Lightly-Salted and Roasted Almonds (No Oil)

I was looking for a simple recipe for very lightly roasted almonds. One of my favourite almonds for snacking are the dry-roasted, salted almonds from Bulk Barn. What makes these almonds so great is that they are only lightly salted, unlike a lot of the canned almonds out there which can be overwhelmingly salty.

To recreate this recipe, I wanted something really quick and simple, with no oil or butter. I also didn't see the point of blanching almonds, because I feel like the skin holds a lot of flavour and texture for snacking.

What I came up with was a method simple enough that it can be done entirely to taste.

Almonds after roasting

The soaked almonds on the baking sheet

Ingredients

• Raw almonds - as many as you want, though 4 cups will cover a standard baking sheet
• Water
• Fine sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Take the almonds and place them in an appropriately-sized bowl.
3. Add water to the almonds until the almonds are nearly, but not quite, covered.
4. Add salt and mix with a soup spoon for about 45 seconds until all of the salt is absorbed and you have a fairly salty brine (I use roughly 1 tablespoon or more for 4 cups of almonds). Because most of the salt will drain away with the brine, don't worry about adding too much salt; it's better to err on the side of too much when you do this.
5. Using a slotted spoon, scoop the almonds from the bowl and spread them evenly over a standard baking sheet.
6. Roast the almonds in the oven for 18-22 minutes until the almonds turn from off white to a light golden colour (or however dark you like) stirring the almonds about halfway through.
7. Take the almonds out of the oven and allow them to cool completely.