Blanched almonds are delicious in these Chinese Almond Cookies and are the basis for making almond flour. Blanched almonds sold in stores are extremely expensive, but you can easily make them at home. All you need is a bag of raw almonds.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Remove from heat. Add raw almonds to the hot water. Let sit for 1 minute (not longer). Drain and pour into a bowl of ice cold water.
Leave almonds in ice water only until they are cool, about one minute. Drain.
To remove the skins: pinch almonds between your thumb and index finger to slide the almond out of its skin.
Pat dry. Allow to dry completely before using in recipes.
If you over-soak your almonds and they don’t dry properly: preheat oven to 200°F. Turn oven OFF. Place almonds on a baking sheet and put into the warm (but OFF) oven. Leave almonds in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
To make almond flour from your blanched almonds: place completely dry blanched almonds in a blender or food processor and blend until almonds form fine meal.
Blanched almonds are also great in cookies like these Chinese Almond Cookies.
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