Growing up in a farming family I have been surrounded by agriculture my entire life, participating in harvest and understanding what “farm to table” truly means. Being able to walk out into our orchard and pick fresh fruit and walnuts was second nature for me. I never thought twice about having access to fresh produce right in my own backyard. Having our freezer stocked with bags of walnuts to consume all year round was normal, nothing I thought twice about, which is why I use them in so much of my cooking and baking. As a nice added bonus, walnuts are a nutrition powerhouse, packed with lots of healthy oils, fats and protein!
Last Friday I was invited by Diamond of California to participate in their walnut harvest 2014 tour with other bloggers (some from California and others from around the country). Driving around to other Diamond grower’s orchards within my hometown and seeing my fellow bloggers’ reactions to learning about how walnuts are grown, harvested and processed made me realize how much I take farming for granted. Harvesting walnuts has been so much a part of my life every Fall. The smell of walnut harvest is something that I look forward to every year (though I don’t like all of the dust, thus the reason I don’t wash my car until after harvest!). The bloggers amazement and awe watching the trees be shaken and harvested made me truly appreciate my upbringing and the cycle of life. I’m such a country girl that I can’t even imagine what it would be like to grow up in a city! I’m thankful that our children get to experience what my husband and I did, growing up.
After our tour, we met back at the Diamond Walnut plant for lunch catered by a local food truck made with all Diamond products that was delicious.
After lunch, we did some tasting of the nine varieties of walnuts. Did you know that the bag of walnuts you purchase at the store contains multiple varieties? Even being a Diamond Walnut grower’s daughter, I never knew that a bag had several kinds of walnuts (since I never had to buy one!). But, don’t worry, you really can’t tell, as there isn’t a difference in taste. Some walnuts are just darker or lighter than other types.
All in all, it was a great day and I’m so grateful for being invited. Thank you, Diamond of California. It was fun to make new blogger friends and discuss farming, something that is so much a part of my life (especially with my husband farming now, too).
Question:
How do you use walnuts?
