Eating a few walnuts (skin included) during the week prevents blood cloths in our veins. It reduces the risk of brest cancer and prostate cancer.

Walnuts contain rare and very powerful antioxidants that help to prevent thickening of the artery walls (atherosclerosis). It is good for diabetics (type 2), it fits in a weight loss program, and it improves the reproductive performance of men. Several studies suggest walnuts improve our brain functions.

Like all nuts, they contain both fat and carbohydrates. The glycemic index of walnuts is 15 (very low).

The nuts have a nice and strong flavour. You can eat them as such, but they do better in combination with other ingredients. Well know combinations are: Walnuts with apple, with all kinds of cheese, with prunes, with aubergine, with chili peppers, with chicken, with coffee, with apricots and with courgette.

Recipes with Walnuts:

1. Walnut, Apricot, Goat Cheese and Quinoa Salad

Preparation time: appr. 30 minutes

Ingredients: (2 persons)

• a handful peeled walnuts and with the skin
• 80 grams quinoa
• a quarter of a cucumber
• a handful of dried apricots
• 50 grams of soft goat cheese
• black olives
• extra virgen olive oil

Instructions:

1. Swell the apricots. You can do this in water, which takes 7 hours. Alternatively, you can put them in the micro wave (250 grams with 700ml water, 600 Watt, 12 minutes).
2. Cook the quinoa in water: 12 minutes for white quinoa and 15 for black. When done, drain the water and rinse with cold water. Let it cool.
3. Cut the cumcumber into blocks and mix with the quinoa
4. Divide the mix over 2 deep plates
5. Add the olives
6. Cut the swollen apricots in 4 or 6 pieces and add them
7. Add the goat cheese in little pieces
8. Add the walnuts in little pieces
9. Finish with the extra virgen olive oil, salt and peper

2. Walnut Ruccula Salad

Preparation time: appr. 15 minutes

++Ingredients: (2 persons)**

• 100 grams peeled walnuts and with the skin
• 100 grams rucola
• 30 grams pine seeds
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 apples (Granny Smith
• 30 ml walnut oil
• 25 ml apple vinegar
• juice of ¹⁄₂ lemon
• 1 table spoon mustard
• 1 garlic clove

Instructions:

1. Fry the pine seeds until they are dark, but not black
2. break the walnuts into pieces but do not crumble
3. cut the apple into pieces
4. mix the rucola, apple and walnuts with the juice of the 1 lemon
5. For the dressing: mix the walnut oil, the apple vinegar, the juice of the ¹⁄₂ lemon, the mustard and add the pressed garlic to it.
6. Sprinkle the dressing over the salad just before serving.

3. Penne with Walnut and Courgette

Preparation time: appr. 20 minutes

Ingredients: (2 persons)

• 2 red onions
• 1 big courgette or 2 small
• 75 gram walnuts
• 400 gram penne (preferably whole wheat)
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• 2 table spoons of olive oil
• 100 ml cream
• 2 teaspoons fresh tyme leafs
• 50 gram grated Parmezan cheese

Instructions:

1. peel the onions and cut into thin rings.
2. wash the courgette and cut in thin slices.
3. cut the walnuts in pieces.
4. cook the penne in the vegetable bouillon (al dente).
5. fry the onions and the courgette slices during 3 minutes in the hot olive
6. oil until they are soft and brown.
7. drain the water from the penne.
8. add the onions and the courgette and the walnuts.
9. add peper and the Parmezan cheese.

Tip: use aubergine instead of courgette, exchange the Parmazan cheese with crumbled fresh goat cheese.

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