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Bitter Almonds are Poisonous – So You Can Still Eat Them

Bitter almonds are poisonous when raw due to the hydrocyanic acid. Cooked or baked, however, they are used in many traditional recipes. Here you can find out when you can eat bitter almonds and what to look out for.

Bitter almonds are valued for their intense almond flavor and, despite their toxic effect, are often used as a baking ingredient. This is possible because the toxic substance largely evaporates when heated. In contrast to baking flavors, you get a natural and less dominant bitter almond taste. We’ll show you what you absolutely have to consider when seasoning with bitter almonds.

Bitter Almonds: Inedible when raw

Bitter almonds are closely related to the sweet almonds and like these fruits of the almond tree. Visually, the two subspecies can often hardly be distinguished, with the bitter almond being slightly smaller than the sweet almond. Some bitter specimens can also be found among sweet almonds, which also contain hydrocyanic acid and should not be eaten raw. If you bite into a very bitter almond from a packet of sweet almonds, it’s best to spit it out.

Bitter almonds contain around three to five percent amygdalin, i.e. hydrocyanic acid bound to sugar residues, which is toxic when raw. During digestion, the highly toxic hydrocyanic acid is split off, which can cause serious symptoms of poisoning even in small quantities. In addition to hydrocyanic acid (or hydrogen cyanide), benzaldehyde is also split off. Both substances have the typical bitter almond taste, which is reminiscent of marzipan and is popular in many baking recipes. In contrast to hydrocyanic acid, benzaldehyde is not toxic and is used as a bitter almond aroma (also called false bitter almond oil) for baking.

According to the Lower Saxony State Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (LAVES), the hydrogen cyanide content of raw bitter almonds is up to 3000 milligrams per kilogram. Depending on body weight, 5 to 10 bitter almonds can be deadly for children. This number is higher for adults, but you should definitely avoid raw bitter almonds. In the trade, the bitter seeds are usually only offered in small packs of 50 grams. You can buy bitter almonds in the health food store or in the pharmacy.

By the way: Bitter apricot kernels also contain amygdalin. Studies by LAVES have shown that their hydrocyanic acid content is comparable to that of bitter almonds. The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) warns against eating more than two apricot kernels a day; tolerance is significantly lower in children. The same applies to raw bitter almonds.

Cooking or baking bitter almonds: this is how you can eat them

Since hydrocyanic acid is very sensitive to heat, it evaporates when cooking or baking and only a very small proportion of the toxic substance remains. You can therefore consume small amounts in heated dishes without hesitation. For example, you can use bitter almonds to flavor pastries, liqueurs or other desserts. Traditionally, bitter almonds are incorporated into Christmas stollen, amaretti and liqueurs, among other things.

You can process bitter almonds by grinding them finely or grating them with the other ingredients like fresh nutmeg with a fine grater. The food must then be heated. Alternatively, you can heat the kernels separately in the oven and use them to refine cold desserts. Depending on how intense the bitter almond taste should be, you can calculate around 5 to 15 grams of bitter almonds per 500 grams of mass. This amount is completely harmless after heating.

Below you will find a recipe for aromatic cantuccini with bitter almonds without artificial flavorings.

Cantuccini with bitter almonds: recipe without artificial baking flavors

Ingredients:

250 g flour
125 gsugar
1 teaspoon Baking powder
0.5 tsp salt
10 g bitter almonds
2organic eggs
20 gorganic butter (soft)
0.5 vanilla bean
200 g almonds
Zest of an organic lemon (optional)

Directions:

Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and mix together.
Finely grind the bitter almonds or use a very fine grater to grate them into the dry ingredients. Mix everything thoroughly.
Add the organic eggs, the softened butter and the pulp of half a vanilla pod (alternatively, you can also use a pinch of homemade vanilla sugar) and knead all the ingredients together. For a special aroma you can add the zest of an organic lemon. Knead in the whole sweet almonds at the end.
Chill the dough for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 190°C top/bottom heat. In the meantime, divide the dough into five portions, roll them into four centimeter thick strands and place them on a baking tray lined with a baking paper alternative or baking paper. Leave some space between the rolls as the pastries will rise in the oven.
Bake the rolls for about 12 to 15 minutes, let them cool slightly and cut them into slices about 1.5 centimeters wide.
Place them cut-side up on the baking sheet and bake for another 10 minutes until golden brown. Allow the cantuccini to cool completely before packing in an airtight container.

Alternatives to bitter almonds: bitter almond flavor

Due to the toxic hydrogen cyanide, many prefer to use bitter almond flavoring when baking, which tastes the same but does not contain any of the toxic substances found in bitter almonds.

You can also use bitter almond oil, which is obtained from the kernels of bitter almonds, apricots or other stone fruit. Bitter almond oil consists mainly of benzaldehyde, but also contains toxic hydrocyanic acid. Thanks to the intense almond aroma, it is used as a spice oil in food production but also in perfumery. Important: If you want to use bitter almond oil for food, you must heat it up before consumption.

Tip: The oil can be freed from the hydrocyanic acid using special processes. You can therefore also find bitter almond oil free of hydrocyanic acid in stores.

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Food

Grandma’s Apple Pie with Almonds

Recipe for grandma’s delicious apple pie with almonds. In the springform pan with apricot jam.

There are many apple pie recipes and I have tried many. But I always like to go back to my grandmother’s old recipe.

Ingredients for the dough

  • 200 grams of butter
  • 200 grams of sugar
  • 200 grams of flour
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 unwaxed lemon

Ingredients for the topping

  • 800 g tart, firm apples
  • 100 g sliced ​​almonds
  • 100 g apricot jam
  • Butter and breadcrumbs for the mold
  • powdered sugar

Preparations

Peel the apples, remove the core, cut them into eighths, and place them in lemon water. Grate the lemon zest. Grease a springform pan and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Preparation of the apple pie

Cream the butter with the sugar (if the butter is too cold, it can be warmed up briefly in the microwave) and 1 tbsp. Add flour. Gradually stir in the eggs and add the lemon zest. Mix the flour with the baking powder, sift through and fold into the batter. Fill half of the dough into the springform pan and top with the apple pieces. Pour the rest of the dough over it and bake the smoothing cake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees for about 40 – 45 minutes. Turn the baked apple pie out onto a wire rack.

Preparation topping

Roast the almonds in the pan. Bring the apricot jam to the boil, spread it hot on the still-warm cake, and immediately sprinkle with the roasted almonds. Sprinkle the cake with icing sugar after it has cooled.

Grandma’s useful knowledge

If you want to freeze the cake, only pour the frosting over it after it has thawed. To do this, briefly heat the cake in the microwave.

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Food

French Fries Just as Healthy as Almonds? New Study With Crazy Results

French fries are a popular food for young and old. However, they are generally considered unhealthy. But are they really? A new nutrition study surprises with its results.

French fries are unhealthy fattening foods – what is the truth of the claim?

In the research literature, regular consumption of fries has been associated with an increased risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity. According to the researchers, however, there is little evidence for this assumption. Research leader David Allison and his team therefore wanted to carry out a study that would establish a clear connection between physical health and regular consumption of French fries.

The researchers compared two randomly divided groups of 90 adults each. In one group, the test persons consumed a portion of fries with 300 calories as a snack every day for one month. The control group received a 300-calorie serving of almonds instead. Otherwise, the subjects did not change their lifestyle or diet. Almonds were chosen because they are considered healthy and are not associated with any negative health risks.

The researchers focused their attention on changes in the subjects’ body fat mass and weight. Blood sugar and insulin production were also monitored. At the end of the month, the values ​​in both groups were “comparable and not clinically significant”.

Result: French fries contain more carbohydrates than almonds

At the end of the month, the researchers were able to determine that the group that ate French fries every day had no values ​​outside the normal range. Almonds and fries therefore showed no differences in terms of the health of the subjects. In the French fries group, there were only higher temporary peak values ​​for blood sugar and insulin. According to the research team, this is due to the different proportion of carbohydrates in the two foods.

Study co-author Daniel Smith therefore sees the demonization of fries – and individual foods in general – as unjustified. It makes much more sense to take a close look at a person’s entire diet in relation to their health risk and also to take factors such as daily exercise into account. According to this, fries are no more unhealthy than almonds and you can shake off the guilty conscience with the next portion of fries.

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Food

Almonds: Healthy, Delicious and Unsustainable?

Almonds are popular in the kitchen and cosmetics and new products are constantly coming onto the market: almond milk, almond flour, almond cream, even almond-based vegan cheese is in the refrigerated section. Are such products really healthy and sustainable or just hip and delicious?

We clarify where the almonds come from in the trade, what varieties there are, what almond oil, almond milk and almond butter are all about – and how sustainable almond production is.

Where do the almonds come from?

Almond trees probably originally come from Southwest Asia, but this cannot really be clarified today, as it is not always clear whether the occurrence is wild or caused by planting. Today, wild almond trees grow particularly on the eastern Mediterranean coast, in Turkey, the Caucasus, Iran, Iraq, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. There are also almond trees in Germany – but not wild.

In the Vorderpfalz and on the southern wine route, the climatic conditions are suitable for almonds, so that almonds were grown there until the 1940s. To this day, the almond trees bloom in many places in the spring in a sweet pink. Globally, most almonds are now grown in the US, but about 10 percent of global almond cultivation takes place in the EU, mainly in the Mediterranean region.

Are there different types of almonds?

There are basically three groups of tonsils:
sweet almonds used in baking and desserts,
Cracked almonds for raw consumption in nut mixtures to crack and
Bitter almonds, which are used in small amounts to flavor liqueurs (Amaretto), for example. Due to their high content of hydrocyanic acid, among other things, bitter almonds are not suitable for consumption. During the production of the baking ingredient bitter almond oil, the hydrocyanic acid is extracted from the oil.

Products made from almonds: almond oil, almond milk, almond butter

Almonds are extremely versatile and can be used in both sweet and savory dishes or as almond oil in cosmetics. Very classic products based on almonds are:
Marzipan: Strictly speaking, only almonds, sugar and maybe some rose or orange blossom water belong in marzipan. The more almonds in the marzipan, the higher the quality.
Almond milk: To make it, almonds are ground into a very fine paste and mixed with water. When straining, you get almond milk, which can be used as food or cosmetics.
Almond oil is pressed from sweet almonds and bitter almonds, depending on the purpose. Almond oil is particularly suitable for sensitive and dry skin and for babies, but it also tastes delicious in desserts and flavored as bitter almond oil in pastries and liqueurs.
Almond flour is a by-product of almond oil production. This is the so-called press cake, which is usually offered de-oiled as almond flour. Oil-free almond flour is gluten-free and contains only a few carbohydrates, which is why it is suitable for celiac patients and as part of a low-carb diet.
Almond butter consists of finely ground almonds without any additives. Dark almond butter is made from unpeeled roasted almonds, white almond butter is made from peeled “blanched” almonds. Dark almond butter has a strong flavor and is good for baking, light almond butter can replace cream and is a wonderful base or addition to desserts or smoothies.

How healthy are almonds?

Half of the almond is fat, which doesn’t exactly make it body-friendly. Although the fat it contains has the same calorie density as any other vegetable fat, it is much healthier. This is due to the content of unsaturated fatty acids and good omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid ratio. These healthy fatty acids have beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system and cholesterol levels.

Furthermore, almonds contain about 20 percent protein, which is why almond butter and almonds are often used as a valuable source of protein in meatless cuisine.

The approximately 22 percent carbohydrates in almonds keep you full for a long time and, as a gluten-free alternative, are the basis of almond flour.

If the shell is still attached to the almond or if the ground almonds have not been blanched, almonds also contain a lot of dietary fiber, which not only prevents colon cancer, but also keeps you full for a long time because they only allow the blood sugar level to rise slowly.

The information on the nutritional values ​​of products made from almonds cannot always be made in general. For example, it is impossible to give general information about fat content, protein and calorie content for almond milk, since it always depends on how much water was used in the recipe to produce it or whether the milk was sweetened.

Almonds in themselves are very healthy in small amounts and are a valuable source of protein, but in larger amounts they contribute to an increased consumption of fat and then find themselves on the hips quite quickly. No wonder with around 700 kcal per 100 g! The rule of thumb is: A handful of nuts (approx. 25 g) per day is enough. By the way: The fact that almonds are a kind of “fat brake”, burn more fat than they deliver, or accelerate weight loss diets is pure nonsense.

Are Organic Almonds Better?

In principle, the use of pesticides is forbidden in organic farming – unlike with almonds from conventional cultivation. To combat pests, almonds are gassed with, among other things, phosphine, which is very toxic. Theoretically, little or no toxic phosphine should stick to the food after fumigation, but Öko-Test magazine found traces of it on nuts in September 2014.

Sulphurizing (a preservation method) is also forbidden in the organic sector, because this destroys vitamin B1 (thiamine), among other things, and the actually healthy almonds lose a vitamin. So it doesn’t just make sense to buy organic almonds in terms of pesticides.

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Cooking Tips

Peel Almonds: This Trick is Very Easy

Would you like to peel almonds but don’t know how to do it? It’s easy. We explain how it works and what you should know about almonds.

Peel almonds – what do you mean by that?

Almonds are delicious and contain valuable oils and proteins. You can get them in stores mainly as almond kernels, where the hard shell has already been removed. If you want to process them, you may want to peel the almonds even further for certain recipes. What is meant by this is the thin brown skin that surrounds the amygdala. This skin is often a bit bitter. But it can be easily removed with a simple trick.

How to peel almonds

To peel almonds, you have to blanch them briefly. When dry, you will hardly be able to remove the skin. How to do it right:
Put as many almonds in a saucepan as you need.
Cover the almonds with water and let the almonds boil.
Let the almonds cook for 2-5 minutes.
Pour them into a colander and shock them with cold water.
The skin can now be removed very easily: You can practically push the almond out of the skin. The best way to do this is to press your fingers together at the rounded end of the almond.
If you want to peel a lot of almonds, the above method can be a bit tedious. In that case, try this trick:
Blanch the almonds as described above.
Put the quenched almonds on a kitchen towel and fold it shut.
You rub this packet through a bit and then collect the skinned cores.
You may need several passes until all the almonds are shelled.

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