confession: i have never once purchased almond flour.  ever.

i know i use almond flour in several of my recipes, but (due to not wanting to make a trip to the store one day) i tried this and it worked great!  so, being the thrifty baker that i am, i have just continued using this DIY method of almond flour ever since.  I have nothing against store bought almond flour, but chances are you are more likely to have almonds in your pantry right now than almond flour…am i right?

oh yeah, and it’s cheaper. way cheaper.

• 3 lbs of almond flour made from raw almonds purchased at costco = $10.00

• 3 lbs of almond flour purchased at local health food store = $21.00

• 3 lbs of almond flour purchased online from bulk discount store = $18.00 plus shipping

if you want perfectly white almond flour, i suggest you buy some slivered blanched almonds from trader joe’s or something.  if you’re like me and know it’s all going to the same place (my mouth), you can just stick with plain whole raw almonds.  sure, you can see a few flecks of the shell in the almond flour itself, but i assure you it has absolutely no effect on the final product.

ingredients:

• raw almonds (not salted or roasted…raw…get them in the baking aisle)

–first, you’ll need an awesome blender like a blendtec (or vitamix) …a food processor would also probably work, just make sure not to over process so you don’t accidentally end up with almond butter!

–next, put your raw almonds into the blender.  i do 1 cup at a time…it only takes about 15 seconds for the blendtec to work it, so don’t get over-zealous people.

–next, go to the food processing menu on the blender by pressing the “cycle menu” button 4 times then choose the “knead” setting by pressing the speed arrow down button 3 times.  then press start.  this cycle spins super fast!

once finished (~15 seconds later), i use a spreading knife to get the almond flour stuck in the corners of the blender and cut through those with the knife a few times before i remove it to make sure it’s a smooth & fine consistency.

store unused almond flour in an airtight container in the pantry.  i always measure my almond flour by weight to get the most accurate measure. (remember: 1 cup = 100 grams)  i also sift through the flour with a fork before mixing into a recipe to make sure any isn’t stuck together or clumpy!

voila!  that’s it. seriously!  you’re welcome. :)

happy gluten free baking (on a budget)!