April is: National
Molly Forman
County Extension Agent
Family and Consumer Sciences
(806)259-1642 Hall
(806) 823-2522 Briscoe
http://briscoe-tx.tamu.edu/
http://hall-tx.tamu.edu/
Pecan Month
APRIL is a time to celebrate the "All American Nut"
for its delicious taste and numerous health benefits.
PECANS are the only tree nut indigenous to North
America, and they have quite a history on this
continent. In recent years, research has shown
pecans are also a great natural source of antioxidants
(vit. E), fiber, protein, & other vitamins & minerals.
Spinach Pecan Quiche
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Casserole
Ingredients:
½ lb. spinach (raw or cooked and welldrained)
1 T. butter (melted)
8 slices bacon (cooked, crumbled)
4 eggs (beaten)
½ t. salt
1 dash nutmeg
1 onion (chopped)
1/3 c. pecans (chopped)
1 c. cheddar or swiss cheese (shredded)
2 c. half and half
1 dash black pepper
9” quiche/pastry shell
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Prepare
quiche/pastry shell and bake at 450
degrees for five minutes. Combine all
ingredients and pour into baked quiche
shell. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.
Bake another 5-10 minutes more, until
knife inserted off center comes out clean.
Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Ingredients:
Cinnamon Oat Nut Topping:
2 cups half-and-half or milk
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons chopped pecans
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons oats
1 cup quick-cooking oats
Butter, to dot the top
2 tablespoons cinnamon
Combine all ingredients in a
1 cup peeled chopped apple
small bowl until well combined.
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup raisins
2 tablespoons dried cherries
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a medium
casserole dish.
Combine the half-and-half or milk, brown sugar, butter and
salt in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Simmer until the
butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from
heat. Add the oats to a casserole dish and stir in the milk
mixture, cinnamon, apples, apricots, pecans, raisins and
cherries. Note: If the casserole seems dry, add milk to
moisten.
Top with Cinnamon Oat Nut Topping and dot with butter.
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.
Pecan Brittle
Ingredients:
2 cups pecans, toasted whole
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup water
1 1/4 cup light corn syrup
2 1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoon butter
3 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
In a nonstick saucepan, heat and stir sugar, corn syrup, water, and salt over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Over high
heat, using a candy thermometer, cook sugar mixture to a hard crack stage (290 degrees F). Add pecans and butter and cook
to 300 degrees F stirring all the time to keep the nuts from burning. Pull off heat at 300 degrees F and stir in baking soda
while beating to froth for 30 seconds. Pour at once onto 4 well buttered 15 1/2 by 10 by 1-inch pans. Spread with a spatula as
thin as possible. As the brittle cools you may use gloves to hand stretch the brittle which will give it a better eating quality.
This brittle has a great shelf life, if kept in airtight zip locks or containers; it will keep for 2 months.
NUTRITION OF PECANS
Since April is National Pecan Month, there’s never been a better reason to celebrate. The latest research from
the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirms pecans are still the most antioxidant-rich tree nut and are
among the top category of foods to contain the highest antioxidant capacity. Using a method called ORAC (Oxygen
Radical Absorbance Capacity), researchers analyzed 277 different foods and found that pecans rank highest among
all nuts in antioxidant capacity. With 17,940 ORAC units per 100 grams, pecans had the highest antioxidant
capacity when compared to eight other common tree nuts. Overall, pecans rank in the top 20 in antioxidant
capacity per typical serving size among the 277 foods analyzed in the study.
Antioxidants are substances found in foods that protect against cell damage and, studies have shown, can help
fight diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer and heart disease. Clinical research studies have also
confirmed eating about a handful of pecans each day may help reduce the risk of heart disease, help lower
cholesterol and aid in weight loss. In addition, pecans are loaded with more than 19 vitamins and minerals, hearthealthy unsaturated fat, and contain no trans fat.
To include more heart-healthy, antioxidant-rich pecans in your diet, try sprinkling them on pancakes or waffles, in
fruit-flavored yogurt, or on top of hot or cold cereal. Try topping salads or veggies with pecans instead of cheese.
Or, try coating chicken or fish with pecans before baking. And you can always add them to your favorite brownie
or cookie recipe for a treat every now and then.
FUN FACTS ABOUT PECAN
Can you imagine a pecan skyscraper? It would
take 11,624 pecans, stacked end to end, to reach the
top of the Empire State Building in New York
City.
 Texas adopted the pecan tree as its state tree in
1919. In fact, Texas Governor James Hogg liked
pecan trees so much that he asked if a pecan tree
could be planted at his gravesite when he died.
 Pecans in space: it would take a line of over 10
billion pecans to reach the moon!
 Albany, Georgia, which boasts more than
600,000 pecan trees, is the pecan capital of the
U.S. Albany hosts the annual National Pecan
Festival, which includes a race, parade, pecancooking contest, the crowning of the National Pecan
Queen and many other activities.
 Would you go nuts for a refreshing dip in the
pool? You’d need a lot of pecans – 144 million to be
exact – to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
 Some of the larger pecan shellers process 150,000
pounds of pecans each day. That’s enough to make
300,000 pecan pies!

It takes a magnificent tree to produce a greattasting nut. Pecan trees usually range in height
from 70 to 100 feet, but some trees grow as tall as
150 feet or higher. Native pecan trees – those
over 150 years old – have trunks more than three
feet in diameter.
 That’s one heavy nut: it would take 5,640 pecan
halves to equal the weight of a standard
watermelon.
 Pecans come in a variety of sizes – mammoth,
extra large, large, medium, small and midget.
They also come in several forms including whole
pecans, pecan halves, pieces, granules and meal.
 There are over 1,000 varieties of pecans. Many
are named for Native American Indian tribes,
including Cheyenne, Mohawk, Sioux, Choctaw
and Shawnee.
 The U.S. produces about 80 percent of the
world’s pecan crop.
 Before a shelled pecan is ready to be sold, it
must first be cleaned, sized, sterilized, cracked
and finally, shelled.

For more information on the health benefits of pecans, nutritional value of pecans, the history of pecans, and the pecan industry in the U.S
visit http://www.ilovepecans.org/nutrition.html
Resources:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/Services/docs.htm?docid=15866, http://www.ilovepecans.org/nutrition.html,
http://www.pauladeen.com/index.php/recipes/view2/apple_cinnamon_oatmeal_casserole/, and
http://www.pauladeen.com/index.php/recipes/view2/pecan_brittle/.
Educational programs of the Texas AgriLife Extension Service are open to all people without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion,
age, or national origin.