This was my first go at almond butter, and even though the result wasn’t what I expected, the nutty spread that resulted was still pretty tasty, and thus worth sharing. Because I soaked the nuts beforehand, the consistency of the nut butter turned out more like almond fluff.
Here’s a photo essay of the process.
1/2 cup raw almonds
[They have to be raw because the healthy enzymes are destroyed in pasteurized and/or roasted nuts]
1 cup room temp water (or enough to cover the nuts)
And that’s all.
I left them on the counter to soak with the lid slightly ajar (to breathe).
Even after an hour you could already see the water seeping into the nuts…
As I’ve previously mentioned, soaking nuts is really helpful in easing digestion. This is because the hard brown external shell on almonds contains tannic acid and enzyme inhibitors (which can be difficult to digest).
It’s a protective thing for the almond, but doesn’t do anything for humans (I was a biology major so these things fascinate me, but I’ll spare you a schpeal on the evolutionary process). Anyways, the inability of the nut to release its enzymes interferes with the digestive process, thus making digestion more difficult. But there are good enzymes in the shell too. So what’s the solution? Soaking!
I left them out all day…and overnight (~12 hours total).
As you can see, the harmful tannic acid and enzyme inhibitors are being released, which makes the nuts easier to digest while releasing their full nutritional value. Plus it makes them softer and easier to chew. Soaking nuts also decreases the levels of phytic acid (another way to increase dietary availability).
Look at all that sediment!
After 12+ hours of soaking, the nuts should probably be refrigerated unless they are going to be used.
I poured off the sediment filled water.
Then, I rinsed and drained the almonds with cool water.
Look how much moisture resulted from soaking the almonds! They nearly doubled in size!
While they pulsed in the food processor, I added in a tbsp of agave nectar to give the a very slight sweet note to the nut butter.
Nut meat…mmm…
I squeegeed the sides with a spatula, added less than 1/4 cup of the nut water, and went back to food processing.
So fluffy!
It tasted like a frothy nut butter. It was light and airy and I wanted to eat it with a spoon.
I taste tested a bit, and then tupperwared the rest for later.
After time to chill in the fridge, the resulting nut butter was a light, fluffy, almondy spread.
Oh so many ways to use you!! Here are just a few of the things I did with my almond fluff:
- spread on toast
- dipped with fruit
- mixed in oats
- mixed in brown rice
Give it a shot!
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This looks wonderful! I soak my almonds every so often and love that they grow in size. I definitely want to make this!!
That’s great–but you might want to try discarding the nut soak water. It contains those tannins you’re talking about that you don’t want to eat!
my roommate freshman year use to grab a spoon, dip it in marshmallow fluff and then into her peanutbutter jar and then into her mouth then repeat for about 10 minutes lol. this totally just reminded me of it. it looks really good (and of course much healthier) and i really need to start making my own almond butter to save some cashola! i always wonder though since almonds are so expensive if you really are saving money since after the almonds grind down, don’t you end up not making much?
love the science class!
ill call you Mrs Alton Brown!
actually my sister just got her masters in food science and has a chem major
i was just a lowly biology minor, not a major like you
I have heard that almond butter is incredibly difficult to make b/c almonds are such a hard nut. Some people say soak, some people say dont. Cashew butter is easy to make b/c cashews are soft but almonds, they’re a pesky creature!
I tend to make almond butter without soaking the almonds but this recipe looks really interesting!
Wow. I make homemade almond butter all the time, but never have I soaked them first. I want that fluff! I know what I’m doing with the raw almonds in my pantry…
i had no idea about the whole soaked-is-better thing. thanks for the scientific yet comprehensible explanation! this looks tasty, i’ll have to give it a try!
omg it looks so yummy!
I can’t wait to try it. 
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