Minimalist Baker

How to Make Almond Flour

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Measuring cup of slivered almonds for making homemade almond flour

A question we are commonly asked: Is there a difference between almond meal and almond flour?

The answer: YES!

The Difference Between Almond Meal and Almond Flour

While almond meal is typically made from raw (unpeeled) almonds, almond flour is made from blanched (peeled) almonds.

Compared to almond meal, almond flour has a finer texture and lighter color. These differences are even more pronounced when comparing almond flour to almond meal made from leftover almond pulp (all three versions pictured below — top: almond meal from pulp, middle: almond meal from raw almonds, bottom: almond flour).

Bowls of almond flour and two different types of almond meal with one being made from leftover almond pulp

When to Use Almond Meal vs Almond Flour?

Almond meal and almond flour can typically be used interchangeably in quick breads and cookies and they are great gluten-free alternatives to traditional flours.

But for recipes where a more cake-like consistency and less pronounced almond flavor is desired, almond flour is definitely the way to go because of its lighter texture, color, and neutral flavor.

You can see an example of where we used almond meal in these 5-Ingredient Vegan Gluten Free Cookies and an example of where we used almond flour in this 1-Bowl Vegan Gluten Free Vanilla Cake.

Blender of blanched almonds for making homemade almond flour

How to Make Almond Flour

Making homemade almond flour is very simple! It requires only 1 ingredient, 1 blender, and 5 minutes.

Simply add blanched almonds to a blender and blitz until a fine, powdery flour is achieved. You know you’ve gone too far if it starts turning to almond butter instead.

Not only is it simple to make, but homemade almond flour tastes fresher and is usually more cost-effective than storebought.

Blender of homemade almond flour

Almond Flour Recipes

Now that you’ve made almond flour, it’s time to put it to use!

This nutrient-rich flour lends itself well to cookies, cakes, and so much more! We typically like to use a mix of flours in a recipe in order to achieve the ideal texture and flavor.

Here are some of our favorite recipes using almond flour as an ingredient:

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!

Jar filled with a batch of almond flour made using our How to Make Almond Flour tutorial

How to Make Almond Flour

Simple tutorial showing how to make almond flour. Great for gluten-free and grain-free baking with just 1 blender, 1 ingredient, and 5 minutes required.
Author Minimalist Baker
Print
Jar of homemade almond flour
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 6 (1/4-cup servings)
Course Helpful How-to
Cuisine Baking, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Vegan
Freezer Friendly 3 months
Does it keep? 1 Month

Ingredients

US Customary – Metric
  • 1 ½ cups blanched almonds (slivered or whole)

Instructions

  • Add almonds to a high-speed blender and blend on high until a fine, powdery flour is achieved. We recommend turning the blender on the highest setting for 5-10 seconds. Then stop, shake the blender container, and hit the sides to shake loose any clumps that have formed on the sides. Blend again until fine and powdery — all in all about 10-15 seconds of blending. You’ll know you’ve gone too far if it starts turning to almond butter or clumping up on the sides.
  • Check your blender for bits of nuts and continue blending, occasionally removing your blender from the base and shaking to ensure all almonds are well blended.
  • Transfer to a jar or container and store up to 1 month unrefrigerated, often longer. See notes for recipe suggestions.

Video

Notes

*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.
*Here are some of our favorite recipes using almond flour as an ingredient:

Nutrition (1 of 6 servings)

Serving: 1 quarter-cup servings Calories: 214 Carbohydrates: 6.8 g Protein: 7.8 g Fat: 19 g Saturated Fat: 1.4 g Trans Fat: 0 g Cholesterol: 0 mg Sodium: 7 mg Potassium: 239 mg Fiber: 3.6 g Sugar: 1.7 g

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All commentsI made thisQuestions

    • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Paul! That should be fine, as long as the flour doesn’t feel too oily or moist. Hope this helps!

      Reply

  4. Gamma says

    Hi there! Thank you for this (and all!) recipe! Do you have a technique for making defatted almond flour? We’ve found it is a PERFECT sub for crispy breading (especially when combined with nutritional yeast) and for making excellent pizza dough. It’s just so expensive and in short supply, so I’d love to find a good way to make it at home. Thanks again!

    Reply

    • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Gamma, we aren’t familiar with defatted almond flour so we aren’t certain of the consistency. But one idea would be to use our recipe for making almond meal from almond pulp (you could use blanched almonds from if you don’t want the skins). It has less fat because some of the fat goes toward making the almond milk. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  5. Karen Kook says

    I want to make macaroons (which requires almond FLOUR) but I gave tonnes (a slight exaggeration…) of almond MEAL. Can I whizz the almond meal in the thermomix dowm a a finer powder like almond flour and use that do you think/know/suggest?

    Cheers, KK

    Reply

  6. S B says

    It turned out perfect! I added a tsp full of white sugar while grinding (less than 10 seconds) and it helped to keep the flour dry and not turn into butter.

    The blanched almonds have to be peeled and then dried. Making sure there is no moisture is the key.

    Reply

  7. Leslie says

    Lightly boil for a minute if want it more pasty. I also found that adding skim milk to it makes it creamier and easier to apply. Some suggest adding a bit of red pepper juice, watercress, blueberry or spinach. Green Tea is good too.
    Eating colorful foods, pistachios (wards off type 2 diabetes), sweet potatoes, Pomegranate seeds, walnuts, almonds and brazil nuts will help with oxygenation, circulation, muscle health. Reduces inflammation and protects us from pollution and uv rays.

    Enjoy!

    Reply

    • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Jasica, hmm, we’re not sure we are following your question correctly. We buy almonds that have already been blanched and do not have skin on them. See photos above recipe.

      Reply

      • Jasica says

        what if i were to use raw almonds, soak them and blanch them myself instead? Do i still need to remove the skin ? And also do i need to wait for it to dry before blending it to make flour?

        Reply

        • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

          Hi Jasica, we’re not familiar with the blanching process, but we do think you would need to dry completely. If you don’t remove the skins, you’ll end up with almond meal instead of almond flour =)

          Reply

        • Sandra says

          A very late response. Blanching means to whiten, you need to peel off the brown skin from the soaked almond.

          Reply

    • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

      We wouldn’t recommend that as it may impact the flavor of what you are making. But it will depend on the recipe! Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Armin Smit says

      Hi, will this work in making macrons and would you use slivered ir blanched almonds (any difference)?

      Reply

      • Support @ Minimalist Baker says

        Hi Armin, we’re not sure if it would work as we’ve never tried it. We use slivered, blanched almonds to make almond flour.

        Reply

      • Robin says

        Freshly skinned almonds are best so I Recommend blanching 1/2 c. at one time, Raw almonds to small amount of **boiling** water for one minute. Drain. Put half of them on sml. plate and go at them fast by *popping* 1-3 of them unto your other, closed hand bc they are slippery!

        Then dry on towel and in very low (<200F) warm T/oven.

        Reply

  13. Lee says

    Maybe this is a stupid question but do you dry the blanched almonds first before putting them into the blender? I assume you do but maybe not??? unless I’m missing it, it doesn’t say in the recipe. Help, please.

    Reply

  14. Leslie says

    best cream for face is: 1 cup raw almond flour
    2 T honey (from your area is best)
    2 drops peppermint oil

    First soak face with Schizandra Tea to open pores and get the benefit of a rosy complexion
    Mix into a paste the ingredients listed above. Rub lightly onto face and neck. Leave on for 15 minutes,
    rinse with warm water and pat dry.
    Must store in refrigerator. Best used within 2 weeks, and make fresh batch to use again.
    Super for oily problem skin.

    Reply

  16. Red says

    What speed do you have your vitamix at for this?
    Will it work with a dry container as well or are you using the wet one?

    Thanks!!!

    Reply

    • dee says

      There are two different containers for the Vitamix; one for using dry ingredients such as grinding wheat. And there is the other container which is normally used. which is for wet ingredients, such as making almond butter. I feel that you are asking the question; which of these two containers are more likely to produce a good almond flour. I would like to know myself. Thanks for any further answer.

      Reply