Foraging by John Lewis-Stempel

Author:John Lewis-Stempel
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780716023210
Publisher: Constable Robinson (eBook)

HAZEL Corylus avellana

Local Names: FILBERT, FILBEARD, COB, COBNUT, COBBLY-CUT, NUTTALL, WOODNUT

Season: September–October

The Hazel is a shrubby tree found in woods and hedges, distinctive for its grey bark, yellow catkins and nuts, the latter encased in a hard shell which appears on the tree from August to October. The English name derives from the Anglo-Saxon haesel, meaning hat, in reference to the frilly cap in which the nut sits.

The nomenclature might be medieval, but the culinary use of Hazelnuts is prehistoric, and they formed an important item in the diet of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers. Pick a Hazelnut to eat and you are doing something that links you across time to your very first forebears.

The nuts remain on the tree until ripe, falling off in early autumn, by which time the cap and shell will have turned, or be beginning to turn, brown. Before this the Hazelnut is uselessly soft. In Normandy in the Middle Ages the tree was allocated to Saint Philibert (Filbert) because this Benedictine saint’s day on 22 August was when the nuts were considered ripe. Actually, 22 August is somewhat optimistic; try two weeks later.

You’ll find stiff local competition for the nuts, which are avidly sought after by packs of animals and birds, led by the squirrel and the jay.

The nuts can be stored in their shell in a cool, dry place for weeks, even months, before use. They are extremely nutritious, containing proportionately more protein than a hen’s egg, as well as a significant amount of oil.

Using the nuts: in the raw state they can be chopped into salads or onto yogurt, or ground up and added to biscuits and cakes. I like to add the ground nuts to milk to make a smoothie. Alternatively, ‘Hazelnut milk’ can be made by soaking nuts overnight, draining, then whizzing in a blender at the ratio of 1 part Hazelnuts to 3 parts water.

If anything, roasted Hazelnuts are an even more delicious treat. Put in the oven on a baking tray at 180°C/Gas Mark 4 for about 10 minutes, watching like a hawk to avoid burning. When cooled, rub off skins between your hands, and eat. Then again, the roast nuts can be crushed and added as topping to cakes and cereals. Or put in a jar and covered with honey, to be spooned out as a snack. They can even be pressed for a delicate oil ideal on salads or in cooking.

The Hazel, in folklore, is the Tree of Knowledge. Hazel sticks are the rods used for dowsing water.

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