How to Make Fluffy Almond Flour: 9 Easy Tips (2024)

Learn how to make light, fluffy almond flour at home with these easy tips! Here you will find everything you need to know to make affordable homemade almond flour, ideal for all your low-carb or gluten-free baking needs. Discover simple tricks to turn you into an expert in less than 5 minutes!

Best Tips for How to make almond flour

With grocery store bills inching higher and higher, many home cooks find making homemade almond flour a great way to save some money! It takes less than 5 minutes and uses one ingredient, so why not?

Along with saving money, making homemade almond flour has many dietary benefits. I particularly love it because many delicious gluten free recipes are made with almond flour, with some of my favorites being almond flour banana bread, muffins, almond flour biscotti, and soft, chewy almond flour oatmeal cookies.

Besides being beneficial to a gluten-free diet, it is also grain-free, dairy-free, high in fat and low in carbohydrates (great for keto diet), making it a healthy alternative to flour, just like homemade oat flour.

Although it may not be used interchangeably with gluten-free all purpose flour recipes on the website or in my gluten-free cookbook, there are plenty of sweet and savory almond flour recipes to choose from!

So, let’s dig right in and learn how to make almond flour, including the best tips, tricks, and everything you need to know!

Tip 1: best almonds to use

When deciding which type of almonds to use for almond flour, first you will need to decide if you are making almond flour or almond meal.

For blanched almond flour, not almond meal, use whole, unsalted raw almonds with their skin removed.

Blanched almonds yields fine, powdery flour, which is primarily used for baking and pastry recipes. You may also use slivered almonds, but they will yield different flour amounts than whole almonds.

Tip 2: how to make almond meal

For almond meal, use unsalted, raw unblanched almonds, which has the skin on. Sometimes almond meal is referred to as ground almonds.

It yields a coarser texture, which makes a great alternative for bread crumbs and breading proteins such as pork, fish, or gluten-free chicken parmesan.

Tip 3: Know how much almonds you will need

One cup whole almonds (not slivered or sliced) makes about 1 ⅓ cup of almond flour or 128 grams. However, this number will not be exact every time. It depends what type of nut you are using, from whole to slivered.

Tip 3: use the best equipment

When grinding almonds for flour, I have found that a powerful blender, such as a Vitamix, works better than a food processor.

I tested making the flour both ways, with my Vitaxmix blender and my 14-cup Cuisinart food processor. As you can see from the pictures, the blender yielded much finer, powdery results.

It could possibly have been from the large size of my processor, but to grind the almonds down I had to process for a very long time, which started to extract the oils, making the mixture wet, heavy, and coarse.

Tip 4: sift for powdery, fine flour

To make fine, fluffy almond flour run it through an inexpensive sifter to remove any pieces that may have not been finely ground.

This also aerates the mixture, guaranteeing “super fine almond flour,” light enough to make anything from French macarons, financiers, or almond flour cake!

Tip 5: Is it worth it to make at home?

A one pound bag of whole almonds contains 3 cups, which yields 4 cups flour. One pound of almond flour yields about 4 ¾ cups.

Aldi, Trader Joe’s, or Costco sells almond flour for around $6 per pound, but other brands such as Bob’s Red Mill or Blue Diamond can be almost twice as much.

Generally whole, unsalted almonds are cheaper than this, especially if you can find them at a bulk health food store, Trader Joe’s or Costco, which will save you money!

tip 7: Avoid wet, heavy flour

If you blend the nuts too long, you risk heavy, wet results instead of light and fluffy flour. As the almonds grind, they release oil. Eventually so much oil will release you will make a batch of almond butter instead of flour!

The trick for making a fine powder is processing the nuts in a series of pulses instead of blending continually. Pour in the cup of almonds and pulse about 25-50 times, stopping to scrape down the blender intermittently.

tip 8: best way to store

The best way to store your store-bought or homemade almond flour recipe depends on how frequently you use it. If you plan on using it within 1-2 weeks, place in an airtight container or glass jar and store in a cool, dark place.

To use within 1-2 months, place the container in the fridge up to 6 months. For best results, let it come to room temperature before using.

Can you freeze almond flour? Yes! When nuts are exposed to moisture or air too long, they eventually go rancid. Freezing almond flour extends maximum freshness for up to one year.

When ready to use, remove the amount needed from the freezer and allow it to come to room temperature before using for baked goods.

tip 9: how to use in recipes

Many people wonder if they can substitute almond flour for all their low-carb baking needs. Since it is heavier and more moist than wheat flour or gluten-free flour, it cannot be substituted in a one-to-one ratio.

Generally I find recipes specifically designed for almond flour to work best. Since the flour contains more moisture, the chemistry of baked goods changes, and the recipe should be adapted accordingly.

However, if you’d like to experiment on your own,keep some of the following tips in mind:

• Increase the amount of almond flour by 25%, so for every 1 cup flour, use 1 ¼ cup almond flour.
• Add extra leavening to offset the density of almond flour. ¼ – ½ teaspoon of baking powder, baking soda, or combination of both will help.
• Use less liquid in the recipe since the flour adds more moisture. Using an egg yolk instead of the whole add egg or cutting back on moisture containing ingredients, such as milk, bananas, applesauce, or sour cream.

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