# Acorn Cakes



## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

I had a call from my dad this morning and he said that he had gathered up a 5 gallon bucket of acorns from his "Burr Oak" trees and told me that I could have them If I wanted them. I couldn't say no, it's been a while since I have had acorn cakes so I went and picked them up. He is going to have several more buckets as soon as they fall off the tree and I will be getting them also.

Burr Oak acorns are pretty big so shelling them was fairly easy but time consuming, in about 45 minutes of leisurely work I had enough to make a batch of meal. The acorns from the Burr Oak Oak trees are very low in astringent, mild in flavour and are really easy to prepare and use. The first picture is a sample of the fresh acorns, second is some shelled, third is the meal after I ran the acorns through the food processor to chop them, fourth is the wet meal after leeching and the final is a picture of the finished cakes. The total time from acorn to cakes was about 1 1/2 hours, most of the time was shelling them.

To process the acorns, you shell/peel them, run them through a food processor until they are the consistency of course meal, wash the meal in fresh water and strain, repeat until rinse water is clear(a taste of the meal at this point shouldn't make you pucker), press the water out through a mesh strainer and it is ready for use. If you dont want to use it right away, put it in the fridge or dehydrate it for long term storage. The meal will darken if not used right away but that doesn't effect its taste or quality.



The recipe I used was:

2 1/2 Cups Wet Acorn Meal
1 Cup Wheat Flour
3 Eggs
1/4 Cup Cooking Oil
1/2 Tea Spoon Salt
4 Table Spoons Sugar
1 Tea Spoon Baking Soda
Vinegar water to desired consistency

I cooked them on a hot skillet like pancakes or corn cakes. They can be eaten with syrup, buttered or just straight off the griddle, the acorns give the cakes a mild nutty flavor.

Acorns are good food so if you have an opportunity to gather them, it sure would be a pity to let them go to waste.


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Wow! Those look tasty. I wonder if I could do something like that with the pecans we have all over the backyard. 

Speaking of those pecans...anyone in the OKC area want some pecans? I'm getting tired of walking on them.


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

I'd give it a try myself but I didn't get any pecans this year. 

The acorn cakes are pretty darned good though, well worth the time it takes to work them.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

Looks great!!!

Thanks for posting.


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## Startingout-Blair (Aug 28, 2012)

Davarm said:


> I had a call from my dad this morning and he said that he had gathered up a 5 gallon bucket of acorns from his "Burr Oak" trees and told me that I could have them If I wanted them. I couldn't say no, it's been a while since I have had acorn cakes so I went and picked them up. He is going to have several more buckets as soon as they fall off the tree and I will be getting them also.
> 
> Burr Oak acorns are pretty big so shelling them was fairly easy but time consuming, in about 45 minutes of leisurely work I had enough to make a batch of meal. The acorns from the Burr Oak Oak trees are very low in astringent, mild in flavour and are really easy to prepare and use. The first picture is a sample of the fresh acorns, second is some shelled, third is the meal after I ran the acorns through the food processor to chop them, fourth is the wet meal after leeching and the final is a picture of the finished cakes. The total time from acorn to cakes was about 1 1/2 hours, most of the time was shelling them.
> 
> ...


Great idea! Problem here is that most of our acorns are so wormy


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## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

Where's the syrup?


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## cnsper (Sep 20, 2012)

kejmack said:


> Where's the syrup?


You will find it sitting right next to the beef.


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

I can make that process a bit easier and give a bit of a roasted flavor[much like popcorn].
Soak for three days in 5 gallons of water with 1 cup of baking soda,switch to pure water and soak an extra hour and rinse.
de cap and slow roast until toasty brown.
At this point they shell out easy and taste more "nutty".
now you can baste in margarine and your favorite seasoning and use in trail mix or powder them as flour or grist them as a base for Pinole[Indian grits]


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Thanks Magus, I will give that a try on the next bucket when I get them.



Magus said:


> I can make that process a bit easier and give a bit of a roasted flavor[much like popcorn].
> Soak for three days in 5 gallons of water with 1 cup of baking soda,switch to pure water and soak an extra hour and rinse.
> de cap and slow roast until toasty brown.
> At this point they shell out easy and taste more "nutty".
> now you can baste in margarine and your favorite seasoning and use in trail mix or powder them as flour or grist them as a base for Pinole[Indian grits]


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

kejmack said:


> Where's the syrup?


I had one last night/this morning with watermelon syrup I made when while making candied watermelon rind this summer. It just dont get much better than that.


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## neldarez (Apr 10, 2011)

AuroraHawk said:


> Wow! Those look tasty. I wonder if I could do something like that with the pecans we have all over the backyard.
> 
> Speaking of those pecans...anyone in the OKC area want some pecans? I'm getting tired of walking on them.


wow, to think that you walk on pecans at your house blows my mind! They are the most expensive nut and I really like them........wish we lived close, of course if we did, then I could grow my own! lol...we walk on apples where I live. I just bought a bag of pecan pieces ( 2 cups) at the store for $6,99. 
Actually my most favorite ever nut is cashews.......oh how I wish they would grow here!


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

neldarez said:


> wow, to think that you walk on pecans at your house blows my mind! They are the most expensive nut and I really like them........wish we lived close, of course if we did, then I could grow my own! lol...we walk on apples where I live. I just bought a bag of pecan pieces ( 2 cups) at the store for $6,99.
> Actually my most favorite ever nut is cashews.......oh how I wish they would grow here!


If my SO purchases the pecan harvester thingy that he has been talking about, I'll be gathering pecans for a while. My sister visited from Amarillo and took a grocery bag of pecans home with her. She'll be happy to get more. I can't afford to pay shipping but if you want to send a postmarked, addressed "If It Fits It Ships" box, I'll be happy to fill it for you and send it back.


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## RiverRunner (Feb 7, 2012)

Davarm, would you mind posting your recipe for watermelon syrup please?

I LOVE watermelon!!!

Thank you in advance.


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## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

So many acorns here its like walking on marbles.Wonder if these florida acorns are good?


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

Meerkat said:


> So many acorns here its like walking on marbles.Wonder if these florida acorns are good?


Are those Live Oak acorns? If so they have more tannins in them and take a little more washing to leech it out but I have done them the same way and made meal from them. I haven't used them since I've had a source for the larger Burr Oak acorns.


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

Meerkat said:


> So many acorns here its like walking on marbles.Wonder if these florida acorns are good?


Soak them for two more days or bad things will happen![distended anus!]


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

RiverRunner said:


> Davarm, would you mind posting your recipe for watermelon syrup please?
> 
> I LOVE watermelon!!!
> 
> Thank you in advance.


It is pretty good.

I've never made it for just the syrup, I make it as a byproduct when making Candied Watermelon Rind.

I posted the "How To" do the watermelon rind and syrup in the "What's everyone dehydrating today? " thread.

http://www.preparedsociety.com/foru...ehydrating-today-8918/index61.html#post145124 #603


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