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Home » Blog » Macarons » How to Make Almond Flour for Macarons

April 17, 2020 by Mimi

How to Make Almond Flour for Macarons

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Save Money and Get Better Results

Making your own almond flour for baking macarons can be one of the best ways to save money and get consistent results when making this sweet treat. A good finely ground almond flour is one of my top tips for baking round and smooth macarons. Commercially produced almond flour are made for a variety of uses like tarts, breads and cookies. Almond flour for use in baking macarons should ideally be less oily but the grinding up of almonds into a fine flour can sometimes release these oils, making the flour less desirable for macarons. Making almond flour at home is a good way to control the results and it can be considerably cost savings too. Here is a guide on how to make your own homemade almond flour for baking macarons.

Please note, this post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Almond Flour Vs. Almond Meal Vs. Blanched

Almond flour is one of the main ingredients in macarons. Anytime you read a macaron recipe, you will see that almond flour or almond meal will be required. The two are commonly used interchangeably. However, you still need to judge for yourself which one its referring to in context of the particular recipe you are using since almond flour can also mean a more finer ground almond vs. a coarser almond meal (used for breading). There are also blanched and non-blanched almond flours/meals. Blanched almonds basically mean that the brown skin has been removed.

For making macarons, you always want to use blanched almond flour. When I first started making macarons, I found myself driving all around the city to find almond flour available only in specialty stores. On the other hand, blanched almonds in its raw form was available in almost every common grocery store. Being that I love convenience and did not prefer to visit a specialty store to get almond flour every time I wanted to bake these babies, I decided to try making my own almond flour. I found it to be quite easy and could be considerably cost saving too. But the best part about making your own almond flour is the consistent quality of your almond flour. There have been some almond flour that I’ve used before which were extremely oily and caused my macarons to become blotchy or “sweaty”. I highly recommend making your own macaron flour to save money and achieve better results.

There’s a video after the instructions below. I hope all of it helps you in your macaron making journey.

XOXO,
Mimi

Step-By-Step

Place the blanched almonds into the food processor along with the powdered sugar.

Pouring blanched almond slices into a food processor.
Pouring powdered sugar into a food processor.

Start pulsing, stopping intermittently to bring up the sugar that have sunken to the bottom with a spoon.

Close up of food processor grinding almond flour.

Sift the mixture into a big bowl with an open faced sifter or fine strainer.

Sifting almond flour and powdered sugar mixture.

Discard the big almond pieces that cannot be sifted.

Pushing almond flour through a sieve.

Weigh out the amount of discarded amount.

Weighing almond flour with a scale.

Take some fresh almonds to compensate for the discarded amounts and pulse it again along with some of the sifted mixture.

Sifting almond flour through a sieve.

Pulse again.

Grinding almond flour in a food processor.

Sift. The almond flour is now ready to use.

Sifting almond flour with a strainer.

Weigh Out a Little More Almond than What the Recipe Calls For

Another tip is to weigh out a bit more almonds that what the recipe calls for. I have a pretty reliable food processor from Braun that grinds almonds to a pretty fine consistency. I find that I usually discard about 10 grams (from a total of 60 grams) of almonds that cannot be sifted so I compensate for that by weighing out an extra 10 grams of blanched almonds for grinding. You may need to adjust this amount depending on your own situation.

“My almonds feel wet and clumpy! Why?”

Grinding the almonds by itself without the powdered sugar will release the oil inside the nut and soon you will find that your almonds have become almond butter! So don’t forget to grind your almonds with the powdered sugar that’s needed in the recipe

“Should I double sift my almond flour?”

I usually only sift mine once. It’s so tedious that I don’t have the patience for any more than that and my macaron shells never turn out bumpy. If your sifter is fine enough and you seem to be getting good results from one sift, then by all means, save your time and your energy!

I use an open faced sifter or a fine mesh strainer like this one. These types of sifters make it so much easier to use a spoon to push the almond mixture through the mesh. I find the sifters with a lever very clumsy for use with almonds. The almonds that are not finely ground tend to clog up those systems and it’s hard to extract afterwards.

How to Make Almond Flour for Macarons

Almond slivers in measuring cups.

Use blanched almonds to make your own homemade almond flour for baking macarons to save money and get more consistent results.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Active Time 2 minutes
Total Time 17 minutes

Materials

  • Blanched Almonds
  • Icing Sugar/Powdered Sugar

Tools

  • Digital scale
  • Sifter
  • Food processor
  • 2 Big mixing bowls

Instructions

  1. Weigh out the amount of blanched almonds and powdered sugar you will need in your recipe. (In my Best Macaron Recipe, that is equal to 65 grams almonds and 65 grams powdered sugar.)
  2. Place the almonds into the food processor along with some of the powdered sugar. Start pulsing, stopping intermittently to bring up the sugar that have sunken to the bottom with a spoon. DO NOT grind almonds by itself without the sugar. Without it, your almonds will become too oily and turn into almond butter.
  3. Sift the mixture into a big bowl and discard the big pieces that cannot be sifted.
  4. Weigh out the amount of discarded amount. Take some fresh almonds to compensate for the discarded amounts and pulse it again along with some of the sifted mixture. (We need the icing sugar in the mixture to prevent the oils from coming out of the almonds.)
  5. Pulse the almonds again & sift. The almond flour is now ready to use.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • Anthony's Almond Flour Blanched, 2lb, Batch Tested Gluten Free, Non GMO, Vegan, Keto Friendly
    Anthony's Almond Flour Blanched, 2lb, Batch Tested Gluten Free, Non GMO, Vegan, Keto Friendly
  • C&h Powdered Sugar 4 Lbs (1)
    C&h Powdered Sugar 4 Lbs (1)
  • Braun MQ777 Multiquick 7 Hand Blender, Black
    Braun MQ777 Multiquick 7 Hand Blender, Black
  • Cuisinart CTG-00-SMB Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls with Lids, Set of 3
    Cuisinart CTG-00-SMB Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls with Lids, Set of 3
  • Cuisinart CTG-00-3MS Set of 3 Fine Mesh Stainless Steel Strainers
    Cuisinart CTG-00-3MS Set of 3 Fine Mesh Stainless Steel Strainers
  • Digital Scale
    Digital Scale

Did you make this project? Share your results with me 🙂

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

© Mimi
Category: Macarons

Where to buy almonds and almond flour in Vancouver? (list compiled in 2015)

Here is a list of the places that I know of for buying almonds and almond flour. It’s not exhaustive so if you happen to know of any other places, please drop me a note below. By far the lowest price I’ve found for almond flour is at Costco and the lowest price for slivered/whole almonds is at Superstore. For those who do not have those stores in their city, try Amazon, I looked around at many brands and this one seems to have a lot of positive reviews, even from macaron makers.

Almond Flour Prices

Gourmet Warehouse $6.99/200 grams =  $3.50/100 grams
1340 E Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V5L 1S3 (604) 253-3022
– Superstore – Bob’s Red Mill  $15.99/453 grams = $3.53/100 grams
red-mill-almond-flour-whole-foods
Whole Foods – Bob’s Red Mill $12.99/453 grams = $2.87/100 grams
costco-canada-almond-flour
Costco – Sunblest Almond Flour $21.99 = $1.62/100 grams

Blanched Almond Prices

Superstore – blanched slivered almonds in the bulk section sold at $2.79/100 grams
Superstore – No Name blanched sliced almonds $12.82 for 1 kg = $1.29/100 grams
Superstore – No Name Blanched slivered almonds $7.97 for 400 grams = $1.99/100 grams
Gourmet Warehouse: Cote D’Azur Skinless Sliced Almonds $4.39/200G = $2.20/100 grams
Cote D’Azur Skinless Sliced Almonds $5.59/300G = $2/100 grams
Cote D’Azur Slivered Blanched Almonds $6.99/250G = $2.80/100 grams

– Costco – Golden Boy Sliced Almonds $13.99/1.2 kg = $1.16/100 grams
– T&T supermarket – bulk section
– Whole Foods – bulk section

Drop me a note if you have any other sources for almonds or almond flour in Vancouver. Let’s talk baking 🙂

XOXO,
Mimi

This post was originally published on October 1st, 2014

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Comments

  1. Gee says

    May 7, 2019 at 1:08 am

    Hi! Just wondering if you ever “dry” the almond flour if its too oily. If so what did you do and how did it turn out? Please and thank you!

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      May 26, 2019 at 12:00 pm

      There is a troubleshooting guide on the blog that addresses spread out macarons and how to fix them 🙂
      XOXO,
      Mimi

      Reply
  2. Annudeep says

    April 9, 2019 at 6:45 pm

    Does the amount of powdered sugar I’m suppose to use go to make the almond flour or do I place the powdered sugar and the almond flour I make into the recipe??

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      May 2, 2019 at 10:09 pm

      Just follow the instructions and use the same amount of almond flour and powdered sugar in my Best Macaron Recipe to make this almond flour. You don’t need extra powered sugar on top of what the recipe calls for.
      xoxo,
      Mimi

      Reply
      • Elny says

        May 12, 2019 at 7:43 am

        I have made macarons for the first time successfully, but failed after second and third time. My top macaron poros with small holes like moon surface but its flat not bumpy.
        Im using Italian method this time and do macronage until it’s corporated but I didn’t do like what you did.. Pressing it to the bowl as the batter already runny.
        How do you make the batter so thick like that? Do you put almonds and sugar more compare to white eggs?
        I wonder if the white egg is the problem since it’s already weeks on the fridge.

        Pls help.. What did I do wrong?
        The first time I success is using France method.

        Thank you so much for your help.

        Reply
        • Mimi says

          May 26, 2019 at 11:59 am

          Your ingredient composition is most likely not the problem. It sounds like there’s something wrong with your meringue. Most likely it’s underbeaten. It should be stiffer.

          XOXO, Mimi

          Reply
  3. Arainna Forth says

    December 15, 2018 at 10:19 am

    Mimi,

    Have you, or others that you know of tried making the flour with pistachios?? Before I get creative, I thought I’d ask! Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      December 29, 2018 at 10:46 pm

      Yes you can sub half the almond for pistachios:)
      XOXO,
      Mimi

      Reply
  4. Rainny Forth says

    December 11, 2018 at 10:30 pm

    Can other nuts be ground into flour (pistachio?) to make macarons?

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      December 29, 2018 at 10:49 pm

      Pistachio can be subbed in for half the almond 🙂
      XOXO,
      Mimi

      Reply
  5. Rebecca Morales-David says

    September 9, 2018 at 4:20 pm

    Can I just blits ground almonds with powdered sugar and get the same results? I cannot find almond flour anywhere local. I recently made a batch with normal ground almonds but the were definitely grainy!
    Many thanks
    Rebecca

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      September 13, 2018 at 10:04 am

      Is the ground almonds already almond flour? I’m not quite understanding. Any type of blanched almond any size would do. XOXO, Mimi

      Reply
  6. Amy Nguyen says

    June 25, 2018 at 6:00 am

    Hi. Love your blog! If I use this almond flour recipe, do I add more powdered sugar for the macaron recipe? For example if I add the 65 grams of powdered sugar and 65 grams of blanched almond to make this almond flour, do I add another 65 grams of powdered sugar that is listed in your Best Macaron Recipe? Or is it mix the amount the amount of blanched almonds with the amount of powdered sugar in the macaron recipe so you don’t have to add it later? Sorry if my explanation is confusing. <3

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      June 28, 2018 at 6:02 pm

      You can go right ahead and use the 65 grams almonds and 65 icing sugar as per the recipe. Now, you just need the other ingredients. No need to add any extra icing sugar or almonds.
      xoxo, Mimi

      Reply
  7. Melanie N says

    June 23, 2018 at 2:53 am

    Hi Mimi! Have you tried Kirkland brand of the blanched almond flour? I’m hoping its not too oily.

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      June 28, 2018 at 5:56 pm

      Hi Melanie,
      I haven’t used it unfortunately 🙁 I can’t give you any insight into it. I have used a branded one (not Kirkland) from Costco a long time ago and it was fine. I have used Honeyville Almond Flour and found it too oily for macarons. Usually, the finer they claim the almonds are, the more oily it may be due to over grinding. If you buy a bag that is not super fine, you can always grind it one more time at home but with icing sugar together, that would prevent more oils from coming out.
      xoxo,
      Mimi

      Reply
  8. Grace Huang says

    June 20, 2018 at 1:32 am

    Do you think it’s okay to mix castor sugar and almond flour to mix them in a blender since I often don’t have access to powder sugar and I find I’m quite a bit lazy and don’t want to stress the trouble of making powder sugar and then having to mix it to gather with the almond meal

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      June 20, 2018 at 8:28 pm

      Hi Grace, I’m not sure about that, I haven’t tried it. One thing to note is that powdered sugar usually contains corn starch and it helps with the macarons. You might want to add a bit of it into your mix if you don’t use conventional powdered sugar.
      XO,
      Mimi

      Reply
  9. Francesca Weiss says

    May 19, 2018 at 5:34 pm

    Hi Mimi!

    Your website and expertise is amazing and has been so helpful in my quest to master macarons! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

    Now that the fan girling has been gotten out of the way; I have some questions.

    1) Can I make this in bulk, say with 650 grams of powdered sugar and 650 grams almonds (probably more like 715 grams to account for the almond lost in sifting), and keep it in my fridge for when I want to make macarons?

    On the one hand, I’m really lazy and like to skip steps. But on the other, my instinct is that laziness and macarons are not compatible and this will just invite the finicky baking gods to strike me down for my hubris.

    2) At the moment, my almond flour never seems to quite be fine enough. No matter how long I process it and sift it, it still comes out grainy. Any tips?

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      May 31, 2018 at 5:06 pm

      Hi Francesca,
      Thank you so much for your lovely note.
      1. I haven’t kept pre-sifted almond flour and icing sugar in the fridge however, I have kept it at room temperature. I do worry about the icing sugar being in the fridge due to moisture issues.
      2. Maybe your processor is not quite breaking down the almonds fine enough. You might have to investigate if it’s a food processor problem or if you’re sifter is letting too much of the big bits go through. My processor is pretty good and I find I do not need to sift afterwards. You can find it in my SHOP.
      XOXO,
      Mimi

      Reply
  10. Shelley says

    May 11, 2018 at 8:30 am

    I love your website! It has helped me and my sister make great macarons (still on its way to perfection though haha). And bonus, you’re Canadian!!! 🙂

    I was wondering – how do you store the almond flour? I have read online that people store it in the fridge or freezer. Or is it better to leave it at room temperature in an air tight container? And if I do store it in the fridge or freezer, do I need to let the almond flour sit at room temperate for a certain amount of time before using?

    Thank you!

    Reply
    • Mimi says

      May 31, 2018 at 4:54 pm

      Hi Shelley,
      Thank you so much! Hello to another fellow Canadian 🙂
      I store my almonds at room temperature in an air tight container. My climate here in Vancouver is pretty mild so even in the summer, I still store it at room temperature. Disclosure: I use them up very quickly. You can keep it in the fridge if you prefer, bring it back to room temperature before you use it.
      XOXO,
      Mimi

      Reply
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