If you regularly use healthy almond flour, then I am sure you know about it’s benefits and how incredibly nutritious it is! It is a popular GLUTEN FREE alternative to wheat flour. It is loaded with nutrients and makes for an excellent choice when it comes to baking. However, it can burn a hole into your pocket if you intent to use it regularly.
This is where, RecipeForte’s DIY, make-at-home ALMOND FLOUR recipe comes in handy. This recipe not only yields cheaper than your store bought version, but also has a quick turnaround time.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ALMOND FLOUR AND ALMOND MEAL?
Almond Meal — Almond meal is typically made from grinding raw (unpeeled) almonds. It has dark color & coarse texture as compared to almond flour because of the skin.
Almond Flour — Almond flour is made from blanched (peeled) almonds. It has a finer texture and lighter color as it has no skin in it.
When to use the meal & when to use the flour?? A simple way to figure out this is to see what kind of texture you need with the final product. Almond meal will give you baked goods, with a cake-like texture.
Another very important fact that we fail to acknowledge is that, the skin of unblanched almonds has tannins which gives it a bitter flavor as compared to soaked almonds that turn out to be softer, less bitter, more on the sweet side than unblanched ones.
IS ALMOND FLOUR HEALTHY?
Almond flour is nothing but almonds in powdered or ground form. One look at the nutrient sheet will tell you why it is exceptionally healthy, just one ounce of almonds contains (1):
- Fiber: 3.5 grams
- Protein: 6 grams
- Fat: 14 grams (9 of which are monounsaturated)
- Vitamin E: 37% of the RDI
- Manganese: 32% of the RDI
- Magnesium: 20% of the RDI
- It also contain a decent amount of copper, vitamin B2 (riboflavin) and phosphorus.
This popular tree nut is high in healthy monounsaturated fats, fiber, protein, antioxidants and various important nutrients like vitamin E. It also helps regulating blood pressure level, lowers cholesterol levels and assists with controlling blood sugar levels.
Most importantly, as we already know food high in fiber & protein increases feelings of fullness in our belly. Almond flour too, is high in protein & fiber. So, naturally consumption of this flour results in lower calorie consumption (2).
CAN YOU SWAP ALMOND FLOUR WITH ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR?
The two main reason why we swap almond flour with all-purpose flour is, either we need gluten free food or simply a healthier recipe…sometimes both! Since it has a higher fat and protein content than all-purpose flour, it’s not the greatest option for a recipe that does NOT need eggs such as a loaf of a bread or cakes.
An important thing to note is that, for any recipe with eggs & all purpose flour as an ingredient, you can easily substitute healthy almond flour with all-purpose flour using 1:1 ratio. But as always…taste the final product, when substituting with another ingredient, before serving it to others!
I would highly recommended using this flour with tried & tested gluten-free recipes. A few of them are listed towards the end of this post.
WHY I LOVE THIS LOW-CARB & KETO FRIENDLY FLOUR?
It is an excellent choice when it comes to low-carb baking. Let’s take a look:
1/4 Cup of Almond flour contains 6 gms of Carb & 3 gms of protein.
1/4 Cup of All purpose flour contains 24 gms of Carb & >1 gms of protein.
If you are following a keto diet, I do not think you would indulge in a lot of sweet baked goods. If you are craving sweet baked products, you can try recipes made with almond flour. Almond flour makes for a great choice as it only has net 3 gms of carbs.
HOW TO BLANCH ALMONDS?
We can prepare flour at home by using raw unblanched almonds OR raw blanched almonds (available as slivered or sliced). If you plan to use raw unblanched almonds, below are the 2 ways to blanch them:
OVERNIGHT METHOD:
- Take desired quantity of almonds in a bowl.
- Pour clean drinking water to generously cover & soak the almonds. Use 2:1 for water to almonds ratio.
- Cover & leave overnight or for at least 8 hours.
- Drain the water & peel off the skin (it comes off easily in a second).
- Spread on a paper towel to get rid of excess moisture or dry roast in a pan on low heat till completely dry.
BOILING METHOD:
- Boil enough water in a saucepan to soak the unblanched almonds. Use 2:1 for water to almonds ratio.
- Simmer on medium heat for 8–10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let it cool completely.
- Once cooled, peel off the skin.
- Spread on a paper towel to get rid of excess moisture or dry roast in a pan on low heat till completely dry.
NOTE : The skin of almonds has tannins that gives it a bitter flavor when consumed. Whereas soaked & blanched almonds turn out to be softer, less bitter, more on the sweet side than unblanched ones.
My personal choice would be to go with soaking the almonds overnight. Mainly because soaking for 8–10 hours, significantly reduces the anti-nutrients present in them. Soaking them is also believed to help break down the fiber that makes them easier to digest. For more information on benefits of soaking almonds CLICK HERE!
IS HOMEMADE ALMOND FLOUR CHEAPER THAN STORE BOUGHT?
Let’s get into the nitty gritty of the cost involved in making almond flour at home. Below are 2 brands of slivered almonds that are readily available to buy:
- Unsalted Dry Toasted Slivered Almonds from Trader Joe’s cost $3.49 for an 8 Oz. pack. It roughly comes down to $0.43/ ounce. These are without skin & already slivered, all you have to do is grind them but are a little on the expensive side.
- 365 by Whole Foods Market — Almonds Blanched Slivered, when ordered from Amazon cost $4.69 for 8 ounce. It roughly comes down to $0.59/ ounce.
Below are 2 brands of raw unblanched almonds that are readily available to buy:
- Raw Almonds from Trader Joe’s cost $4.99 for a 1 lb. pack. It roughly comes down to $0.31/ ounce.
- Blue Diamond Almonds Whole from Amazon cost $13.68 for a 40 oz. pack. It roughly comes down to $0.34/ ounce.
And Bob’s Red Mill Super-Fine Almond Flour costs $10.99 for 16 0z pack. It roughly translates to $0.69/ ounce. So there is no doubt that you will save money if you make almond flour at home, especially using raw unblanched almonds.
Also, hands down Trader Joe’s win both categories, whether you want to use blanched almonds or raw unblanched ones, to make your own flour at home. Whatever route you decide to go, ultimately you will be making a healthy choice for your family. It is a win-win situation, ain’t it??
HOMEMADE ALMOND FLOUR
5 minute tutorial on how to make healthy and cheap almond flour at home. This excellent gluten-free & grain-free flour is great for low-carb baking.
prep time:5 MINS
total time:5 MINS
INGREDIENTS
- 8 Oz. blanched almonds , whole, sliced or slivered
- 1 Cup Fresh water, to soak overnight (if using unblanched almonds)
INSTRUCTIONS
For Blanched Almonds
- Put the blanched almonds in a high-speed blender or food processor, and process until they are finely ground. Do not over-process, refer to notes below
- Take 5 seconds to rate this recipe below. We greatly appreciate it!
For Unblanched Almonds
- Almonds to Water ratio for soaking almonds is ½ : 1.
- Soak desired amount of unblanched almonds overnight.
- Peel the almonds to remove skin.
- Place the soaked, peeled almonds on a kitchen towel to soak excess water.
- Preheat oven at 175°F
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spread the almonds on it.
- Place in the oven & dry for 12–24 hours or until completely dry
- Once dry, pull out of the oven. Let it cool down.
- Blend into fine powder.
- Take 5 seconds to rate this recipe below. We greatly appreciate it!
NOTES
- I suggest turning the blender on the highest setting for 8–10 seconds. Then stop, shake the blender container, and scrape off the sides to loosen any clumps that have stuck to the sides. Blend again until fine and powdery — all in all about 10–15 seconds of blending.
- Please be sure NOT to over-process as the almonds will eventually start to release their oils and turn into almond butter.
- For best results, do not blend more than 8 ounces of almonds at a time. (I tried using 16 ounces and couldn’t get them evenly ground.) Over-crowding the blender does not give almonds enough space to move around.
- For the most finely-ground results, using a blender works best, using a food processor also works for making almond flour recipes– the final product will be just slightly grainier.
- Store any leftover almond flour in an airtight container in a dark pantry, or better yet in the fridge or freezer for the longest shelf life. Almond flour can keep well for up to one year if it’s not exposed to heat or moisture.
WHAT OTHER GLUTEN-FREE FLOURS CAN WE USE?
If you use gluten-free flours regularly, you might want to check the below list of the commonly used gluten-free flours & the net carbs they contain per 1/4 of a Cup (1)(2):
- Almond Flour — 3 gms
- Buckwheat Flour — 17 gms
- Sorghum Flour — 22 gms
- Amaranth Flour — 17 gms
- Teff Flour — 18 gms
- Arrowroot Flour — 27 gms
- Brown rice Flour — 29 gms
- Oat Flour — 22 gms
- Corn Flour — 18 gms
- Chickpea Flour — 13 gms
- Coconut Flour — 6 gms
- Tapioca Flour — 26 gms
- Cassava Flour — 24 gms
- Tigernut Flour — 10 gms
THE CONCLUSION — Three gluten-free flours have net carbs under 10 gms per 1/4 of a cup. And the nutritious almond flour dominates the race to take the crown, with only 3 gms net carb. Here are few of my favorite recipes to try, using this undefeated king of gluten-free flours:
- Keto Almond Flour Bread
- Keto Almond Flour Biscuits
- Almond Flour Blueberry Muffins
- Savory Keto Biscuits
- Keto Pancakes
- Homemade Almond Butter — recipe coming soon…
This article first appeared on www.recipeforte.com on April 3rd, 2022.
