| Broken Nuts: It’s quick and easy to break nuts with fingers into about ⅓-inch chunks. | Cut-Up Nuts: Cut with scissors (works better than knife) into about ¼-inch pieces. | Coarsely Chopped Nuts: Chop with long, straight knife. Hold point against cutting board, chop crisply through spread out nuts—swinging handle around in quarter circle. |
| TOAST NUTS: to be sure they will taste fresh. Heat through in moderate oven. | ||
| Finely Chopped Nuts: Chop same as for Coarsely Chopped, but into finer pieces. | Blanched Nuts: Drop shelled nuts into boiling water. Let stand 2 to 5 minutes (until skins are loosened). Pour off hot water, add some cold. Pinch each nut between thumb and finger to push off skins, and lay nuts on plate or paper toweling to dry. | Sliced or Slivered Nuts: First blanch ... then cut with very sharp knife while nuts are moist and warm. |
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| Ground Nuts: Use fine knife of food grinder for finely ground ... coarse knife for coarsely ground. Nuts should be dry. | ||
PREPARING DRIED FRUITS
| Seeded raisins are the large variety from which seeds have been removed. The sweetness released when they were slit open makes them sticky. | Seedless raisins are the small variety, both dark and light ... dried from seedless grapes. Cut them to get the full sweetness and flavor. | Plump seedless raisins by washing and spreading them out in a flat pan. Cover. Heat slowly in mod. oven (350°) until they puff up and wrinkles come out. |
| Cut up dates and other sticky fruits with wet scissors. Dip scissors in water occasionally. | Snip through long shreds of coconut with scissors to shorten them. The shorter shreds blend into doughs more evenly. | To tint shredded coconut: Soak it in milk or water (¼ cup for ½ cup coconut) with a few drops of food coloring added. Drain, dry on absorbent paper. |
To cut citron or candied orange or lemon peel, first slice it thinly—then cut slices into ½″ or ¼″ squares.