How To Blanch Almonds

What are blanched almonds? Well, if you're plant-based or vegan, you're probably used to seeing cheeses and desserts made out of almonds. To get them to a creamy texture in cheeses and desserts or to make almond flour, you need to blanch them by boiling them, removing their skin, and then crushing them or blending them depending on how you're using them.

Yes, you can get pre-blanched almonds, but it's usually quite expensive when you can get almonds in bulk bins for less than $5/lb compared to pre-blanched almonds costing $10/lb. Doing it yourself will save you money to spend on even more raw, unprocessed almonds for even more delicious cheeses and desserts.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• raw, unprocessed almonds

• water

Here’s what you do:

1. Start by getting a pot and filling it with water. The number of almonds you're blanching will determine how big of a pot you'll be using. Make sure the almonds are completely covered with the water.

2. Let the water come to a boil.

3. Add all the raw, unprocessed almonds into the boiling pot of water and set a timer for 60 seconds; no more, no less.

4. Drain the almonds and rinse them with cold water to stop them from cooking.

5. Last you will squeeze each almond to take the skin off. This process is a little long, but I enjoy doing it; I find it to be a good stress reliever.

What's the easiest way you've found to blanch almonds?