Salted Almonds (1918)
Reader ratingsSalted almonds Fannie Farmer’s way, for the cocktail list’s salted nuts: blanched almonds fried a handful at a time in olive oil until pale gold, drained on paper and salted.
- Recipe makes
- About 1½ cups, 6 servings
- Prep
- Cook
- Total
Let the almonds cool for 15 minutes before serving; they crisp as they cool.
Salted almonds, fried in olive oil and sprinkled with salt.
The story behind the recipe
Salted almonds belonged to the American dinner table before they reached a London cocktail list. Fannie Farmer’s Boston Cooking-School Cook Book puts them beside the celery on its menu for a New England Thanksgiving, and the 1918 edition gives two ways to make them. The first fries blanched Jordan almonds in olive oil, a quarter of them at a time, stirring all the while, then drains them on brown paper and salts them. The second uses lard and clarified butter, or “all cocoanut butter,” and the same method does for peanuts and pecans.
Why were salted almonds served with cocktails?
Because they were light. When Nina Toye and A. H. Adair wrote their London cocktail book in 1925, they wanted “some other light hors d’œuvre” with the cocktail when fine wines were to follow, and “salted nuts” were on their list. They also joked that a guest who downed six cocktails was no worse than one who worked through “a box of salted almonds” in an afternoon. The whole list is in What Did You Nibble With a Cocktail in the 1920s?
Read more about this recipe
Making it today
Blanched whole almonds save the work of skinning them; Jordan almonds were a large, long variety, and any good whole almond does. Farmer’s very small saucepan lets a third of a cup of oil fry them; keep the heat moderate, since almonds go from gold to bitter quickly. She noted that you may need to wipe off some of the salt with a napkin. We add it while the nuts are warm and shake off what doesn’t stick.
On the same tray, the Cheese Straws (1924) bring the other salty crunch from the London list.
Blanch one-fourth pound Jordan almonds and dry on a towel. Put one-third cup olive oil in a very small saucepan. When hot, put in one-fourth of the almonds and fry until delicately browned, stirring to keep almonds constantly in motion. Remove with a spoon or small skimmer, taking up as little oil as possible. Drain on brown paper and sprinkle with salt; repeat until all are fried. It may be necessary to remove some of the salt by wiping nuts with a napkin.
Recipe makes: About 1½ cups, 6 servings
Ingredients
For about 1½ cups, 6 servings. Quantities are shown as written.
Quantities as written here, for about 1½ cups, 6 servings.
- Blanched whole almonds0.5 lb
- Olive oil1/3 cup
- Fine salt1 tsp
Measurement notes
Ingredients as written here
- ½ lb blanched whole almonds
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 tsp fine salt
Equipment
Small heavy saucepan- Slotted spoon or small skimmer
- Brown paper or paper towels
- Instant-read or frying thermometer
Instructions
Spread the almonds on a clean towel and pat them dry.
Heat the olive oil in the small saucepan over medium heat to about 325°F (160°C).
Add a small handful of the almonds and fry, stirring all the time, for 2 to 3 minutes, until pale gold. Lift them out with the slotted spoon, letting the oil drip back, and spread them on the paper.
Sprinkle with some of the salt while they are hot. Fry and salt the rest in the same way.
Let them cool for 15 minutes, shake off any loose salt, and serve in small dishes.
Nutrition
260calories per serving
- Recipe makes
- About 1½ cups, 6 servings
- Servings
- 6
Estimated per serving from USDA FoodData Central values for almonds, with about 2 tablespoons of the oil absorbed.
Recipe notes
When adjusting quantities
Fry about an eighth of a pound at a time, a small handful; the same oil does for any amount up to 1 lb, topped up if it runs low.
Notes
Quantities mentioned in these notes don’t change when you adjust the servings.
Farmer fried a quarter pound; this is twice her amount. They darken a little more after they come out of the oil, so lift them while they are still pale. Keep the pan on a back burner and never leave hot oil unattended. Keep them in a closed tin and eat them within a few days. Contains tree nuts (almond).
Scaling changes the ingredients only; pan sizes and cooking times need their own judgment. To adapt this recipe further, try the recipe tool at TuneMyRecipe (opens in a new tab), our sister site.
Sources and attribution
After Fannie Merritt Farmer, Salted Almonds I, in The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book (Boston: Little, Brown, 1918)
Recipe details
- Course
- Starter
- Region
- American
- Source decade
- 1910s
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Occasion
- Dinner party