Adoree: Toasting nuts is necessary if you are going to use it for decoration or for topping your baked products. But if you are going to include the nuts in the baking process, you need not toast them anymore. Nuts are toasted to develop their flavor by allowing chemical reactions to occur. Aside from that, toasting also darkens the nuts and makes them crisp. Toasting also improves the flavor of slightly stale nuts.
To toast nuts, spread them in a single layer on a cookie sheet; then place them in the oven at 350 F for about 10 minutes. Watch the nuts carefully. They should have a uniform, light brown color, and a sweet, nutty taste. Another technique is the stovetop method. Simply place the nuts in a plain sauté pan without any oil. Again, watch the nuts carefully. You should swirl the pan constantly and let the nuts flip around to avoid burning them. I would say, though, that the oven technique yields a more uniform toasting.
Store leftover toasted nuts in an airtight container and refrigerate them. Toasted nuts oxidize and turn rancid quickly, so they should be used within a few days. To avoid wastage, keep nuts whole until they are ready to use. Chopped nuts oxidize faster because they have more surface area exposed to air. Toast only the nuts that you will use, as toasting initiates oxidation of the nut oil. Lastly, keep nuts away from sunlight because sunlight, like heat, also speeds up oxidation.
Jun Jun: That’s true, Marian. Of course, when toasting nuts, always keep in mind what you are going to use it for. If they are to be used for baking or cooking, then they need not be toasted; but if they are to be used as a garnish, toasting them will give them an additional texture and taste which you don’t get in the natural flavor. Keep whole nuts in the freezer for longer life; I actually kept my pecan nuts in the freezer for a year, and they tasted as good as the day after I bought them.
Q: I made leche flan the other day and there were bits of cooked egg yolks in the flan. I remember I had to answer a phone call when I combined the egg yolks and sugar. What could possibly have happened? (Jo Amanton)
Adoree: When sugar is placed on egg yolks and not stirred in, the egg yolks gel and appear to "cook". Sugar, being hygroscopic (the ability to attract moisture), pulls water from the egg yolks and dries them. Without water, the proteins in the yolk are closer together and quickly aggregate as though heat was applied. Jo, you may not have noticed it, but your egg yolks had already dried up. That’s why bits were visible in your leche flan.
To avoid this, never add sugar to yolks without stirring the two together. The yolks will thicken, but they will not solidify.
Jun Jun: The phenomenon that happens when sugar and egg yolks combine and the egg yolk cooks is known as "sugar burn". This happens because of what Adoree said; sugar, being hygroscopic, dehydrates the egg yolk and gives it that cooked appearance. As soon as you mix egg yolk and sugar, you must continually mix it so as not to cook the eggs. So that this won’t happen, just mix the egg with another ingredient before adding the sugar so that "burning" will not happen.
Q: Is there a difference between prunes and dried plums? (Bebsie Flor of Cebu City)
Adoree: There is no difference between prunes and dried plums. The terms can be used interchangeably.
Jun Jun: Adoree is right, in a way, but it really depends on the variety of plum that is used for prunes. You might tell me later that there is "champoy," and that this is a type of plum, so the answer could be a yes or no. So that you don’t get confused, Bebsie, just make sure to use prunes as labeled when needed.
