Raw almond butter

Update: Please also see my other almond butter posts:

• Homemade almond butter (using roasted almonds)
• Can you freeze almond butter?

Ack. This is going to look like I just can't let go, but the fine folks from Hangry Pants (love that name, BTW) asked about processing raw almonds instead of roasted ones, so I figured it'd be much better to find out for sure if there are really any differences than to spout off some half-cocked nonsense.

Guess what. They're different.

In short, without adding extra oil to the ground almonds, it takes about twice as long for a food processor to turn raw almonds into a creamy paste/butter as it does for roasted almonds. In my specific case, the right consistency was reached at 13 minutes.

Why is this? It's possible that the roasting heat weakens the almonds' cell walls so that oil is released faster, but I'm only speculating and don't really know the answer. That being the case, I won't bore you with another 286,973-word dissertation and just let the pictures do most of the talking here. The total elapsed processing time, in 30-second intervals, is superimposed on the food processor's spindle:

A couple of other notes and observations:

• You can see my original almond butter recipe, using roasted almonds, here.
• The almonds did not turn into random shades of brown during processing. As the 00:30 and 01:00 photos show, most of the lighting for this setup came from the side (bottom left in the images) instead of the top. The specific shade in each photo only indicates how thickly the almond particles coated the sides of the workbowl (thus blocking the light) and does not reflect color changes in the ground almonds themselves.
• Overall, though, roasted almonds do make for a darker finished product than raw almonds, which should be expected. This is a color sampling from my two batches:
  
• Unlike making almond butter with roasted almonds, I had to scrape down the sides of the workbowl this time. To preserve the grinding and clumping characteristics, this was only done after each photo was taken.
• A side benefit of the extended processing time is that it really isn't crucial to stop the machine at some exact specified moment. Although I said the right consistency was reached at 13 minutes, the changes in texture from about 11 minutes onward were really pretty minor.
• I have no idea if the specific equipment matters or not, but I used a full-sized KitchenAid food processor to make both this and the roasted almond butter.
• I split this batch and froze part of it. The result after thawing? Skin, stir, and a side-by-side tasting: no difference. So, homemade almond butter can be frozen with no problems.
• Update 2009-09-11: Based on a question in the comments below—homemade almond butter should be refrigerated, and you should keep it there for no more than four months. This is to prevent (or delay) the oil from going rancid. If you need longer storage, freeze it.

A NOTE FOR RAW FOODISTS

The almonds started at room temperature and became warm as a result of the long processing time. I did not take any measurements, but the temperature increase may be a concern for strict raw foodists. I don't know what effects starting with frozen almonds would have.

Update 2009-09-06: By law, since September 2007 all almonds grown and sold in the United States must be pasteurized, either through fumigation or heat treatment (PDF). This means that domestically-grown almonds are no longer acceptable for people on a strict raw-foods diet, even though marketers can still label these almonds as "raw" for sale to consumers. This law does not apply to foreign-grown almonds imported into the US, however, so if you're on a raw regimen, it would be advisable to assume that regular supermarket almonds are not raw (no matter what the label says) and buy truly raw almonds only from a specialist supplier.

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Homemade almond butter

Update: Please also see my other almond butter posts:

• Raw almond butter
• Can you freeze almond butter?

[Direct link to recipe]

Man, that clementine cake post just won't leave me alone. One of the questions I had while making it was how long I could grind the almonds in a food processor before they turned into almond butter. Well, I went and found out.

Let's get straight to it, shall we? This is a photo sequence of the almonds being processed, taken at intervals of 30 seconds each, and stopping after 6 minutes. You can click on each thumbnail for a larger image:

0:00

0:30
The almonds are nicely ground at this point. Knowing what I know now, this (or earlier, even) is where I would stop if I were making almond meal.

1:00
I don't think the granule size here is really any smaller than at 0:30, and clumping has started as the almonds' cells begin to rupture and release oil.

1:30
Between 1 and 3 minutes, the clumps continue to get bigger as more oil is released.

2:00

2:30

3:00
The clumps start to come together.

3:30
Between 3:15 and 3:30, the clumps are swept into one mass. At this point, the consistency is still thick, dry, and gritty. It is not spreadable yet.

4:00
Soon afterward the ball of almond butter is broken up. With more processing, more oil is released and the texture gets creamier.

4:30

5:00
I didn't notice it at the time, but from these photos it appears that the almond butter got significantly smoother between 4:30 and 5:00.

5:30

6:00
A good visual consistency is reached between 5:30 and 6:00, which is later verified by taste. Further processing may thin out the almond butter a bit as more air is mixed into it and perhaps still more oil get released, but airiness or fluidity aren't qualities we usually look for in nut butters.

If you'd like, you can also see these photos together as an animated sequence (671 KB GIF file).

RECIPE

Makes a little over one cup almond butter (estimated 9–10 fl. oz., or 270–300 ml).

INGREDIENTS

Quantity	Alternate Measures	Item
286 g	10 oz (2 cups)	Raw almonds with skins

EQUIPMENT

• Weighing scale or a dry-ingredient measuring cup
• Rimmed baking sheet (for roasting almonds)
• Food processor, fitted with steel blade
• Rubber spatula
• Canning funnel
• Glass or plastic jar, 10 fl. oz. (300 ml) or larger in capacity

INSTRUCTIONS

Steps 1–4 are optional and only applicable if you want to roast the almonds. If you want to make raw almond butter or use store-bought roasted almonds, you can start at Step 5. Update 2009-03-10: Well, maybe roasting almonds is a bad idea. Yikes.

1. Make sure the oven rack is at the center position. Turn on the oven and set the temperature to 375 °F.
2. Spread the almonds out evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.
3. Once the oven has reached its temperature, place the baking sheet into the oven and toast until fragrant, about 12 to 15 minutes.
   NOTE: This timing is only a guide. Every oven is different, and baking sheets come in different thicknesses. The best way to tell if the almonds are done is by aroma. USE YOUR NOSE. If you adhere strictly to the time and get burnt almonds, I'm not responsible.
4. Remove baking sheet from oven and let the almonds cool.
5. Once the almonds are at room temperature, place them into the workbowl of the food processor and process for 6 minutes or until the consistency is smooth. Stop the machine a few times to scrape down the sides of the bowl if needed. Update 2009-03-12: Raw almonds will need between 12 to 15 minutes of processing time.
6. With a rubber spatula, scrape the almond butter from the workbowl into a jar. A canning funnel fitted over the jar will minimize messy drips and spills.
7. Update 2009-09-11: This had completely escaped me, but a question in my raw almond butter post was a reminder: homemade almond butter should be refrigerated, and you should keep it there for no more than four months. This is to prevent (or delay) the oil from going rancid. If you need longer storage, freeze it.

EXTENDING THE RECIPE

Look, I know the way I break down recipes into infinitesimal detail makes them look scary, but all that verbiage can be reduced to one essential procedure: Put almonds in a food processor and run it until the consistency is right. With this knowledge as a foundation, it's a small conceptual step to extend this recipe to other nuts or even seeds, such as sesame seeds for tahini—there is certainly no shortage of recipes on the Internet. Although the specific processing times for each nut or seed may be different, the general idea is the same. You can also add salt or honey to fit your own tastes if you'd like.

YIELDS

I used a one-pint jar for this post's header photo, and as you can see, this batch filled it to just a bit over the halfway mark. So, two cups of raw almonds makes a bit over one cup of almond butter. As a rough estimate, I'd guess around 9 or 10 fluid ounces (270 or 300 ml).

Another unresolved issue from the clementine cake post was whether roasting the almonds will result in their weight loss. I was disciplined this time and did not snack on any of the in-process almonds. For this batch, 286 grams of raw almonds yielded 280 grams after roasting, so it's apparent that some loss of moisture or perhaps also volatile oils (hence the "done" aroma) does take place in the oven. I don't know if the almond's skin and flesh evaporate in similar fashion, though, so we will need further confirmation with blanched almonds.

Update 2009-08-18: Just found some photos of roasted nuts under an electron microscope (scroll about halfway down the page). You can see that their cell contents have shrunken after roasting, so a weight reduction should be expected.

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