Macadamia Nut Recipes

It’s the dead of winter in many locales, and if you’re weary of meat-and-potato casseroles, now’s the perfect time to spice up your cooking with a touch of the exotic. For a limited time only, Lehman’s is offering Hawaii-grown macadamia nuts in the shell ($12 for 2 lb) shipped direct from sunny Hawaii to your doorstep.

Now when we say “limited time only,” we mean it. The harvesting season in Hawaii will only last another few weeks (give or take, depending upon the weather) and after that, we won’t be able to get these nuts again until next winter. We purchase the nuts from a small grower in Hawaii – not a big middleman – and he ships them right to you.

Why buy these nuts in the shell, you ask? Freshly dried and cracked macadamia nuts have an even creamier, more buttery flavor than the store-bought jarred ones. With a good nutcracker, a great novel and a wood fire, they could just make for the perfect winter evening.

And when it comes to cooking with them, a little extra effort can translate into a LOT of extra taste. Here are a couple great new recipes to try:

Macadamia Crusted Fish Fillets
Easy, fast and so impressively good, your guests will think you have a personal chef – really!

INGREDIENTS

4 tilapia or other whitefish fillets, about 6 oz each
10 ounces macadamia nuts
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon hot sauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat your oven’s broiler. Lightly grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

2. Combine macadamia nuts, soy sauce, garlic, hot sauce, brown sugar, olive oil, and pepper in a food processor and blend until the mixture is the consistency of a thick paste.

3. Spread a thick layer of mixture on top of each fish fillet. Place the fish (macadamia mixture-side up) on the prepared baking sheet. Under the broiler, cook fish until the macadamia crust is golden brown and fish flakes easily, about 10-15 minutes. (Watch fish carefully as broiler temps can differ.)

Pineapple Macadamia Nut Bread
Like other fruit breads, but with a tropical Hawaiian flair. Moist and delicious – perfect with a cup of afternoon tea.

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup macadamia nuts, chopped
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup crushed pineapple (in juice)
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 cups flour
1 cup sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9″x5″loaf pan.

2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, pineapple juice and pineapple; mix well.

3. In a separate bowl, sift together baking powder and flour. Stir flour mixture into pineapple mixture. Gently fold in macadamia nuts.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.