In this post, you’ll learn how to blanch almonds and make almond flour out of them in a short time. You can learn how to dry almonds quickly as well if you need to use them immediately.
Blanching almonds and then turning these almonds into almond flour couldn’t be easier. I’ll share almond pudding, almond flour peanut butter cookies, gluten free chewy chocolate chip cookies and some other recipes with blanched almonds and almond flour so I decided to share today’s post.
What is blanched almond?
Blanched almond means skinless, peeled almond.
When the recipe calls for almond flour and what you have is only raw almonds, you can easily make your almond flour.
First, you need to blanch the almonds with boiling water to remove the skin, and then let the blanched almonds dry and finally ground these peeled almonds.
Today we’ll go through each stage. So let’s start!
Blanching Almonds
There are two ways of doing it. You can either keep the almonds in boiling water or pour boiled water on top, then the rest steps are the same. You can use the boiled water method if you don’t want to use a stove but an electric kettle.
Let’s start with the most common; placing the almonds in boiling water.
Stove method:
Place water in a small-medium saucepan and let it boil.
Once boiled, add the almonds. Let the almonds boil for 1 minute and remove the saucepan from the heat.
You’ll notice that the skin of the almonds will shrivel after 60 seconds. Drain the almonds from soaking water either using a colander or a strainer and rinse under cold water to let them cool.
Electric kettle method:
This is the method I use mostly.
Place the almonds in a heat-proof bowl.
You can boil water in an electric kettle and pour the boiled water over the almonds. Let the almonds stay in boiled water for a maximum of 4 minutes.
Once the skin shrivels, you’ll know that they are ready. Some of them will be ready after 2-3 minutes but it takes most of them to be ready in almost 4 minutes.
But don’t let them stay in water for more than 4 minutes or so as the almonds can soften.
Using a colander/strainer drain the almonds from the soaking water and rinse them under cold water to let them cool.
After draining the almonds, it is time to remove the skins.
How to peel almonds
Using your thumb and forefinger squeeze the almonds. You’ll see that the skin easily removes.
Don’t surprise if some of your almonds fly. Yes, they do! This means these methods let you remove the almond skin fast.
So it is best to do the squeezing step gently and keep your other hand close to avoid this “flying step” as it is not nice to see some almonds at the other corner of the kitchen!
As you remove the skin, place each blanched almond on a paper towel so they can start to dry.
If you need them dry in almost 5 minutes this is what you should do:
How to dry almonds quickly
Place the almonds as a single layer without overlapping and keep in the preheated oven at 225°F (107°C) for 5-7 minutes or until dry when touched.
After the almonds are dried and cooled, you can easily make your almond flour.
How to make almond flour
Place the dried almonds into a blender or food processor and ground the almonds until finely grounded and reach almond flour consistency. Don’t over-process as you don’t want them to turn into almond butter.
As you see making almond flour is as simple as these 3 simple steps; blanching almonds, drying almonds and grounding almonds.
I hope you find this post helpful and use blanched almonds or almond flour in your delicious dishes!
Frequently asked questions
You can keep blanched almonds or almond flour in an airtight container in a dark place at room temperature for up to 3-4 weeks, in the fridge for up to 3 months and in the freezer for up to a year.
If you pour boiled water over the almonds, and there are some almonds (maybe 5-10) that you can’t remove easily, simply pour hot water on top and wait for a couple of seconds. You’ll notice that the skin of the almonds will shrivel immediately and you can remove them easily as well.
Although they can be used interchangeably in some recipes-depending on the recipe, they are not the same. Almond meal is grounded almonds with their peels whereas almond flour is more finely grounded almonds without the peels.
Other how-to posts you may find helpful!
- How to Blanch Peaches
- Homemade Tahini
- How to Make Dried Apples
- Homemade Condensed Milk
- Homemade Lemon Curd
- How to Toast Sesame Seeds
- How to Make Dried Bananas
I love hearing from you! If you find this how-to post helpful or try my other recipes please leave a comment and give a star rating!
How to Blanch Almonds and Make Almond Flour
Equipment
- Saucepan or heat proof bowl
Ingredients
- 150 grams (1 cup) raw almonds
- 480 grams (2 cups) water
Instructions
- You can either blanch almonds on stove or use an electric kettle. Stove method: Let the water boil in a small-medium sauce. Once the water boiled, add the almonds and let them boil for 1 minute. After minute the skin of the almonds will shrivel. Don't boil for more than a minute as the almonds can soften. Remove the saucepan from the heat and drain the almonds from soaking water either using a colander or a strainer and rinse under cold water to let them cool. Electric kettle method: Put the almonds in a heat-proof bowl. Boil water in an electric kettle and pour over the almonds. Let the almonds stay in water for almost 3-4 minutes. The skin of the almonds will start to shrivel after 2 minutes but it takes almost 4 minutes to most of them shrivel.* Don't keep the almonds in water for more than 4 minutes as they can soften. Using a colander or strainer drain the almonds from the soaking water and rinse them under cold water to let them cool.
- Using your thumb and forefinger squeeze the almonds to remove their skin. You should squeeze gently and keep your other hand next to the almond as while removing the skin, almond can easily fly from your fingers. Place the blanched almonds on a paper towel to let them dry. If you need them immediately see the next step.
- You can dry the almonds in the oven quickly if you need them immediately. Preheat the oven to 225°F (107°C). Spread the almonds as a single layer without overlapping and keep in the oven for 5-7 minutes or until dry when you touch the top of the almonds.
- Place the dried blanched almonds into a blender or food processor and ground them finely until they resemble almond flour. Stop the machine and check the consistency as you shouldn't over ground them; they can easily turn into almond butter from almond flour.
