Nut-Free Walnut Substitute - Homegrown

 

 Impatients Glandulifera    

A walnut substitute in baking

The seeds can be collected, dried and used in baking as a chopped walnut substitute. They taste just like walnuts! 

Also called, "Himalayan Balsam or Balsam Impatients" is grows wild just about everywhere and is classed as "invasive" because bees love it and will pollinate it in exclusion of the natural plants around them. Having grown it for years, I know this is true. The big yellow bumblebees love it! So, for those who keep bees, this might be a good thing to grow. I know a bee keeper who grows it. 

It's a relative of Jewelweed, the plant for treating poison ivy, having the same growth habit and seed pods. Jewelweed is smaller, smaller flowers, smaller seed pods and the seeds may not taste the same.  

I know the white impatients glandulifera grows wild here, as I've seen it growing in fields. They get very tall, 4-5' if they are happy. They like the shade and lots of water. The same growing needs as their cousin impatients, the little ones covered in flowers that are for sale in the garden centers every spring. I like the little ones too, but I don't eat those seeds. The little ones do great in a pond, however, bareroot, floating on the water. Don't stick them in there until the water warms up. The little ones are good in dark shade too, like under the stairs. All impatients are very tender annuals. The cold and frost will kill them.

It's the seeds of the impatients glandulifera that I want. They are sometimes tricky to collect as the seed pod is very sensitive to touch when it's ripe. You have to wrap your whole hand around it, enclosing it. Then with the slightest pressure it will explode in your hand. If the pod is not ripe enough yet, it won't open. Be Warned: It can be invasive. If you miss some ripe seeds, those will fly everywhere and come up in the spring. Once these are planted in your garden, you probably won't need to plant anymore seeds. It reseeds itself very well, unless you are good at collecting all the ripe seeds.  It is an "invasive" species so be careful with those seeds! 

When seeds are collected they need to be dried immediately. Spread them out on a paper towel in an area that gets some air and let them dry completely. Stir them around every day when you pass by. After a couple of weeks they can be placed in a paper envelope. I don't store seeds in plastic until they are months old. I prefer to use paper envelopes. I prefer the long letter envelopes. I have room to write all the info I have about the seed on the outside: name, common name, date planted, date collected and any other information I might want to keep. I usually tape the edges closed so they don't leak out the sides of the flap. I write the name on the top, so I can find it easily. I store the envelopes in alphabetical order in a cardboard box or basket, something that lets air circulate. Keep them in a cool, dry place and most will last for years. I'm a seed-a-holic. I save every seed I see when out walking. 

The entire Impatients Glandullifera plant is edible, but only in small amounts as it contains a lot of oxalates. Cooking thoroughly will break down a lot of these, but why eat the plant itself when there are so many other wild things that are actually very good for you that you could be collecting, instead. The seeds do not contain oxalates, so can be eaten in safety, especially baked in desserts, breads and so forth. They really do taste like chopped walnuts in baking! 

 

Sources: 

https://www.foragingcoursecompany.co.uk/post/foraging-guide-himalayan-balsam

https://practicalselfreliance.com/himalayan-balsam/

https://www.ediblewildfood.com/himalayan-balsam.aspx

https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Impatiens+glandulifera (Plants for a future)

https://www.eatweeds.co.uk/himalayan-balsam-impatiens-glandulifera