Simple almond meal is made from coarsely ground almonds by grinding the almonds with their skin down to a meal, much like corn meal. Typically it is used as a substitute for traditional all-purpose flour as a low-carb option, and for those that are allergic to standard flour.
What's the difference between Almond Meal and Almond flour:
Almond meal is not to be confused with almond flour, which is ground almonds sans skins into a fine powder like standard flour. Almond meal is quite often that it is used in low-carb, keto, and diabetes-sensitive recipes. You have probably noticed many of our recipes call for the use of almond meal in them. You can make your own almond meal at home, or you can purchase almond meal in the store.
But, what if you are allergic to almonds, or almond meal, or you just want to use a substitute in its place? We have put together a list of 14 best simple almond meal substitutes to help you with your cooking!
Almond Meal Swaps
All-Purpose Flour
All-purpose flour is the most popular cooking flour. It is made from wheat, ground into a fine powder, and then bleached to create the end product. All-purpose flour only consists of the endosperm of wheat (the protein and starch part).
Almond Flour
Almond flour is a great 1:1 substitute for all-purpose flour or almond meal. It does not have almond skins in it, as almond meal does, and it is nearly as fine of a powder as all-purpose flour.
GLUTEN FREE: To assure the integrity of our gluten free products, we’ve built a separate 100% gluten free facility and batch test in our quality control laboratory using an ELISA Gluten Assay test
NON-GMO: Non-GMO Project Verified; we’ve always been committed to sourcing raw materials that are not modified through genetic engineering
DELICIOUS AND NUTRITIOUS: Almond Flour is a good source of vitamin E; one serving provides 4 grams of protein
BOB'S RED MILL: Make folks a little happier: it’s the idea that keeps our stone mills grinding to fill every bag with wholesome goodness
Breadcrumbs
When a recipe calls for coating with almond meal, you can substitute it with breadcrumbs or panko.
Cashew Flour
Paleo and gluten-free, cashew flour offers a great alternative to almond meal while maintaining lower carbs than standard all-purpose flour.
SOURCE OF MINERALS: Organic Raw Cashew Flour is rich in iron and contains calcium and other essential minerals and vitamins.
DELICIOUS BAKING INGREDIENT: When you use Organic Cashew Flour for baking you enhance the taste of any dish with its rich buttery flavor.
NO GLUTEN: Organic Cashew Nut Flour contains no gluten and can be used in any type of flour mixes.
FIT FOR MANY RECIPES: You can use Organic Fine Cashew Flour to substitute all or parts of other flours in any recipe. It goes especially well as a replacement for almond flour due to its richer taste.
Coconut Flour
Made from dried coconut meat and coconut milk, coconut flour is a fun and bright alternative to almond meal. However, coconut flour is thicker and may be runnier than all-purpose flour or almond meal, so it will require mixing longer than normal.
Grain-free flour; Paleo-friendly
Excellent source of dietary fiber; good source of iron
Unsulphured; unsweetened; single-ingredient
Hazelnut Flour
Ground with hazelnuts, hazelnut flour is a naturally sweeter flour that pairs extremely well with chocolates and sweets!
Manufactured in a dedicated gluten free facility; R5-ELISA tested gluten free
Excellent source of Vitamin E; Good source of dietary fiber, magnesium, and thiamine
Paleo-friendly; grain-free
Macadamia Flour
Macadamia flour is not as cost-effective as many other flours, but it certainly tastes great as a naturally sweet flour, higher fat, and lower-carb substitute.
Oat Flour
Oat flour is whole grain and made from rolled oats, and it surprisingly comes with a lot of health benefits.
Polenta Flour
Polenta flour is coarsely ground yellow cornmeal mostly associated with Italian cuisines. It is also high in complex carbs.
Quinoa Flour
Quinoa flour is ground from quinoa, and it is naturally gluten-free and high in protein. Most recipes that call for quinoa flour will also incorporate starch and other stabilizers because it lacks normal structure for cooking as all-purpose flour has.
Rice Flour
Rice flour is made from dry-milled white rice and is an amazing alternative for confections. It is typically found in East Asian cuisine.
Sunflower Seed Flour
Sunflower seed flour is naturally gluten-free, made from ground sunflower seeds and oddly enough many people with nut allergies are not allergic to it. Of course, consult your doctor and the person consuming it prior, just in case.
Walnut Flour
Walnut flour is made from ground walnuts and the walnut oil is removed, which leaves a coarser flour than all-purpose flour, but remains a lower carb option for those that wish to substitute it in place of all-purpose flour.
Wheat Flour
Whole wheat flour contains endosperm (the protein and starch part), germ (the protein, fat, and vitamin part), and bran (the fiber part).
