In order to make nuts more easily digested, and to be more sure of the quality of your nut, Sally Fallon Morell, among others, recommends that nuts are soaked and lightly roasted or dehydrated before eating. Although it takes time, it is a very simple process that in reality only takes a few minutes over a couple days. It is best to start with a raw, organic nut for the best results. Nuts are expensive so they are best to buy in bulk, when at all possible.

I should have posted this ages ago as all my nut recipes are made with nuts processed in this manner.

Soak the raw nuts in water overnight. I generally soak my nuts for around 24 hours, changing the water half way through.

Roast in a low oven–150 degrees is good, although my oven won’t go much lower than 200 degrees F. If you have a dehydrator this is a good option, or if you have good sunlight, you can roast them in the sun for a few days. Allow them to get good and crispy.

For blanching almonds or other nuts: sometimes the skins will come off in the soaking. If not pour over them boiling hot water and let sit for about 5 minutes. Pour the water off and rub, the skins should come off easily.

To shell your nuts: I often find the cheapest way to buy fresh raw nuts is in the shell. It takes forever to shell them all. I have found using my heavy stone mortar and pestle to be a very good way to shell them. Brazil nuts, pecans, walnuts and hazelnuts do very well with this method.