Nuts of all kinds have loads of nutritional value. Pecans for sale are no exception. These tasty, hickory morsels grown in the deep southern United States contain antioxidants, plant sterols and omega-6 fatty acids. Eating a small handful every day can help to reduce cholesterol as well as some cholesterol-fighting pharmaceuticals. Scientists have not yet commented on whether butter pecan ice cream or pecan pie fulfill this important function.
Botanically, the pecan tree is deciduous; the pecan itself is not a nut, but what is called a drupe. A drupe is a kind of fruit with a skin and a mesocarp, or flesh, surrounding a hardened endocarp which contains a seed. This seed is what we eat and what we call a nut, or a pecan. Other, more familiar, drupes include apricots, cherries, plums, nectarines, damsons and peaches.
The seeds from the pecan drupe have a buttery, sweet taste and may be eaten just as they are or cooked and integrated into recipes. Desserts are the most common recipes that use pecans but there are others. Native to the American south, pecan trees are also native to Mexico. The very word, pecan, means you need a rock to crack it. We do not know the Algonquin word for sledgehammer. The wood from the pecan tree may be burned and used for fuel to smoke meats. It is also used in hardwood flooring and in furniture.
Albany, in the southwest of Georgia, is the center of this state's production of this delightful nut. Other Georgian delicacies include peaches, peanuts, cotton, rye, timber (especially pine), tobacco, hogs and poultry. Atlanta, Georgia, is the home of one of America's (and the world's) favorite cola drinks. Georgia also gave us President Jimmy Carter, the novel, "Gone With the Wind, " and "The Dukes of Hazzard."
Alabama, the Heart of Dixie and the yellowhammer state, is also a prolific nut producer. Alabama, the "cotton state, " also produces peaches, sorghum, soybeans and peanuts. Alabama gets roughly 20 million visitors each year, about 100,000 of whom are from other countries including Canada, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom. The first rocket that brought astronauts to the moon was built by workers in Alabama.
The northernmost state where you can find pecan trees is Iowa, the heartland of America. Iowa is the nation's largest producer of corn and ethanol. Its other exports include oats, soybeans, hogs and cattle. Major non-economic contributors to the state's economy are the insurance and finance industries. Iowa is the only state bordered by a river on two sides.
Louisiana is another pecan-growing state. Along with the treasured nut, this state has the New Orleans Saints, the Superdome, Mardis Gras and a fascinating geological history. Louisiana is also the only state to model its state and local election practices on modern France. New Orleans is also the home of the praline, a sweet delicacy made from, you guessed it, pecans.
Every November on the first full weekend, Louisiana holds a Pecan Festival. Between 60,000 and 70,000 visitors flock to the area to eat pecans and be reined over by a king and queen. The royal couple are selected the previous October in a Louisiana Pecan Festival Beauty and Beau Pageant, the sole purpose of which is to select the king and queen of the festival. You could say that pecans bring a lot of money into the state; and that ain't peanuts!
Botanically, the pecan tree is deciduous; the pecan itself is not a nut, but what is called a drupe. A drupe is a kind of fruit with a skin and a mesocarp, or flesh, surrounding a hardened endocarp which contains a seed. This seed is what we eat and what we call a nut, or a pecan. Other, more familiar, drupes include apricots, cherries, plums, nectarines, damsons and peaches.
The seeds from the pecan drupe have a buttery, sweet taste and may be eaten just as they are or cooked and integrated into recipes. Desserts are the most common recipes that use pecans but there are others. Native to the American south, pecan trees are also native to Mexico. The very word, pecan, means you need a rock to crack it. We do not know the Algonquin word for sledgehammer. The wood from the pecan tree may be burned and used for fuel to smoke meats. It is also used in hardwood flooring and in furniture.
Albany, in the southwest of Georgia, is the center of this state's production of this delightful nut. Other Georgian delicacies include peaches, peanuts, cotton, rye, timber (especially pine), tobacco, hogs and poultry. Atlanta, Georgia, is the home of one of America's (and the world's) favorite cola drinks. Georgia also gave us President Jimmy Carter, the novel, "Gone With the Wind, " and "The Dukes of Hazzard."
Alabama, the Heart of Dixie and the yellowhammer state, is also a prolific nut producer. Alabama, the "cotton state, " also produces peaches, sorghum, soybeans and peanuts. Alabama gets roughly 20 million visitors each year, about 100,000 of whom are from other countries including Canada, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom. The first rocket that brought astronauts to the moon was built by workers in Alabama.
The northernmost state where you can find pecan trees is Iowa, the heartland of America. Iowa is the nation's largest producer of corn and ethanol. Its other exports include oats, soybeans, hogs and cattle. Major non-economic contributors to the state's economy are the insurance and finance industries. Iowa is the only state bordered by a river on two sides.
Louisiana is another pecan-growing state. Along with the treasured nut, this state has the New Orleans Saints, the Superdome, Mardis Gras and a fascinating geological history. Louisiana is also the only state to model its state and local election practices on modern France. New Orleans is also the home of the praline, a sweet delicacy made from, you guessed it, pecans.
Every November on the first full weekend, Louisiana holds a Pecan Festival. Between 60,000 and 70,000 visitors flock to the area to eat pecans and be reined over by a king and queen. The royal couple are selected the previous October in a Louisiana Pecan Festival Beauty and Beau Pageant, the sole purpose of which is to select the king and queen of the festival. You could say that pecans bring a lot of money into the state; and that ain't peanuts!
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