Hazelnuts have been cultivated since antiquity and were eaten before the dawn of agriculture. They have long been popular in Europe as the nut of first resort, much like the
walnut has been to
Great Britain and the
pecan to the southern U.S. Correspondingly, hazelnut liqueurs, coffees, confections, and baked goods are available in Europe in innumerable variety. In the U.S., hazelnuts suffered a period of unfashionability in the early
20th Century, and were encountered mostly as an ingredient in mixed nut assortments, either shelled or unshelled. Recently, however, the popularity of the
German hazelnut spread
Nutella has risen in parallel with other domestic uses of the hazelnut, such that they are even seen in traditional confections such as
pralines.