What Is Almond paste and How Can I Use It?

Wondering what to do with almond paste? This guide covers how to pick it, cook it, store it, and swap it, plus 61 recipes to put it to work.

Key Points

Almond paste is ground blanched almonds and sugar, about half and half, with deep almond flavor.
Soften and break it up before mixing, since cold lumps never fully smooth out in batter.
It builds macaroons, frangipane, stollen, and the almond filling inside Danish pastry.
Not the same as marzipan, which is far sweeter and smoother and made for covering cakes.
Keep it tightly wrapped against air; it lasts months in the fridge and freezes well.

What is almond paste?

Almond paste is a dense, pliable mixture of finely ground blanched almonds and sugar, usually bound with a little glucose or egg white. It carries a strong, true almond flavor and a slightly grainy, fudge-like texture that softens into doughs and batters as they bake.

It is roughly half almonds, half sugar. That higher nut content is what separates it from sweeter confections made on the same base, and it gives baked goods a deep marzipan flavor without turning them cloying.

Bakers reach for it in European classics like Italian rainbow cookies and German stollen, plus the almond layer baked into Danish pastry and frangipane tarts.

How to Use It

Almond paste is firm and tacky out of the tube or can, so soften it before mixing. Grate it, break it into small pieces, or beat it with the sugar and butter at the start of a recipe until no lumps remain. Stubborn lumps never fully smooth out later.

In cookies it is the whole point. Almond Paste Macaroons and Almond Macaroons beat the paste with sugar and egg whites into a chewy, crack-topped cookie with no flour at all, and Italian Macaroons and Almond Rainbow Cookies work the same way.

In cakes and breads it melts into the crumb. Almond Streusel Bundt Cake & Coffee Glaze and Almond Oatmeal Bread fold it into the batter, while Danish Almond Ring rolls a band of it inside the dough so it bakes into a soft almond center.

It also makes a quick filling. Beat it with butter and an egg and you have frangipane for tarts, or thin it for Almond Cream Filling.

Cooking and Pairing

Almond pairs naturally with cherry, apricot, and chocolate, and a little goes into coffee cake or holiday bread to add richness. A spoonful in a streusel or crumb topping deepens the whole bake.

A small splash of almond extract reinforces the flavor when a recipe needs to read strongly of almond, since some pastes are milder than others.

Taste the paste first to judge how much you need.

The common mistake is treating almond paste and marzipan as the same thing. Marzipan has far more sugar and is smooth and moldable, made for covering cakes and shaping candy.

Almond paste is coarser and less sweet, and it is meant to be baked into things. Swap marzipan into a recipe calling for paste and the result turns too sweet and soft.

The other slip is adding cold paste straight to a batter. Cold, it stays in hard nuggets, so let it come to room temperature and break it up first.

Substitutes

Marzipan is the closest swap, but cut the recipe's sugar since marzipan is much sweeter, and expect a softer texture. Use it weight for weight and reduce other sugar by roughly a third.

You can also make a rough paste at home. Grind 1 cup (about 100 g) blanched almonds or almond flour with ¾ cup powdered sugar and a little egg white or corn syrup until it clumps. It bakes fine, just coarser than the store version.

In a pinch, almond flour plus a touch of almond extract covers the flavor in a cake or cookie, though you lose the binding the paste provides.

Buying and Storage

Look for almond paste in cans or tubes near the baking supplies, and check the label. A good one lists almonds first, ahead of sugar. Pastes that lead with sugar bake sweeter and taste less of almond.

Almond paste dries out the moment it meets air, so keep it tightly wrapped. Press plastic wrap right against the cut surface, seal it in a bag or airtight container, and it keeps in the fridge for several months.

If it has hardened, a few seconds in the microwave or a knead with a drop of corn syrup can bring it back. For longer storage it freezes well, wrapped airtight, then thawed in the fridge before use.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup, firmly packed (227g)

Amount per Serving

Calories 1039Calories from Fat 566

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 63.0g 97%

Saturated Fat 6.0g 30%

Trans Fat ~

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 20mg 1%

Total Carbohydrate 108.5g 36%

Dietary Fiber 11g 44%

Sugars 82.3

Protein 20.4g

Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 0%

Calcium 39% • Iron 20%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your caloric needs.

recipeland.com/nutrition

Quick facts

Where to find almond paste: Almond paste is usually found in the baking supplies section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group: Almond paste is a member of the Nut and Seed Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese: 杏仁糊
British (UK) term: Almond paste
en français: pâte d'amande
en español: pasta de almendras

How much does almond paste weigh?

Amount	Weight
1 cup, firmly packed	227 grams
1 ounce	28 grams

Nut and Seed Products

Sesame seeds 663 Sunflower seeds 181 Almonds 1782 Almond paste 61 Cashew nuts 213 Water chestnuts 309 Coconut 947 Coconut, shredded, unsweetened (desiccated) 58 Coconut, shredded (desiccated) 158 Coconut cream 46

Recipes using almond paste

There are 61 recipes that contain this ingredient.

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