Pastry technique: Make your own almond flour
December 17th, 2010 | 34 Comments
Right now I’m hard at work on a big, comprehensive French Macaron tutorial. It will be ready in a week or two, so I hope you look out for it.
Meanwhile, I’m going through almond flour as if I had a silo of it in the backyard. Somehow the grocery powers-that-be decided that us regular, hard-working folk will be charged a premium, nearly a mortgage payment, for packaged ground almonds. I guess the simple act of grinding almonds makes them worth twice as much? I’m staging a revolt.
Making your own takes a few minutes and you can get the same fine, light texture as the store-bought counterpart. It’s better to use a blender or a coffee grinder as opposed to a food processor because the result is more finely ground, and keeps the nuts from releasing too much of their natural oils. (But if you only have a food processor, that will still yield a workable result.)
And obviously you’re not limited to just almonds. You can dabble in pistachio flour, hazelnut flour, pecan flour, walnut flour. Some flours will end up oilier than others, depending on how fatty the nut is. Put on your lab coat, er, apron because this allows for flavor experimentation. Build a whole new flavor profile simply by substituting one nut flour for another in, say, a cake recipe. What used to be an almond cake with mixed berry compote, can now become a pistachio cake with sour cherry compote on a whim.
The other day I was glued to the food channel — surprise, surprise — and a famous chef was demonstrating a seafood recipe. I was hoping, perhaps foolishly, to learn a few tips, but he went through the recipe as though reading it out of a book. The instructions were presented as a list of actions — “score the fish, sear it, blanch the green beans, throw them in ice water.” Yes, the directions were all there, but you’d never understand the hows and whys of it from the way he was explaining it. He never touched on why he scored the fish, why he threw the vegetables in ice water. I should mention I used to work for this guy, and I was frustrated with his presentation. I knew he knew better.
It’s like telling a golfing novice that they need to hit the ball toward the hole. Ok, yes, I get that, but what’s the best way to stand, how hard do you hit the ball, which club is best to use? Without learning all the techniques, you’re just blindly going through the motions.
And simply following a recipe is also just going through the motions. How can anyone really learn to bake and do their own flavor variations, and alter a recipe to their liking if they don’t understand the hows and whys of how it works behind the scenes? How each ingredient contributes to the end result?
I’ve been doing recipe tutorials so far, and touching on techniques throughout each one, and as long as I have blood in my veins, those will continue. But I want to share more tips and techniques that I learned over the years so they can be applied to many recipes, not just the one I happen to be showcasing. I’ll be adding a METHODS navigation button on top so the list can be used as a reference. And the almond flour is first up.
Here are a few other inspired, useful tips and tricks that my fellow bloggers have posted. Definitely worth a look.
1. Elizabeth, over at Guilty Kitchen, shows how to make your own brown sugar, if you find yourself without.
2. MarzipanMom explains how to turn any cheesecake recipe into bars.
3. Joy the Baker, makes her own vanilla extract.
Almond Flour (or any nut flour)
Take some blanched nuts, almonds in this case (and they don’t even have to be blanched if you don’t mind the dark flecks you’ll get from the skins.) You can also try using roasted nuts for an earthier-tasting flour.
Throw them in a blender or coffee grinder. I use about a cup at a time. If the machine is overloaded, the blade may have a hard time reaching all the nuts, and the grind will be uneven.
Pulse a few times until they are finely ground. Don’t let it go for too long, otherwise the nuts will release too much of their oils and things will get pasty (which is ok, if you’re going for nut butter.)
Here’s a batch using unblanched nuts in a food processor. Still pretty good, but not as fine. The skins make the flour darker.
Once the nuts are ground, you can pass them through a sifter. I’m shakin’ the sifter.
Whatever larger pieces don’t make it through the sifter can be thrown back into the blender with the next batch of nuts for additional grinding. The finished flour can be stored in ziploc bags, either refrigerated for a month, or frozen for a few months. Make as much or as little as you need.
Pocket your savings for the cruise vacation.
Tags: almond flour, baking, how-to, nut flour, pastry
34 Responses to “Pastry technique: Make your own almond flour”
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Hmm… I’m going to need a sifter and a new blender for this. I’ve often thought about making almond flour but knew a coffee grinder was needed, so I’ve never tried. Thanks for the tips! I am very much looking forward to the macaron tutorial.
Megan — A coffee grinder is way cheaper than a blender if you’re only going to use it for nut flour.
I thought the food processor would give me best results, which ofcourse, didn’t! This is why I haven’t tried macarons yet, I could never get the almond fine enough, it always turned into paste!
Yay, can’t wait for your macaron post. Had some amaaazing pistachio ones so am going for that. I also tried making almond flour in a food processor and know from experience that they do not get very fine, although if I was diligent enough to sift the stuff then it could work.
Also, am so so with you on the explaining steps thing. I don’t do it as much as I should on my blog because I fear that the recipes will seem too long (and also, let’s face it I am rather lazy >.<), but it is sooo important.
Yeah, I have never had much luck with grinding nuts from my food processor. Next time, I am going to try it with the mini processor that comes with my blender! Thanks for the tips!
Avanika — I think you can still make macarons with food processor almond flour, they will just have a rougher appearance.
Zo — You’re right, you can force some almond flour from a food processor, but as you say, it takes patience. I also wonder what is the best way to be clear and to provide good information with a recipe. I really want people to get something out it.
Hi Pei Lin — Good idea and please let us know if that produces good results as well.
Wonderful post. I’ve learn how to make this in class. It’s a good thing I did because almond flour is pricey!
Carmen
A macaron tutorial from you! YAY!
Would I get a better result if I freeze the almonds first? I’ve read somewhere that this would prevent the release of oil…
Hi Sil — If you’ve ever refrigerated a bottle of oil and saw it solidify from the cold, it would make sense that the same thing happens to the oils in frozen almonds. So yes, I would think that freezing almonds would help keep the oils from being released as fast when ground. I haven’t tried freezing the almonds first, as I get a great result with this method, but next time I need flour, I’ll give it a try and see if there’s any difference. In any case, I should be more diligent about keeping almonds in the freezer since they don’t go rancid nearly as fast.
Hi Irina, I’m glad to report back that using the mini grinder attachment that came with my blender worked so much better than the food processor. Because of how compact it is, it works out everything in it. There is no looking back! Thanks for the tip!
Pei Lin — I’m glad it worked for you!
Hi Irina. While it is low-tech, an old-fashioned rotary nut grinder works the best because you don’t have the friction element to heat the nuts and release the oils. If you need a lot of almond flour, I really recommend buying one. Also, I find that Trader Joe’s brown (with the skins) almond meal/flour is great and much less expensive than Bob’s. However, this brown meal will make batters are darker and sometimes heavier. The coffee mill is a fine option, too.
Hey Rick — Thanks for the tips. With all these ideas, no one should be hurtin’ for almond flour.
Hi! My name is ORMMY i would like to ask u some question “how to take almonds skin off?”
Thank you
Hi Ormmy — If you cannot buy them without skins, you can blanch the skins off. First, boil some water and pour it over the almonds. Let them rest for 3 minutes, and drain. You should be able to slip the skins off. Dry off the almonds with a clean towel and toast in a 325 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Good luck!
Hi! I am new to your site, and I absolutley LOVE it. I have a question about almond flour. In a recipe calling for say, AP flour or cake flour…if it said 1 1/2 cups , would I sub the same amount of almond flour? As in 1 1/2 almond flour for 1 1/2 of AP flour? And can I sub it in any recipe or are there certain ones that would only be good if using almond flour. I hope this makes sense, I am a new baker
Thanks!!
Hi Ashley — Welcome, both to my site and baking! Almond flour and AP flour are not really interchangeable. They have very different purposes in a recipe. AP flour provides structure from the gluten, and a certain springy texture. Almond flour is used as a flavoring. It’s only called “flour” because it’s ground fine, but it’s still almonds in the end, not wheat. If you want to try substituting, I would start with a small portion of the amount called for in the recipe, say 1/4 cup. If it worked well, I’s substitute an additional 1/4 cup the next time I made it. If the integrity of the finished product was starting to suffer, I’d know where the limit was. Hope that makes sense.
Thank you so much for your blog on almond flour! I am not new to baking, but am new to using nut flours. I am frugal and would want to buy my own anyway, but also live in Mongolia and would not be able to find it!
I am learning some recipes with less wheat flour for my husband for health purposes. Thanks a bunch!!
Tammy, Thank you for taking the time to comment. I think you’ll find nut flour to be incredibly delicious in recipes.
Is it okay if I ad a little plain flour when making this just so it wouldn’t turn out to be a paste during the process? Also will it affect the texture, taste and/ or appearance of the macaron?
Hi Gellyn — Yes, it will definitely affect the macaron, so I don’t recommend adding flour. Many people grind the nuts with the sugar from the recipe, in this case it’s the powdered sugar. It helps to absorb some of the oils and keeps things well ground.
Hi PastryPal, if i’m making almond meal for macarons, is it better i’m using dry roasted almond or just natural ? I tried use dry roasted one today and it turn into a paste. dont know if I blend it too long or what that makes it so gooey. Thanks for your help
Hi Gavin — You can use roasted or natural, but be careful when grinding either. If you process the nuts too long, they will turn into a paste because of all the oils they release. Grind just until they are finely ground, and no longer.
Hi, I also just found this site and love the way you are showing techniques. Could you give me an idea of how many almonds it would take to make say a half cup of almond meal. I am going to try making my own in a ninja I just bought and have no idea how many almonds to buy. Thanx in advance.
Kathy — Not that many. My guesstimate is 3/4 cup.
Hi, I was reading your response to Ormmy about blanching Almonds and saw that you said to toast the almonds for 10 mins after skinning them. I was just wondering why you would toast them? I looked up skinning Almonds on the web and most of instructions do not mention toasting. Thanks!
Hi Mike — I suggest to toast them to dry out some of the liquid they might absorb from blanching. You don’t need the toasted flavor, per se, though it might be a nice variation
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I just came across your site while looking up how to make Almond Flour. I buy it all the time and it’s up to around $12 per package where I live. So happy to hear I can easily make my own! Now I’ll never be without it. Thanks so much!
The first time i let the almonds soak the skins didn’t “slip” off so I had a process of putting the almonds back in the bowl, reboiling the water and resoaking them. The second time worked like a charm and I did two batches with the same problem and solution. Other than that it worked perfect! Came out just like the picture, thanks!
Among other baking ingredients I bought a 2.65 pound bag of sliced almonds during the holiday season with great expections of doing lots of baking. I barely used the almonds. While searching the internet for what to do with my huge bag of almonds, I found your site on how to make almond flour. I think I will get a better use out of making the flour then baking with it. Thank you.
Hi There. Thankyou so much Irina for your support and tips. It is just wonderful that you share your amazing talent with the world. We are all so privelidged and grateful for your knowledge. I have been making macarons professionally for a small time now and I feel I have now mastered them. My only issue now is time and I feel the time it takes to sift the almond meal and icing sugar is making life difficult. I was thinking about purchasing a coffee burr mill grinder and doing the almond flour myself. What are your thoughts on this to help save time? Cheers, Lauren
Hi Lauren — Grinding almonds yourself doesn’t save time, but rather takes more time. The only reason I do it myself is to save money since almond flour is so expensive in the US. If you already have access to almond flour, I’d suggest you keep using that. Unfortunately, the sifting is an important part of the process, and I wouldn’t skip it, even if it is a pain in the keister. Hope that helps!
Hey, Girl! I love your site more than Sarah Phillips Baking 911. And I had to pay to join hers! I love your tutorial on almond flour. I used a food processor to grind the first batch of almonds. I will try the blender and grind frozen ones. What a great tip! I am sold on your site!