Sunday, June 19, 2011

Homemade Almond Paste



I hope all who are celebrating Father's Day enjoy the day and are appropriately spoiled by their children. I found this quotation I thought you might enjoy. "By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong." -- Charles Wadsworth


From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Sometimes necessity really is the mother of invention. I committed to make a European-style muffins, flavored with almond paste, for a Father's Day brunch. They aren't difficult to make and they really are delicious. Under normal circumstances, it would be a pleasure, not a problem, to make them for everyone. Lest you think Murphy sleeps once you're in retirement, we really need to have a chat. I live in a community where you can buy almost any ingredient, at least at Christmas time. Once stocks of specialty items like candied fruit are gone, that's it for the year. The trend is creeping down the food chain and we've all learned to buy a year's supply of pumpkin and fresh cranberries while they are available. I was taken aback today, when what I thought would be a quick dash to market, turned into a cook's tour of community grocery stores. I was looking for almond paste. I couldn't find any and in a fit of pique spoke badly of all grocers west of the Hudson River. My thoughts were very colorful and I apologize to any whose relatives I denigrated. Fortunately, my better angels, armed with steely resolve took control and came up with a plan to make almond paste and get on with the remains of the day. I used the recipe from an old Taste of Home yearbook and I was really happy with the results. I actually made two versions of the almond paste. One was a from scratch effort that required blanching of whole almonds before they were ground and mixed with the sugar and egg white. The second effort used prepackaged pulverized almond meal. Interestingly enough, there was no difference in the taste of the two batches. There was, however, an enormous differences in the color of the paste they produced. The one made from the purchased meal was an unappealing tan in color and could not be used in recipes where color is important. The batch made from the blanched almonds was far more appealing and is the one I used to cook with today. The almond paste is easy to make if you have a blender or food processor, and while I wouldn't recommend its use in all applications, it worked well in the muffins I prepared. Here's the recipe. This is a great one to keep in your files for a rainy day.

Homemade Almond Paste
...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Taste of Home

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups blanched almonds
1-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 egg white
1-1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1) Place almonds in a food processor; cover and process until smooth. Add confectioners' sugar, egg white, extract and salt; cover and process until smooth. 2) Divide almond paste into 1/2-cup portions. I like to roll each portion into a sausage shape and store them in airtight containers. Refrigerate for up to 1 month or freeze for up to 3 months. Yield: 1-1/2 cup.








One Year Ago Today: Lemon Anise Churros















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You might also enjoy these posts:
How to Make Homemade Vanilla Extract - The Old Hen Blog
How to Make Homemade Maple-Flavored Syrup - The Daily Dish
Dulce de Leche - Chocolate Apprentice
Homemade Chocolate Syrup - Small Notebook
Caramel Sauce - Simply Recipes

61 comments :

Anonymous said...

This is really good to know because sometimes I don't have time to run to the store just for almond meal or almond paste. Thanks for the recipe!

sangeeta said...

Very useful post. It is similar to marzipan and i guess will used for similar purpose too.

Anonymous said...

I love almond paste, are you going to use it to make marzipan?

Lora said...

I've had the same problem here in Germany with many ingredients I had to make myself, most tome not because of the season but because they don't exist here. Ditto on the almond paste. I also used the blanched almonds. Next time I will give your recipe a go.

Chiara said...

It seems easy to make, thank you Mary! have a lovely sunday...

Katarina said...

I like homemade almond paste and it's so easy to make :)

Coleens Recipes said...

I love it, this is SO handy!!! I have overlooked many recipes because they call for almond paste. Thank you SO MUCH for sharing.

penny aka jeroxie said...

Can I not use almond extract? Will it still work?

My Little Space said...

Happy Father's Day to Bob! And thanks for the almond paste recipe. Bookmarked it.
Have a lovely weekend.
Kristy

purabi naha said...

homemade almond paste is truly wonderful and worth saving the recipe. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

Alessandra said...

I make it often but I never used eggs, or almond essence, (I use a few apricot kernels instead), mine must be the Italian version :-).

Have a good Sunday, here it is nearly finished!

ciao
Alessandra

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

You made your own almond paste! Very impressive, and I'll bet quite delicious!

daphne said...

I love how you are so versatile and flexible! It's lovely that you managed to make the almond paste yourself- i bet it must be worthwhile!

Clint said...

I'd give just about anything to hear you speak in a fit of pique.

Sue/the view from great island said...

I've never come across homemade almond paste, what a great post. It's one of my favorite ingredients and I'm always frustrated at the tiny size of the tube! Can't wait to try it.

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

They say necessity is the mother of invention and I would say that applied to your situation Mary. I'm so happy to have this recipe as I make a cake that uses 1 1/2 tubes of almond paste and, like you, sometimes it's difficult to find. With that amount of almonds, it also explains why almond paste is so expensive.

Actually I made the cake I'm talking about yesterday to take to the blogger get-together today in Tennessee. Hope Bob has a happy Father's day.
Sam

Karen said...

Oh no, nothing worse than your grocery store letting you down when you're desperate for an ingredient! But,home made is always better anyways, and I'm sure your muffins will come out that much more delicious. :-)

Martha said...

Here on the prairie, where we are ingredient challenged-- almond paste IS available year round! I, too, have a recipe for one but have never used it but glad to see that you find it easy.

Glamour Drops said...

Oh this is the EXACT recipe that my mother has made for decades! How amazing! I too make this same recipe, always have. Only trouble is not sneaking off little pieces to nibble on...

No comparison between freshly made and the bought stuff.

Whats Cookin Italian Style Cuisine said...

We love making this, and make the almond paste every christmas for the cafe' cookies we love them! You make it exactly the same... sounds like my grandma's recipe... great job!

Maris (In Good Taste) said...

Haven't tried this yet but I will save this post. Have a wonderful day!

safire said...

It sounds so versatile! Thanks for sharing. I love it!

Carol @ There's Always Thyme to Cook said...

I love almond paste, never thought to make it from scratch. What will you use it in?

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I don't know that I would find it anywhere in my hometown either. I actually saw some dulce de leche the other day, now there's progress.

Marnely Rodriguez-Murray said...

Mary, thanks for stopping by my blog! You're very sweet; love this recipe and will need to try it soon!

Anonymous said...

what a wonderful post.Such good info,, they also sound really good, never had these

brokeintrovert said...

This is a great recipe to have....not processed in a can!!

Pondside said...

You are so right about not being able to find certain ingredients outside of the holiday season. I use almond paste to make kransekage - the Danish celebration cake made from rings of almond dough, baked and then set one on top of the other. I'll have to file this recipe for the future - thank you!
PS I can't imagine you being flustered in a grocery store!

lena said...

this is very helpful cos almond paste is also not available in my area.

hobby baker Kelly said...

I love this recipe! I used it recently for a Bakewell tart since I always have blanched almond meal on hand. Turned out fabulous. I love that you can tailor it to make the exact amount you need so there is no waste or leftover. And with my serrated food processor blade, it was the exact consistency of store bought. Woot!

Priya Suresh said...

Almond paste looks wonderful..

Jocie's Mom said...

I hate it when that happens! And in Cayman it could be something that everywhere in the world has. And item you wouldn't for an instant think wouldn't be available. But you are not one to be deterred :) Well done!

Joanne said...

Wow I can't imagine not being able to find almond paste! I'm glad that you were innovative enough to come up with a way to get it made!

Cathy at Wives with Knives said...

Who would have thought that almond paste is so easy to make. It's no fun running all over creation looking for an off season ingredients. I'm keeping this recipe for sure.

That Girl said...

I make my own almond meal, but I've never done almond paste!

Ginny Hartzler said...

Gosh, homemade almond paste, I'm impressed!

Kim said...

Perfect this almond paste recipe, I want to try it for a while and I think that I shall when I'll be in the need for this! Thank for the recipe!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake said...

Good thinking! I'm always disappointed to find that certain food items are "seasonal." Now I know what to do if I'm ever in this same pickle :)

Gloria Baker said...

What lovely almond paste I love it!! gloria

Peggy said...

I always run into the same problem - I assume that the grocery will carry something I need, I go, and just my luck, it's nowhere to be found! Good to know you could remedy this one by making it yourself =)

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful recipe - it'
so useful -
Mary

linksdistodaquilo said...

Very good suggestion!
Kisses.

teresa said...

i just love almond paste. i've never thought to make my own, fantastic!

Unknown said...

Aww I love that quote about fathers! I feel it goes the same for mothers as well : )

tasteofbeirut said...

Excellent recipe; I will make batches of this and freeze them; almond paste can be used in so many pastries, it is a shame to have to buy the (tasteless) commercial kind!

Anna said...

oh my GOODNESS! i love almond paste more than anything. so excited about this!!!

Banana Wonder said...

You have inspired me! I love almond paste - hence my obsession for almond croissants. I need to try this recipe out. I bet your muffins were amazing! Happy Father's day :-)

Elin said...

Mary....thanks for sharing this almond paste recipe with us. It is easy and I am sure it taste good too. I shall give this a try :)

Have a blessed Monday,
Elin

Little Inbox said...

Almond is good for health. Good to make it at home.

Anonymous said...

I have made this once from a recipe my grandfather used - it is so simple and worth keeping :)

Anonymous said...

Good on you for making almond paste on your own instead of just abandoning the recipe! Thanks for letting us know the difference using almond meal makes.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this recipe. I've always wanted to make my own almond paste. Almond is one of my favorite things.
Karen

~~louise~~ said...

Wow Mary! I too am impressed. It sounds like even little ol me can whip this up.

Thanks for sharing...

Nicole@HeatOvenTo350 said...

I never even thought to make my own almond paste. You're right - this is a good one to have on hand. I have the ingredients in this recipe far more often than I have actual almond paste.

Lucy Lu said...

thank you for this wonderful recipe!

have a nice day,
Lucy,

Red Couch Recipes said...

I still have one store in town that sells almond paste and marzipan. Sometimes it is hard though and I have to pick it up in the town about 1.5 hours away. I have made Marzipan (from scratch)with my mom whe I was a girl -- we weren't so successful. Good to know that the amond meal will work. I adore Marzipan. Joni

Maria said...

Lovely! I've made almond butter in the past, it is so good!

Lucie said...

Nice! Would be fun to experiment with different ratios, trying to add as much almond as possible!

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

Mary, I made an Almond Limoncello cake with almond paste and linked back to your post so my readers would know how to make homemade almond paste. Such a great idea and often I can't find it myself.
Sam

Stephanie said...

I was so excited to see this. I have a recipe that calls for almond paste but I haven't known where to get it. I'll make sure to use this recipe next time. Thanks for the info.

Laura Dembowski said...

I love this recipe, because I think everything's better homemade. I posted my adaptation on my blog and would just love if you'd come take a look :) Here's the link: http://piesandplots.net/almond-paste/

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