A tip from Grandma: Blanching Almonds

Oh man, does anyone else out there feel like they have a candy hangover from the weekend? I sure do. We partied hard all weekend long. Halloween was a blast. Between family visits, tiny ghouls and goblins, yummy food, late nights, and pseudo-scary movies I am worn out today!
So an easy post for the day.



Have you ever tried to find blanched almonds in the grocery store? I don't know about you but I have never been able to find them around here. And lots of recipes call for them, darn it. So here is a tip from grandma. Blanch your own almonds. She was such a smart lady!

Buy whole almonds with the skins still on. When you get them home, prepare a largish bowl with an ice bath. Set aside. Then on your stove, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Throw your almonds in the boiling water and let the water return to a boil. Boil almonds for 2 minutes. When time is up, drain almonds and immediately put them in the ice bath. Let them sit until cool enough to handle. This won't take long. Drain off the water. Put a couple of paper towels on a plate. Then just go to work squeezing those almond right out of their skins. If you squeeze in the large end of the almond the skins should pop right off. Easy as that! Then you can use them or freeze them. I would give you one warning: be prepared to be squirted in the eye with cold water. Those little guys spit at you every once in a while. It keeps things interesting.