Walnuts

The original nut

As the oldest-known tree food eaten by man, walnuts are used today more than any other nut in America’s home-cooked recipes and restaurant dishes. Originating in ancient Persia about 7,000 B.C., walnuts were first traded along the Mediterranean by English merchant ships. This fact may be the reason for the misleading name, English walnuts, since walnuts were never produced in England commercially. Today, California produces 70% of the world’s walnuts, thanks to some Franciscan fathers from Mexico and Spain, who introduced the trees to the area in the late 1700s.

Black walnuts are another popular variety, commonly used for cooking, baking and snacking. In terms of nutritional value, they are very similar to the milder-tasting English walnut.

Nutty facts!

• An ounce of walnuts contains 2.5 grams of alpha-linolenic acid – the plant based omega-3.
• An ounce of walnuts (about ¼ cup) is an excellent source of copper and manganese and a good source of magnesium and molybdenum.

See nutrition information for fat content.

Click on the menu above to get more information about your favorite nuts!

REFERENCES:

1. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 23 (2010), www.ars.usda.gov
2. USFDA/CFSAN/Docket 02P-0292 July 14, 2003
3. Nutrition labeling of Food, Code of Federal Regulations, 21 CFR 101.9, Release date April 1, 2010
4. Walnuts.org