I didn't realize how much of the meal would be leftover! I thought more of it would, I don't know, liquify?
But I was left with all of these crumbly bits and didn't want to waste it. I did a bit of scouting around and figured out how to make it into flour.
Here's what I did:
Make delicious Vanilla Hazelnut Milk for my coffee.
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| 750ml filtered water plus 1c nuts = 750ml nut milk |
After squeezing out every last drop of liquid, turn the leftover meal out onto a foil lined baking tray.
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| I squeeze it out in three or four batches, emptying the bag each time. |
Spread the nut meal around on the tray. It will still be clumpy at this stage so just chop it up with the side of a spoon until it looks about like this:
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| Mmmm. Crumbly. |
Put it in your oven and set it for it's lowest temperature. Mine is on about 60c (140f). Let it sit for at least two hours. I also leave the oven door cracked to release some of the moisture which seems to help it dry faster.
Don't worry if it browns a little bit. My first batch did and I think it actually enhanced the hazelnut flavor, and my kitchen smelled so good! Just don't let it get more than a little bit golden brown. Reduce your temperature or turn the oven off it it's too hot.
When it comes out of the oven and cools it will still be lumpy. You can plop it into a food processor or blender to break it up and make it a nice fine flour. I store mine in the fridge in a glass container and try to use it within a week.
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| After blending |
And there you go! So much easier than I thought it would be, and tons cheaper than buying it at the store! Especially considering that the meal was a freebie leftover from another recipe.
Note:
The nuts I used are raw with the skin still on them. I've soaked them overnight and let them dry thoroughly before storing them in the fridge. If you want a whiter flour, use nuts without their skins.
Also:
This will work with just about any nut. I'll try almonds next, and then Brazil nuts and see how they do.
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