you are, you may call these small round nuts a filbert or a hazelnut. I grew up in the Willamette Valley of Oregon and vividly remember the filbert trees at the end of the street. When all the nuts would fall to the ground, we would stomp on their hard shells to break them open. They were never considered a delicacy and we never thought about actually eating them. Years later when hazelnuts started appearing in cookbooks and on restaurant menus as an Oregon specialty, I pondered, “When did the lowly filbert become a sought-after hazelnut?” Today, hazelnuts provide a fancy addition to chocolate desserts and a sweet, toasted crunch to all kinds of salads. Two recipes where hazelnuts shine are my sister’s veggie pasta salad and a shaved Brussels sprouts and apple salad.

First, I want to credit the rise of the filbert to a good PR job from the organization previously known as the Oregon Filbert Commission. In 1981, they basically changed the nut’s name to “hazelnut” to conform to the common world standard. The hazelnut rose to further fame when it became Oregon’s official State Nut in 1989. Today when you drive through the beautiful hilly stretch of Yamhill County, southwest of Portland on the way to the Pacific, gorgeous vineyards and hazelnut orchards stretch as far as the eye can see. Currently, 99 percent of the U.S. hazelnut crop is produced in the Willamette Valley, although the Oregon crop is a mere 3-5 percent of the world hazelnut crop. 

Hazelnuts are covered in a tough outer shell that is exposed when the protective, fuzzy outer husk falls off during ripening. Inside the hard shells are the edible nuts, which are small and round with a pointed tip and a thin, dark brown skin that comes off when you roast them. Hazelnuts are harvested in late September or October after they have fallen to the ground. (I guess that’s when we started our stomping at the end of the street back in grade school.)

You typically find hazelnuts in grocery stores already shelled. Toasting or roasting hazelnuts intensifies the nut’s natural sweetness. You can roast them ahead of time and store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place or refrigerator for 4-6 months or in the freezer for up to a year. 

Roasting or toasting your nuts

For a large quantity, place the nuts on a parchment-lined baking sheet and toast them in the oven at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Stir them two or three times, watching them closely. When they start to smell nutty and fragrant, it’s time to take them out of the oven.

If you’re just toasting a few to use in a recipe, then use a skillet on your stovetop. Over medium heat, toast the hazelnuts until golden brown and fragrant, about 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In both cases, after removing from the heat, place the nuts on a clean kitchen towel. Cover/wrap them up and let the nuts steam for one minute. Then, with the nuts in the the towel, gently rub the towel along your kitchen counter to release their skins. The skins will rub right off. Well, at least some of them will. It’s actually kind of a pain because the skins get everywhere. Don’t worry about getting all the skins completely off!

Toast them dry if you are going to store them. If you want to use in a recipe right away, you can add seasoning before toasting.

Aunt Joanie’s Hazelnut Pasta Salad

My sister created this recipe, which I’ve tried to capture in writing below. It’s one of her standard salads for summer family barbecues. I’ve seen her kids put away BOWLS of this stuff. Anyhow, I’ve opted to use “aunt” over “sister” in the recipe’s name because that Aunt Infestation Geico commercial makes me laugh. Every. Time. Watch it to the end for Aunt Joanie’s appearance. Coincidentally, my husband’s name is “Teddy” and that makes me laugh even harder. Aunt Joanie’s here! With her pasta salad no doubt.

Ingredients

1 lb. rotini pasta

1 ½ cups carrots, finely diced

1 ½ cups finely chopped broccoli

1 ½ cups finely chopped cauliflower
1 cup or more of cubed pepper jack cheese, preferably Tillamook

1+ cup toasted hazelnuts

1 bottle of Bernstein Cheddar & Garlic (or just Cheddar) salad dressing; you can also use your favorite brand of Italian dressing

Directions

Boil pasta according to directions. Rinse immediately with cold water and drain well. 

Toast hazelnuts in a little butter and garlic salt in a skillet over medium heat. (You can also smoke the hazelnuts in a smoker or barbecue.) Stir constantly so they don’t burn. When they smell fragrant, remove from heat and place onto a towel. Cover and let steam one minute before rubbing the skins off. Set aside to cool. Then give the hazelnuts a rough chop. 

For the veggies, I’ve provided amounts above, but really you can just eyeball the amounts. I use a large cutting board and make same-size piles of each veggie. Purple cauliflower if you can find it would be a pretty addition. The trick is to chop your veggies uniformly and quite small, about the size of a hazelnut. This way the color is evenly distributed throughout the salad and you get all the ingredients in each bite.  

Add all the veggies to the pasta and mix to distribute. Add the cubed cheese and cooled hazelnuts. Mix and chill well. Shortly before serving, add the dressing and stir to evenly coat. You may need to add more dressing for leftovers as the pasta soaks it up quickly. And I saw my husband sprinkling parmesan cheese on top of his the other day.

Shredded Brussels Sprouts and Apple Salad with Toasted Hazelnuts

Another salad that I tried just recently is this yummy combo of crunch with brussels sprouts, apples and hazelnuts. The flavors are nice for fall, but the fresh crunch is good for spring and summer as well. The complete recipe is on the Oregonhazelnuts.org site. I substituted Honeycrisp apples, because duh, they’re Honeycrisp. My two fancy olive oils that I use for salads are Brightland Alive and Pineapple Collaborative. Yes, I am a sucker for packaging.

Vinaigrette

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

¼ teaspoon salt

Salad

½ tablespoon good quality olive oil

1 pound Brussels sprouts, stemmed and thinly sliced or shredded

½ cup julienned or thinly sliced Granny Smith apple

½ cup julienned or thinly sliced Honeycrisp apple (my apple of choice)

½ cup toasted Oregon hazelnuts, chopped

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together or put in a jar and shake until it reaches a smooth consistency.

If you haven’t already toasted your hazelnuts, do that first and let cool.

Shred the Brussels sprouts. The easiest way to do this is with a food processor. Otherwise, trim the ends and thinly slice with a sharp knife. Or you may be able to find them already shredded and sliced at your grocer.

Heat the ½ tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the shredded Brussels sprouts and sauté for about 60-90 seconds, just until green and they barely start to wilt. You want them to still be crunchy. Remove from skillet and put in a shallow bowl or plate to cool.

Next, julienne your apples so they are the size of thin matchsticks. Combine the cooled Brussels sprouts with the apples. Toss with the dressing to coat evenly. Place into a serving bowl and top with the chopped hazelnuts. Can be served at room temperature or chilled.

Note — I couldn’t resist adding some clumps of goat cheese. I little crispy prosciutto on top sounds good as well.

More filbert fun

For a few fun filbert (or hazelnut) facts, visit: https://oregonhazelnuts.org/about/

I’ll be off looking for a dessert or two, or three, that calls for hazelnuts. Perhaps I’ll make these Salted Hazelnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies or attempt to make this Chocolate Hazelnut Babka from the Cloudy Kitchen.