Hazelnuts
Hazelnuts are the fruits of an arboreal plant belonging to the Betulaceae family, Genus Corylus, Species avellana; the binomial nomenclature of the hazelnut tree is Corylus avellana. Called hazel in common parlance, it is a medium-sized tree with heart-shaped leaves, toothed and deciduous in profile.
Its fruits, called hazelnuts, have a spherical or oval shape and variable dimensions (depending on the variety, but always smaller than those of walnuts); externally they have a shell (woody pericarp) that protects a crunchy seed (edible part). The color of the hazelnuts is green in the unripe phase and brown when ripe, when they spontaneously detach from the tree. The seed is covered by a brown fibrous film that can be (or not) removed at the time of consumption; without coating, the seed it is whitish.
Hazelnut flour
Generally speaking, hazelnut flour is obtained by grinding fruits belonging to the "tonda gentile delle langhe" variety (Piedmont). The product does not have the typical nutritional characteristics of a legume or cereal flour, where carbohydrates are abundant, but is distinguished by the prevalence of lipids over the other macronutrients; for this reason, despite drying, hazelnut flour has a very limited shelf life and is often distributed under vacuum.
The use of hazelnut flour is quite varied. It ranges from the homemade packaging of spoon desserts, dry baked and soft baked goods; there is no shortage of ice creams, fresh or preserved creams and spreads with cocoa such as Nutella.
An alternative use of hazelnut flour involves bread making, but with a percentage limited to 10% compared to 90% of wheat flours; a very energetic and lipid-rich bread is obtained. Recently, like all other types of alternative flour, that of hazelnuts has found a wide use in the vegan diet; NOT containing gluten, it is also used a lot in the diet for CELIACIA.
The cost of retail hazelnut flour is high; this is partly due to the BIO specification (preferred, for example, in the naturist diet) and partly to commercial issues. The BIO ones are exclusively of Italian origin, but various products of European origin are also available. online, the purchase of BIO hazelnut flour rarely falls below 17-18 € / kg.
Example of a functional recipe with hazelnut flour
Laxative cookies without butter
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See other recipes based on hazelnuts (whole or ground in flour)
Nutritional Properties
We reiterate that hazelnut flour does NOT contain gluten and can be used in GLUTEN-FREE diets.
The flour is extremely caloric and rich in fat; to get an idea, just think that an oil can be extracted from hazelnuts, in addition to flour. This, due to its chemical characteristics, is also used in the sophistication of extra virgin olive oil (see the article: hazelnut oil Large quantities of hazelnut flour are therefore not recommended in case of overweight or obesity.
The supply of proteins, which are of medium biological value, is not sufficient to cover the body's need for plastic elements (as they are deficient in some essential amino acids). Carbohydrates, which are mainly simple, are contained in roughly the same quantities as proteins; they are therefore present to a much lower extent than their content in legume or cereal flours. For this reason, hazelnut flour is NOT contraindicated in case of type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertriglyceridemia (even if overweight, often associated with these diseases, requires a rational use).
The hazelnut flour helps to structure the lipid intake in the diet. Boasting a prevalence in monounsaturated fatty acids, or omega 9 (even if there is no lack of omega 3 and omega 6), it lends itself to the diet against dyslipidemias, in particular of hypercholesterolemic; the richness in phytosterols also contributes to this purpose.
The concentration of dietary fibers, essential against constipation and to moderate the risk of colon cancer, is very remarkable; moreover, this nutritional component feeds the physiological intestinal bacterial flora and modulates the uptake of nutrients in the intestine.
No detailed information is available on the vitamin content of hazelnut flour, but it is possible that it is very similar to that of dry hazelnuts; obviously, in processing and storage, the losses are anything but negligible. Some well-present molecules are: vitamin E, B6, folate and thiamine. As for the mineral salts, however, the concentrations of copper, iron, manganese and calcium should stand out. Among the vitamins and mineral salts there are several nutrients with antioxidant properties, a characteristic also emphasized by certain phenolic molecules.
Finally, it should be remembered that hazelnut flour is a potentially allergenic food, therefore it should be excluded from the diet of the nurse and early childhood.
Homemade Production of Hazelnut Flour
Hazelnut flour can also be made at home. The operation is anything but complex and can be summarized as illustrated.
First of all, it is necessary to stock up on peeled hazelnuts, not whole or whole; this means that, if you do not want to waste half a day shelling, boiling and peeling the seeds, it is definitely advisable to prefer semi-finished ones.
If previously boiled for peeling, the hazelnuts are then left to cool and dry. In general, it is never recommended to toast them, rather it is better to work them cold or even frozen. Then, put them in the special container of a food processor and blend them (in a discontinuous way so as not to heat them too much by kneading them) until they reach a floury consistency.
NB. Some add granulated sugar in a proportion of 1/5, but this is valid only and exclusively if the hazelnut flour is to be used for sweet recipes.
Homemade hazelnut flour can be preserved in pots, provided it is protected from light, open air and heat; however, its shelf life remains extremely limited (due to rancidity). An alternative and very effective method is that of freezing, even in special bags or plastic cups.
Other Uses of Hazelnut Flour
In addition to its gastronomic application for human nutrition, hazelnut flour has also been used in fish farming. To be precise, it was tested in the diet of rainbow trout instead of soy flour in three different percentages: 10, 20, 30% ( mixed with fishmeal etc.). The three diets did not show significant discrepancies in terms of overall growth or in the specific growth coefficient; there was only a small decrease in the use of food with the highest percentage (30% ).
On the chemical-physical analysis, the muscular composition and of the other tissues of the trout did not change in an evident way; it would be interesting to identify more precisely the distribution of fatty acids. It is therefore logical to deduce that hazelnut flour is able to replace that of soy in the diet of rainbow trout in proportions up to 300g / kg of commercial feed.
Ref. "EFFECTS OF DIETARY HAZELNUT MEAL ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND BODY COMPOSITION IN RAINBOW TROUT ONCORHYNCHUS MYKISS REARED IN SEA WATER". A.A. Tekinay, S. Ergün, D. Güroy, M. Bulut and S. Bilen Resource management. EAS, special pub. N ° 37, September. 2008, p. 628.
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