The California Bay Laurel Tree: Harvesting and Preparing Bay Nuts

Learn about the California Bay Laurel (umbellularia californica) and how to harvest and process its nuts.

Prepared properly, the bay nut yields a choclate-like bean, that can be used in many of the same ways.

Vegan Bay Nut Coffee
1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon ground bay nut
2 tablespoons raw sugar
heat and stir.

To receive a sample of bay nuts, please send an email to [email protected], and I will contact you privately. We mail enough to make about 4 cup of tea to people as a courtesy, when they are in season.

TRANSCRIPT:

The California Bay Laurel,

scientifically known as Umbellularia californica —this hardwood tree is found in the coastal region of California, including here in the Bay Area.

Its range extends northward into Oregon, where it is known as Myrtlewood. Native Americans, including local Miwok and Ohlone tribes, have been using this tree for food, and as medicine, for many centuries.

European settlers found the tree useful for making items like furniture and spoons, as well as musical instruments. This beautiful guitar was made from the California Bay. A fun fact is that the wood of the tree was to make coinage during the great depression, and it is still valid currency in North Bend. Oregon.

Native people, and people today, use the leaves for cooking, just as one would use Mediterranean Bay. We use the leaves as a spice here on the farm. Our advice is that a little goes a long way. No preparation is necessary, just add a leaf to what you are cooking.

Consuming the nut, however, requires preparation. If you would like to do learn how to do it yourself, or, just watch us do it, you’re in the right place.

Stay tuned until the end and learn how to receive a free sample of Bay Nuts, while supplies last.

Not all bay trees produce nuts, but it is quite easy to spot the ones that do. Here at Equal and Opposite Farm, we are blessed with several productive Bay trees.

The fruits are round and green, and the skin is leathery. Inside you’ll find an oily fruit, surrounding a single pit. They could be mistaken for miniature avocados, and indeed the two plants are closely related.

The fruit ripens in November. Experience has taught us that the best practice is to leave the fruit in the tree until it begins to change colors, from green to purple. After the first rain, the ripened fruit should fall, and you should be able to pick them up from the ground. We also discovered that a small creek on our property served as an excellent collection point.

After washing the fruit, the next step is to remove the outer flesh from the nut. When the fruit is green, this is much more difficult. You’ll know the nuts are ready to harvest when they come out of fruit easily. The nuts should squeeze right out without much effort.

Once the nuts are freed from the fruit, they need to be air-dried for at least two weeks. Once dried and stored, the nuts will last for up to two years.

The next step is to roast the bay nuts. We use our coffee roaster, but you can use an oven. Try baking the nuts at 350deg for 1 hour, and experiment as needed. Please share your results in the comments.

After removing the nuts from the oven, allow them to cool, and then remove the dark brown bean inside. The nuts are finished baking when the inner bean is dark all the way through. It should look like a chocolate chip. Once you have liberated the chips, you can eat them as they are, or grind them in order to make a powder for tea.

There is some bitterness in the finished beans, similar to dark chocolate. But it should be enjoyable. If it doesn’t taste good to you, don’t drink it.

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