Ah, homemade nut butters – marcona almond butter, traditional almond butter, peanut butter, cashew butter, whether smooth or crunchy, salted or unsalted, you name them – we’re nuts about them. Especially, marcona almond butter! It has a unique toasty, sweet and buttery flavor that’s delicious on its own, on bread, crackers and fruit, in cookies and desserts and many other ways. In this post we share three of our favorite ways of making homemade marcona almond butter: salted, honey salted and crunchy.
Marcona Almonds: Fun Facts
The Queen of Almonds
Considered the “queen of almonds”, marcona almonds are rounder, sweeter and more plump than the typical, more pointed and dryer California Almonds.
Native to Spain
Although marcona almonds are now also grown in California, they are native to Spain and nearly all production is from Spain. With more than 100 varieties of almonds, Spain is the second largest producer of almonds in the world after the United States, with marcona almonds being among the most expensive and in highest demand, particularly in the pastry and confectionery industries.
Sources:
Sabor Mediterráneo and www.marconaalmonds.com.
Processing and Availability
Although also sold blanched in bulk quantities, marcona almonds imported from Spain are typically roasted in olive oil and salted. We usually purchase our marcona almonds from a speciality food store, but they are also available through various online sources. The best quality marcona almonds also tend to be slightly more expensive than typical California almonds.
Recipe for Homemade Marcona Almond Butter Three Ways
- • 2 cups marcona almonds, preferably already roasted in olive oil and salted*
- • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more as needed for desired consistency
- • 1/2 cup marcona almonds, coarsely chopped (optional for crunch)**
- • kosher salt to taste
- • 2 cups marcona almonds, preferably already roasted in olive oil and salted*
- • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more as needed for desired consistency
- • 2 tablespoons orange blossom honey
- • 1/2 cup marcona almonds, coarsely chopped (optional for crunch)**
Step 1: Place 2 cups of marcona almonds inside of a powerful blender or food processor.
Step 2: Add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add honey (if using). Blend/process on high until smooth and creamy, occasionally pausing to stir and scrape down the sides. Slowly add additional oil and blend/process as needed for desired consistency.
Step 3: Stir in chopped marcona almonds (if using). Add salt to taste (if using).
Step 4: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
* Marcona almonds imported from Spain are usually sold already roasted in olive oil and salted. These are the preferred almonds for this recipe, which will require little, if any, additional salt. If using other marcona almonds, you may need to add slightly more oil, salt and/or honey, as desired, to the recipe.
** A quick way to coarsely chop the almonds is to place them in a Ziploc brand freezer bag and roll over them with a rolling pin.
We hope you’re as nuts as we are about this Recipe for Homemade Marcona Almond Butter Three Ways!
If you have any comments or questions, we would love to hear from you. Thank you for visiting!
!Salud!
