Foraging and Using Acorns

Fall is a unique time for foraging because of the shift in what is available, nuts as opposed to greens and fruits. Nuts are an important forage to add to your list because they provide carbohydrates and fats, something often not found in significant enough amounts in the normal greens and fruits that we immediately think of when someone talks about foraging. In our area, Black Walnuts, Hickory Nuts and Acorns provide a variety of fat and carbohydrate sources, each with their own delicious uses. Hickory Nut Milk (Kanuchi) and Black Walnut Nutty Fingers are two favorites, along with Brown Sugar Acorn Flour Cookies. There are many ways to process acorns to use in flour, but this is the way I originally learned. Through the years I have tried other methods, but this one is easiest to me. You may find you prefer a different way.

How to Make Acorn Flour

Nutritional percentage per nut, depending on the species:

Fat: between 1.1 and 31.3%

Protein: between 2.3 and 8.6 %

Carbohydrates: between 32.7 and 89.7%

*Different oaks bear acorns with different shapes and differing levels of tannins.

*Generally, freshly fallen acorns are used, but even sprouted acorns are OK. They have begun to turn their starch into sugar and are sure to not be wormy. Acorns with dark spots will generally have worms or other rot.

Preparing:

* Rinse acorns in the sink in cool water. Discard any floating acorns, as they have gone bad.

* Spread the acorns on a towel and blot dry.

* Remove the meat from the acorn shell with a nutcracker. Cracking them longways instead of sideways makes the top split open which makes removing the shell much easier. Heating the acorns first also can help the shelling process.

* Inspect acorn meats and discard any that have mealy worms or other problems.

Leaching & Grinding:

All acorns, regardless of the variety, should be leached with water to remove bitter tannins. Without leaching tannins, the acorns will make your mouth feel cottony, constipate you and likely make you feel nauseous.

Start two pots of water boiling. Drop the raw, shell-less acorns into one pot and boil until the water is the color of strong tea. Strain the nuts through a colander and drop the strained nuts into the second pot of boiling water. Discard the dark water from the first pot, then refill it and bring the water to a boil again. Repeat the process for 8-10 changes of water. The water will never get completely clear and even though it still has a brown tint to it, if you have done this many changes of water, the tannins will be sufficiently leached from the acorn meat.
Spread leached acorns to dry on cookie sheets in a warm place. If it is hot out, lay the cookie sheets in the sun. You can also put them in an oven set to “warm” or put the acorns in a dehydrator set on the lowest heat. It will not take long for them to dry.
When mostly dry, grind the acorns in a blender, food processor or seed/coffee mill. Spread the ground acorn meal to dry on cookie sheets. Grind again if necessary until you are left with a flour or cornmeal-like substance. If using a Vitamix processor, one grinding is generally enough.

Since acorns are high in fat, store dried flour in jars in the refrigerator or a cool, dark pantry. Light and air are the main reasons fats go rancid. You can also freeze your fresh acorn meal.

Cooking with the Flour:

Acorn flour has no gluten, so bread made with only acorn flour will be too crumbly. Instead, use acorn flour as a “filler” when regular flour is scarce or to add flavor. Swap acorn flour into recipes by replacing no more than half of the amount of flour originally called for.

Roasted Acorns:

Once tannins are leached from acorns, you may also roast them to eat. Simply skip the grinding step.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Pour the acorns into a single layer on an ungreased, rimmed cookie sheet.
Cook the nuts until they turn a chocolate brown color. Do not over bake or they will become too hard to eat.
Remove the acorns from the oven and let them cool. Salt to taste.