I recently noticed that Trader Joe's no longer
has pine nuts. I was buying them there because
they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.

Today I heard on National Public Radio about
a taste disorder termed "pine mouth", which
is an adverse reaction to eating pine nuts.
It was speculated this was caused either by
rancid pine nuts or Chinese pine nuts from
two species of trees not known to produce
edible pine nuts. I don't know if the
disappearance of pine nuts from Trader Joe's
is related to this.

Apparently, this phenomenon has been known
for some time.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1184261

On a related note, the Korean cooking show
Cooking Time recently recommended washing pine
nuts, saying the fat in pine nuts absorbs dust
from the air. I no longer try to make sense
of anything they say. Watching that show is
like watching the religious broadcasts of the
late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
so wacky.

Mark Thorson wrote:
> I recently noticed that Trader Joe's no longer
> has pine nuts. I was buying them there because
> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.
>
> Today I heard on National Public Radio about
> a taste disorder termed "pine mouth", which
> is an adverse reaction to eating pine nuts.
> It was speculated this was caused either by
> rancid pine nuts or Chinese pine nuts from
> two species of trees not known to produce
> edible pine nuts. I don't know if the
> disappearance of pine nuts from Trader Joe's
> is related to this.
>
> Apparently, this phenomenon has been known
> for some time.
>
> http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1184261
>
> On a related note, the Korean cooking show
> Cooking Time recently recommended washing pine
> nuts, saying the fat in pine nuts absorbs dust
> from the air. I no longer try to make sense
> of anything they say. Watching that show is
> like watching the religious broadcasts of the
> late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
> so wacky.

Interesting about TJ's. I seem to recall that they had stopped
getting items from China (unless they were components in something
else).

--
Jean B.

"Jean B." wrote:
>
> Interesting about TJ's. I seem to recall that they had stopped
> getting items from China (unless they were components in something
> else).

Yes, they did. And pine nuts were still available
after that. I don't remember for sure, but I think
their pine nuts were from Peru, shortly before they
were discontinued.

It could be after the massive almond crisis, they
decided to phase-out nuts that had any safety issue,
and pine nuts would qualify for that, in spades.

Either that, or maybe they were watching Cooking Time.

In article >,
Mark Thorson > wrote:

> "Jean B." wrote:
> >
> > Interesting about TJ's. I seem to recall that they had stopped
> > getting items from China (unless they were components in something
> > else).
>
> Yes, they did. And pine nuts were still available
> after that. I don't remember for sure, but I think
> their pine nuts were from Peru, shortly before they
> were discontinued.
>
> It could be after the massive almond crisis, they
> decided to phase-out nuts that had any safety issue,
> and pine nuts would qualify for that, in spades.

Well, if it was the "pine mouth" thing you mentioned, I don't know that
it was a safety issue, but it sure was annoying -- a sort of bitter,
metallic taste in the back of my throat that went on for a bunch of
days. I used the pine nuts (from TJ's) to make a fish dish that two of
us ate. I got "pine mouth", she didn't.

Isaac

Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I settled
on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.

Paul

On Jul 5, 11:46*am, "Paul M. Cook" > wrote:
> Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. *So I settled
> on sunflower seeds. *Close, but not quite the same.
>

After years of making pesto, trying different nuts, my advice is just
skip the nuts altogether.

spamtrap1888 > wrote:

>After years of making pesto, trying different nuts, my advice is just
>skip the nuts altogether.

Reasonable from a culinary viewpoint, but from a nutritional
viewpoint the nuts are there for protein completion.

Steve

In article
>,
spamtrap1888 > wrote:

> On Jul 5, 11:46*am, "Paul M. Cook" > wrote:
> > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. *So I settled
> > on sunflower seeds. *Close, but not quite the same.
> >
>
> After years of making pesto, trying different nuts, my advice is just
> skip the nuts altogether.

So how would you thicken it? Extra basil? Maybe spinach leaves?
--
Peace! Om

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>
*Only Irish *coffee provides in a single glass all four *essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar *and fat. --Alex Levine

On Jul 6, 6:09*am, Omelet > wrote:
> In article
> >,
>
> *spamtrap1888 > wrote:
> > On Jul 5, 11:46*am, "Paul M. Cook" > wrote:
> > > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> > > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. *So I settled
> > > on sunflower seeds. *Close, but not quite the same.
>
> > After years of making pesto, trying different nuts, my advice is just
> > skip the nuts altogether.
>
> So how would you thicken it? *Extra basil? *Maybe spinach leaves?

The garden is pumping out basil right now, so stretching it is not an
issue. All I want it to do texturally is cling to pasta, which it does
fine.

On Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:09:59 -0500, Omelet >
wrote:

>In article
>,
> spamtrap1888 > wrote:
>
>> On Jul 5, 11:46*am, "Paul M. Cook" > wrote:
>> > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
>> > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. *So I settled
>> > on sunflower seeds. *Close, but not quite the same.
>> >
>>
>> After years of making pesto, trying different nuts, my advice is just
>> skip the nuts altogether.
>
>So how would you thicken it? Extra basil? Maybe spinach leaves?

I think I'd use less oil and maybe a bit more paremsan cheese. Walnuts
also make a very good alternative. I'm sure glad I have a stock of
pine nuts already in the freezer.

koko
--

There is no love more sincere than the love of food
George Bernard Shaw

www.kokoscornerblog.com
updated 07/05/10
Watkins natural spices
www.apinchofspices.com

> Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I
> settled
> on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.

Ah, the poor masses. I have hundreds of those trees on the mountain side
where my cabin is located. Guess I'll go pine nutting this fall.

The guys who sell them on the street in Cedar City, Utah, get twenty bucks
for a sandwich sized ziplock of them. And then it's not really that full.

Steve

visit my blog at http://cabgbypasssurgery.com

On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 12:39:33 -0700, "Steve B"
> wrote:

>
>
> > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I
> > settled
> > on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.
>
> Ah, the poor masses. I have hundreds of those trees on the mountain side
> where my cabin is located. Guess I'll go pine nutting this fall.
>
> The guys who sell them on the street in Cedar City, Utah, get twenty bucks
> for a sandwich sized ziplock of them. And then it's not really that full.
>
Have you actually gone pine nutting before? They are not naked - you
have to roast and release the nut/seed. I'd rather buy them.

--
Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.

In article >,
sf > wrote:

> Have you actually gone pine nutting before? They are not naked - you
> have to roast and release the nut/seed. I'd rather buy them.

Ooh, ooh, I have! The single leaf pinyon is one of our state trees. It
was our only one until the bristlecone showed PR value.
If you are a local or know one, you wait till the cones open by
themselves (usually early October). Then you put a big tarp below the
tree and beat hell out of the tree with a long pole. Either pine nuts or
open cones fall. You gather the pine nuts and move on to the next tree.
Then you go home and discard the floaters in a bucket of water. Then you
clean off the pitch on your body with turpentine. It's a young person's
game. Commercially harvested pine nuts cost anywhere from six to ten
bucks a pound in Nevada depending on the yearly harvest. I'd rather buy
them too. I love them and believe they give me gout. They freeze nicely
in the shell.

Cooking fresh pine nuts in the shell

Utensils:
A shallow ten inch frying pan you don't minding scrubbing pitch out of.
A spoon you don't mind getting pitchy.

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh pine nuts in the shell
1/4 cup of salt
water to cover the pine nuts in the pan

Method:
Pour the pine nuts in the pan, add the salt and cover the the pine nuts
with water just until they are all submerged plus a smidge extra.
Cook on medium until you hear a little popping in the pan while watching
TV and having a beer.
The pine nuts should be almost but not quite dry, and there should be a
salty look to them. Now you have to pay attention for a couple of
minutes.
Stir the pine nuts every thirty seconds or so while marveling at the
salt accumulating on the bottom of the pan. This is normal.
When the pine nuts lose most of the slick sheen caused by moisture on
the shell, transfer them to a plate with a couple of paper towels on it
to let them cool.
Eat at your leisure for a week or two. When shelling the pine nuts the
old fashioned way, you put one lengthwise to throat between your teeth
and crack the shell. You may have to rotate it ninety degrees and crack
it again. Half the shell comes off (or should). Spit that at your dog
and pull the pine nut out with your teeth. Flip the other half of the
shell at your dog.
Most areas of the country have indigenous food that others of us dream
about. Pine nuts are mine. They're sold here from mid October to mid
November.

leo

Steve B wrote:
>> Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
>> And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I
>> settled
>> on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.
>
> Ah, the poor masses. I have hundreds of those trees on the mountain side
> where my cabin is located. Guess I'll go pine nutting this fall.
>
> The guys who sell them on the street in Cedar City, Utah, get twenty bucks
> for a sandwich sized ziplock of them. And then it's not really that full.
>
> Steve
>
> visit my blog at http://cabgbypasssurgery.com
>

Damn! Piñons are ever netter!

--
Jean B.

"Paul M. Cook" wrote:
>
> Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I settled
> on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.

I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.

Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts. Cashews make a pesto
with a poor texture -- I'm tempted to say gummy, but that's
the wrong word. I'm not sure there is a word to describe
the texture of cashew pesto.

Mark Thorson > wrote:

>I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
>Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.

>Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
>as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts.

Where do pine nuts rank relative to almonds/hazelnuts/pecans?

Steve

Steve Pope wrote:
>
> Mark Thorson > wrote:
>
> >I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
> >Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.
>
> >Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
> >as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts.
>
> Where do pine nuts rank relative to almonds/hazelnuts/pecans?

They are better than almonds, hazelnuts, or pecans.

Sqwertz > wrote:

>Looks like Brazil nuts are almost identical to pine nuts in fat
>and protein. Hazelnut after that.

Looking at the USDA site, there is no combination of pine nuts and
wheat that is lysine-complete.

So, scratch the protein completeness theory. Feel free to
just leave the nuts out.

Steve

Mark wrote:

> I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
> Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.
>
> Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
> as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts. Cashews make a pesto
> with a poor texture -- I'm tempted to say gummy, but that's
> the wrong word. I'm not sure there is a word to describe
> the texture of cashew pesto.

I've made a pseudo-Thai pesto before using macadamia nuts. Macadamias seem
well-suited for that kind of preparation because they break down easily, the
same way pine nuts do.

Bob

In article >,
Mark Thorson > wrote:

> "Paul M. Cook" wrote:
> >
> > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I settled
> > on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.
>
> I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
> Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.

EW!!!
Both of those are pretty strongly flavored!
I may consider pecans or cashews.

>
> Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
> as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts. Cashews make a pesto
> with a poor texture -- I'm tempted to say gummy, but that's
> the wrong word. I'm not sure there is a word to describe
> the texture of cashew pesto.

Probably similar to peanut, but how is the flavor?
I'd certainly avoid peanuts for pesto. <g>

Hm, makes me wonder how macadamia would work!
--
Peace! Om

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat. --Alex Levine

"Omelet" > wrote in message
news
> In article >,
> Mark Thorson > wrote:
>
>> "Paul M. Cook" wrote:
>> >
>> > Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at
>> > TJs.
>> > And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I
>> > settled
>> > on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.
>>
>> I recommend Brazil nuts for pesto, followed by walnuts.
>> Both make a better pesto than pine nuts.
>
> EW!!!
> Both of those are pretty strongly flavored!
> I may consider pecans or cashews.
>
>>
>> Almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans are not bad, but not nearly
>> as good as Brazil nuts or walnuts. Cashews make a pesto
>> with a poor texture -- I'm tempted to say gummy, but that's
>> the wrong word. I'm not sure there is a word to describe
>> the texture of cashew pesto.
>
> Probably similar to peanut, but how is the flavor?
> I'd certainly avoid peanuts for pesto. <g>
>
> Hm, makes me wonder how macadamia would work!
> --
> Peace! Om
>
>
I use walnuts almost routinely, and like the taste and consistency.

Kent

Kent wrote about pesto:

> I use walnuts almost routinely, and like the taste and consistency.

It's surprising to me how many people are allergic or sensitive to walnuts.
I always thought of them as commonplace, nearly even a staple. (In
Russian/Georgian cuisine and in parts of Italy and Turkey, they *are* a
staple.) But Lin's got a sensitivity to walnuts, and so did the girlfriend I
had before I was lucky enough to find Lin.

I had thought that maybe the sensitivity was to the walnut skins, and that
maybe removing the skins would allow people to eat walnuts, but a little
online research found that the allergy/sensitivity is often to an amino acid
in which walnuts are unusually high, and the amino acid is found in the meat
of the nut, so skinning wouldn't make things any better. (Good thing, I
guess, because it's a pain to remove the skins from walnuts!)

Bob

In article >,
"Paul M. Cook" > wrote:

> Yep, made pesto last week and was surprised to find no pine nuts at TJs.
> And my local grocery store wants 10 bucks for a couple ounces. So I settled
> on sunflower seeds. Close, but not quite the same.
>
> Paul

I wonder if pumpkin seeds would work?
--
Peace! Om

Web Albums: <http://picasaweb.google.com/OMPOmelet>
*Only Irish *coffee provides in a single glass all four *essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar *and fat. --Alex Levine

On 2010-07-05, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.

Who isn't?

> late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
> so wacky.

That bizarro nutbag finally kicked the bucket? He had that same
slow-down-to-look fascination as a bad car accident.

nb

"notbob" > wrote in message
...
> On 2010-07-05, Mark Thorson > wrote:
>> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.
>
> Who isn't?
>
>> late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
>> so wacky.
>
> That bizarro nutbag finally kicked the bucket? He had that same
> slow-down-to-look fascination as a bad car accident.
>

Looooonggg time ago. His daughter has taken his place.

Paul

On Mon, 05 Jul 2010 20:00:38 GMT, notbob wrote:

> On 2010-07-05, Mark Thorson > wrote:
>> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.
>
> Who isn't?
>
>> late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
>> so wacky.
>
> That bizarro nutbag finally kicked the bucket? He had that same
> slow-down-to-look fascination as a bad car accident.
>
> nb

he was nuts, but he was pretty ****in' smart - unlike most of the rubes
preaching on t.v.

your pal,
blake

On Mon, 05 Jul 2010 09:42:41 -0700, Mark Thorson wrote:
>
> On a related note, the Korean cooking show
> Cooking Time recently recommended washing pine
> nuts, saying the fat in pine nuts absorbs dust
> from the air. I no longer try to make sense
> of anything they say. Watching that show is
> like watching the religious broadcasts of the
> late Dr. Gene Scott. I watch it because it's
> so wacky.

god bless dr. scott. any t.v. preacher who smoked a cigar on-air is o.k.
with me.

rockin' band, too.

your pal,
blake

On Jul 5, 11:42*am, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> I recently noticed that Trader Joe's no longer
> has pine nuts. *I was buying them there because
> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.
>
> Today I heard on National Public Radio about
> a taste disorder termed "pine mouth", which
> is an adverse reaction to eating pine nuts.
> It was speculated this was caused either by
> rancid pine nuts or Chinese pine nuts from
> two species of trees not known to produce
> edible pine nuts. *I don't know if the
> disappearance of pine nuts from Trader Joe's
> is related to this.
>
> Apparently, this phenomenon has been known
> for some time.
>
> http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1184261
>
> On a related note, the Korean cooking show
> Cooking Time recently recommended washing pine
> nuts, saying the fat in pine nuts absorbs dust
> from the air. *I no longer try to make sense
> of anything they say. *Watching that show is
> like watching the religious broadcasts of the
> late Dr. Gene Scott. *I watch it because it's
> so wacky.

I've never had pine nuts because I'm severely allergic to tree nuts,
so why try something that might send me to the ER? So, if there's a
shortage, Mark, you may have my allotment. ;-)

N.

Nancy2 > wrote in news:521fe940-e7cc-4bb9-be93-
:

> On Jul 5, 11:42*am, Mark Thorson > wrote:
>> I recently noticed that Trader Joe's no longer
>> has pine nuts. *I was buying them there because
>> they were much cheaper than Whole Foods.
>>

> I've never had pine nuts because I'm severely allergic to tree nuts,
> so why try something that might send me to the ER? So, if there's a
> shortage, Mark, you may have my allotment. ;-)
>


There's no shortage over here...... I *love* them in dishes.

I get a couple of packets, roast them in a hot wok, cool, place in a sealed
container in the fridge, and use over the next 3-4 weeks.


--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia


Paratroopers dont die. We just go to Hell and regroup.