Nuts

I was watching television the other night and a pistachio commercial came on. It reminded me that my family has always been nuts about nuts. Around every Thanksgiving, Mom would arrange walnuts, almonds, Brazil nuts, and  pecans in their shells in a large platter. She'd lay nutcrackers and picks atop the mini mountain and we'd spend days crushing shells and digging out meaty goodness. Shards would fly and Mom would bitch when finding crumbs and debris months after the snacking frenzy ended. Still, it was a yearly ritual she allowed.

Nuts could be found in our house year-round. Pop loved his pistachios! The red ones were his favorite. He'd alternate with peanuts once in a while.  Geez, I hated when he mistakenly bought unsalted peanuts! Dad would have a bag o' nuts on on knee and a bowl for the shells on the other. My brother and I would sit on the floor with our own bowls, sucking away at the outside until they were soggy and then crushing the shells to extract the two gems found inside. Sometimes we got gypped...one healthy nut and its shriveled companion. Other times we'd find a little buddy wrapped cozily around just one nut. Gross!

Mom loved cashews, but they were expensive, so she did not share with us often. She would sometimes by cans of mixed nuts...funny, no one ever wanted to eat the peanuts left after all the other succulents were picked out!

As a teen, some of my favorite treats were Planter's dry roasted peanuts, Blue Diamond Smokehouse almonds, and Planter's dry roasted sunflower seeds. These I would hoard in my room and share with no one.

Nowadays, when I visit Nana and Pepe's home in Lisbon, I mosey up to the counter and see what kinds of nuts await. 46-years-old, and my parents never disappoint!

Love,
~Mama