Sat 11 Oct, 2014 04:04 pm
Back in the day, I didn't really like fancy little marzipan candies.
A friend brought some to work and I said something neutral to positive, and some time later she gave me a whole box of them. One of my life lessons re being more straightforward.
Sometime ago, I had wonderful croissants that were filled with some delicious almond paste concoction, so I was interested, but it's hell-a expensive in the store. I bought it once and made an almond tart in one of those push up tart pans, and liked it. Not hard, but expensive to me.
Years go by, I hear about almond milk and try it, ehhh! Too thin or something.
More years go by and I like almond milk, but now that's expensive too.
An a2ker showed up who mentioned how easy it is to make your own. I haven't done that yet, but that's next in line, because ...
I did make my own almond paste. It was an adventure to get rid of the skins, but I got good at it about half way through trying it, sort of a kitchen comedy to start out. There seem to be pros and cons online re skins being good or bad. I've no present opinion. Making your own almond milk seems to involve taking off the skins, which I'm no longer concerned about as somehow difficult, oddly fun once I got going at it.
What is tipping me towards almond milk (versus all the other kinds) is how long the store stuff lasts in my refrigerator (long compared to regular dairy), plus how easy it is to mix it with cocoa, which I've always liked, also recently known to be good for you.
The store stuff undoubtedly has added calcium relative to homemade, but I'm not positive on that being a a stopper. I'm not sure if homemade lasts as long as processed store brands. Will have to try it.
Re the cost, I'll have to double check, but I'm guessing homemade is quite less moolah.
Past all that, I'm keen on roasted nuts (spiced), and probably would like a lot of other almond recipes.
Opinions? Recipes?
I've read that the expensive commercial almond milk contains 28 cents worth of almonds. The cost is ridiculously high if that's so.
@edgarblythe,
I read a recipe a while ago, and I remember it as not much weight of almonds, relative to the price of a pound of almonds or a half gallon of store almond milk. It would be more if you bought them already blanched. I don't remember how much more the already blanched almonds are. My store charges 4.95 a pound/unblanched/bulk, but the amount required is a lot less than a pound, by far.
@edgarblythe,
Where the hell are the nipples on them almonds? I can't find them no matter where I look. I surely have zero idea as to how I milk them when I finally find out where they are.
@Ragman,
The way I eat my almonds is to put some in the cows milk with the breakfast cereal.
@ossobuco,
I make almond milk, it's so easy. Soak a cup of almonds overnight in water. Put almonds in the blender, add 2 cups water (I used purified) and strain it through a cheese cloth - voila delicious almond milk! The longer you soak the almonds the creamier the milk. It's so delicious!!
I always dip my nuts in chocolate.
Always wait until the chocolate has cooled right down to lukewarm though.
@CalamityJane,
Do you use blanched almonds?
Here's how I learned how -
http://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/2012/10/how-to-blanch-almonds/
Some of the comments are interesting too, re making almond flour, for example.
Oh, and here's her how to make almond milk link -
http://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/2013/06/how-to-make-almond-milk/
The skinny on skins - different views:
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=20
The whole page is interesting but scroll down a bit to hit the details about the flavonoids in the skins.
from care-2
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/4-common-foods-you-should-eat-with-the-peel-on.html#ixzz3FwO1qJQF
Almonds: Next time you buy almonds, don’t go for the slivered variety. The brown skin of almonds promotes good bacteria in the gut, thus helping the digestive process. A study published in the Journal of Nutrition reports that the skin of almond has essential flavonoids that combine with the Vitamin E in the meat of the nut to deliver powerful cholesterol lowering benefits. When you eat an almond without the skin, the nut’s LDL-reducing power is diminished.
A site that differs -
http://bodyecology.com/articles/how_to_eat_and_not_eat_almonds.php#.VDqPlihW4dU
"Did you know that if you eat almonds the wrong way, you could be missing out on all the benefits - and perhaps creating vitamin and mineral deficiencies?
Eating almonds the wrong way could actually harm your digestion. Eating them the right way allows your body to reap the benefits of this concentrated power food."
One of the most nutritious of all nuts, almonds are a delicious source of protein, fiber, vitamin E, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, calcium, magnesium and zinc. Almonds are also the least acid-forming of all nuts, which is why they are the only nut recommended in the beginning stages of the Body Ecology Diet. Since correcting digestion is key to your health, it's also important to know how to prepare, combine and eat foods so that you can create energy and vitality. It's no different with almonds.
Almonds are usually difficult for most people to digest because of an enzyme-inhibiting substance in their brown coating. Soaking or sprouting removes this inhibitor so that the enzymes secreted during digestion can do their job.
I suppose I should look further at these nutritional sites (some sunny day).
@Lordyaswas,
You've got some balls to write that here, Spanky
@ossobuco,
Osso, no, I use regular (unsalted) almonds. You put it through a strainer anyway, so it doesn't make a darn difference. Blanched almonds are more expensive too...
@CalamityJane,
That's what I was guessing.. Too bad, no more flying almonds.. but easier to do as a routine.
Now to remember to buy the right water (no big deal).
@ossobuco,
You can take water from the faucet too, osso, just don't use the water
where the almonds soak in. That water becomes bitter and shouldn't
be used.
Also, remember that home made almond milk doesn't last long - tops is 3 days!
@CalamityJane,
Aha, thanks re the way it lasts, I'd not seen that mentioned.
No need to make big batches then.
@ossobuco,
No, definitely not! You can buy the almonds in bulk (Trader Joe's),
and just make milk in small amounts.
I tell you though, osso, it tastes so good - no comparison to store bought almond milk. It's a difference to eating non-fat sorbet to rich vanilla ice cream.
@CalamityJane,
You know me, I admit. I used to haunt the second original trader joe's, the one with the bad parking lot in west LA. The first, I think, was in Pasadena. (others in Europe, I'm talking U.S.)
Trader Joe's is way away from me now, hard to get to, but I'm am an old TJ person and my niece still works there, back in Los Angeles, while paying for academia.
@ossobuco,
Osso, did you know that you can buy a lot of Trader Joe's products online on Amazon? They even have the almonds there...
@CalamityJane,
I can get almonds at my local store (I'm training them.. they tend to listen, off and on), though I didn't actually cause the almonds to be there. TJ is about 12 miles away and I don't drive that far.
Online ordering involves money for transport, re which I'm obnoxiously careful.
The good part of this is that my grocer tends to listen.
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