How to Make Blanched Almond Flour--and why!

Almond flour, or almond meal as it is sometimes called, can be made with or without the skins of the almonds and has a texture similar to cornmeal.  Using blanched (skinless) almonds is generally preferred for baked goods. It is slightly sweet and has a mildly, but not overpowering, nutty flavor.

Almond flour is an excellent substitute for wheat flour in things like quick breads, pancakes, muffins and cookies. It is low in net carbs, high in protein and fiber, full of healthy fat and gluten free. When used in a recipe without much refined sugar, almond flour can give you a practically guilt-free treat. It takes about 15 minutes to make and can reduce your cost almost 50% over store-bought almond flour. 

Place blanched almonds (if whole, they may grind more evenly if roughly chopped first) into the bowl of a food processor or Magic Bullet. I did about 4-6 oz. at a time.

Process until you get a course meal, but watch that you don't wind up with almond butter!

Pour the ground almonds into a sifter or fine mesh sieve over a bowl and shake lightly to look for any larger pieces that need to be reprocessed.

These are the pieces I put back in for a second grinding along with my next round of slivered almonds.

Here's what the almond flour looks like when it's finished!

The Bob's Red Mill almond flour on the left is a 16 oz. bag and contains about 3 cups in volume. It is over $8/bag at Kroger. The bulk (blanched) almonds I have priced in various grocery and bulk foods stores have run between $4-5 pound. That's a savings of between 40-50% to make it yourself. You can grind several pounds at a time and freeze the almond flour in order to save time and dirty dishes down the road. 

Here is a yummy almond flour pancake recipe from Kelly over at The Nourishing Home. Click HERE for my family's favorite No-Guilt Chocolate Chip Cookies made with almond flour. My kids love getting a sweet treat and I love that they are getting a hefty portion of protein and fiber! These cookies truly are DELICIOUS--even my husband thinks so. :)