When pecan kernels are eaten raw they shouid be masticated and insalivated until reduced to a smooth paste, to insure the prompt admixture and action of the digestive fluids, and render them readily digestible. Mastication is largely a mechanical process, and may he facilitated by crushing the nut into a paste or grinding it into a fine meal.
Pecans eaten whole or in broken pieces should be thoroughly masticated. Combined in foods, they may be grated in a grating machine, which flakes but does not crush, or, they may be used in broken pieces. Pecans are easily digested, the high fat content being of a nature which is readily assimilated and very laxative in effect. They may be eaten in their natural state, or combined with vegetables, cereals, cheese, etc., to form an entree —the main dish of a meal. The consumption of pecans in whatever manner must be recognized as an intake of protein and fat, and the use of other proteins and fats regulated in accordance. Considering the supplementary protein of the average mixed diet, from 2 to 3 ounces of pecans daily would insure adequate protein.
Pecans are rapidly displacing other foods in the broader light of the saner ideas of nutritious and healthful diet. The product of the pecan trees has come to be recognized as the choicest of all
foods. The public is today better informed31
