The Nut that Got Away

Once, the pistachio was a B-list snack, playing second fiddle to the cashew. Then all shell broke loose.

- CHARLOTTE DRUCKMAN

It's hard to imagine, but there was a time pistachios were not with us. They were born in the Middle East thousands of years ago, then traveled to ancient Greece and what would become Spain and Italy. (To this day, some of the best cultivars of the nut reside in Sicily, where you must eat as much pistachio gelato as possible. Casa Tua’s, in Miami and NYC, is glorious too.) The meaty green nuts finally arrived in U.S. in the late 19th century.