From Little Acorns…
…mighty oaks do grow. Do you remember being a kid and thinking a tree would grow inside your stomach if you swallowed a seed while eating an apple? Thankfully that never happened to me because unlike Adam I cannot be tempted by apples offered. Still, I may now have and oak tree taking root in my gut. What particlar subset of quercus, I cannot say. How did I come to be in such a predicament?
Having read the book Oak: The Frame of Civilization a few years back, I was intrigued by the author’s experiments with acorn flour, which was a staple of many a diet hundreds of years ago but is now rare to be found. He suggested looking for it in Korean markets and, lo and behold, it is there.
I decided to try it in crepes and made up my customary batter, but with one-third acorn substitued in my regular flour quantity. The result was a little different in colour and perhaps a touch runnier.
It browned nicely and I thought even less susceptible to burning, given that no smoke alarms rang this time ’round. It was certainly more rubbery in texture too, I noted as I flipped them over. I began to have doubts as to the tastiness.
They also took a little longer in the pan than the usual, which led to increased consumption of specialty coffees by the chef. I found the hazelnut Kahlua to be superior to the brandy, for those wondering. Around this time there came the sound of drumbeats from the living room and I started to doubt my choice in appropriate presents for the children.
At last the stack was ready and we set about eating. Delicious, but not as foreign as I might have expected. The acorn gave very little notice of its presence. As it was nearly 9:00am and also my son’s birthday, breakfast vodka shots were served (add a dash of pickle brine). I further attempted to expand on variations of tried-and-tested themes by concocting a breakfast vodka with herring brine but that, my friends, will not be repeated, unlike the crepes. Next time I may increase the amount of acorn in the ratio, just to see if the wood comes through more.
