Homemade Almond & Pistachio Paste

in my previous entry of the sicile, the very fantastic pistachio biscuit sponge uses both almond & pistachio paste in it and some of my readers hv been asking me where they can purchase or make their own so i'm gonna post the recipe here. obviously nothing compares to the commercial ones in terms of texture coz even with my decent 600W blender i couldn't really get a really smooth paste but this is a good alternative to buying. unless you frequently use the pastes, i would recommend making your own if you just require a small quantity as the pistachio paste especially is not cheap.



using the same recipe, i also made the pistachio version and it came out great. here are the two for comparison on the left pic - the left one is homemade and the right one is storebought. i'm currently using sevarome's pistachio paste and it cost me $60/kg tub. its definitely cheaper to make your own though with the blanching and removing of skin, its a painstaking process so i might still continue using sevarome's as i really like the texture and aroma. removing the skins of the pistachios is entirely optional but if you don't, you'll end up with results similar to this, which is a pierre herme's recipe no-less but i prefer mine to look greener and finer.

of all the paste recipes i've tried, this is by far the best. not surprising since its from jacques torres, the famed french pastry chef and chocolatier. hehe, i was really happy to see him on top chef as a guest judge.

recipe source : jacques torres for food network

ingredients (yields approx. 200g) :

62.5g sugar

20ml honey

25ml water

125g ground almonds or pistachios, blanched & skin removed

few drops of almond extract & green food coloring (for the pistachio paste), optional

12.5g butter

directions :

1. place the sugar, honey and water in a saucepan and bring to a strong boil. remove the boiling sugar from the heat and pour over the almonds/pistachios. add in the almond extract & coloring, if using and blend until smooth. this may take 10 minutes or more, depending on the strength of the food processor. remember, food processors are not usually strong enough to yield the same consistency as the almond paste that you can buy. if your mixture is too thick and the food processor is straining, you can add a little Kirsch or simple syrup to the processor. add the liquid slowly and stop when the processor is moving more freely. the quality of almond or pistachio paste is determined by how smooth the consistency is. wrap the almond paste in plastic wrap and allow it to cool. when you are ready to use it, knead in the butter. the butter makes it smooth and not so sticky. refrigerate in the chiller compartment of your fridge for up to a month.