http://ukadventureracing.co.uk/groups/east-anglian-ar-training-group Husking the walnuts.
http://modernsmile.com/products/whitening-toothpaste Snowy days and evenings are perfect for reading and writing, but still you feel that some kind of manual occupation is necessary; so after cleaning and organizing my kitchen area a bit, I put a big basket of black walnuts in front of the wood stove and began husking. Like all true nuts walnuts come with an enclosing fruit, in this case a green-black splotchy affair about the size of an apple. I slice the husks open with a knife and then peel them off the nut. The husks can be used as a furniture stain, though I have used them only on a small scale, to fix light-colored nicks on stained wood (for which the husks work very well).
After husking I ideally let the nuts dry a bit before attempting to crack them. But cracking them is difficult under almost any circumstances. I have heard that a vise is the best way of doing it; but having neither vise nor good work table to mount one on, my usual procedure is to put a board over the nut and whack it with a hammer, which usually results in a mess of walnut and shell fragments. I still find the procedure worth it, though, for the unusual flavor of the nut, which to most people tastes like a walnut soaked in furniture stain, but to me has the bracing distinctiveness of true nutrition. (Different strokes for different folks; there are many flavors I can’t stand, but this is not one of them).
I do not live in good walnut country; they like river-bottoms and deep soil, but they were an important food source (and lumber source) for farmers and old ones can be found on good farmland. Since most people cannot be bothered to harvest or open the nuts, they are available to foragers such as myself without too much difficulty. “Qui vult nucleum, frangere nucem oportet.” “If you want nuts, you gotta crack husks.”
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