I love our Black Walnut trees. There are several along our driveway. There is a monster 100′ one by the old farmhouse that was the original house on our property. We think it was built pre-1900. Definately pre-Oklahoma Statehood (Nov. 16, 1907).  The taste of American black walnuts are so much more complex than English walnuts. Black walnuts have a smoky tang that reminds me of walking through the woods on a cool Autumn day. They are excellent in ice creams, pies, and even paired with blue cheese in a salad. You can get black walnut extract to add flavor but not the crunch to your recipes and you can buy the nut meat but it is very expensive because it is a hard nut to crack. We are so fortunate to have mature trees and I don’t mind the extra effort to get the nuts.

• 1/2 cup Butter (I use salted)
• 1 cup Brown Sugar, loose packed
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (If you are feeling adventurous try a real vanilla bean and scrap the seeds into the mix)
• 1 unbaked 9″ chilled Pie Shell
• 3/4 cup Black Walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over low heat. Stir in sugar. Beat in one egg at a time and add vanilla. Pour into the pie shell. Sprinkle nut meat over the entire pie. Bake until firm about 45 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Can be paired with vanilla ice cream with a dash of black walnut extract in it.