I call these grandpa nuts because they’re wonderfully nourishing for our seniors and senioras. Here’s why. Hazelnuts contain beta-sitosterol, a groovy compound shown to help benign prostatic hyperplasia. This is doctorspeak for the numerous trips men over sixty take to the loo during the night. While benign prostatic hyperplasia is not harmful, it can be a darned nuisance.
In a study published by The Lancet medical journal, patients given 20mg of beta-sitosterol three times a day demonstrated a reduction in urinary frequency. Okay so this is significantly more beta-sitosterol than a single hazelnut can provide, but nevertheless, it’s one of many sources which can be easily included in grandpa’s diet. Others include soybeans, brown rice, pecans, avocados and sesame seeds.
Beta-sitosterol is also hailed by the Mayo Clinic for improving lipoprotein profiles and overall blood serum levels (that’s HDL and LDL to you and me). But in order to avail of this nut’s snazzy cholesterol-blocking compounds, you’ll need to recruit the unsalted variety. We reckon hazelnut milk is the tastiest thing to hit this cosmology in a long time (excluding you Michael Fassbender).
3/4 cup raw hazelnuts
1/4 cup raw almonds
3 cups filtered water
2 Medjool dates
Nut milk bag, as found on Amazon
Cover your hazelnuts and almonds in water overnight.
In the morning, rinse and drain the soaked nuts. Tumble into a blender along with fresh water and pitted dates. Pelt on the highest setting for 20 seconds.
Wash your hands thoroughly before the next step, to avoid spoiling the milk. Place your nut milk bag over a large bowl and slowly pour the nut milk and pulp into the bag. Gently squeeze the top of the bag to release the milk, which should take about 20 seconds. My children love doing this. I find it helps to secure the top by twisting, so the pulp doesn’t jump out.
Store in the fridge for up to 3 days, but rarely longer. Give the jar a jolly good shake before enjoying.
If you are compiling your Santa wishlist, this is what I use every day in the kitchen to make nut milk. It’s just as good as a Vitamix in my opinion, but half the cost. Fist. Bump.
