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I’m trying to find a substitute for almond paste in a cookie recipe. Does anyone have any suggestion for what I could use?

This is a cookie recipe that calls for 8 ounces of almond paste. The recipe divides the batter into 3 equal parts and you add different food coloring to each. after baking in a 13/9 you layer the cookies putting raspberry and apricot jam between the layers, and then top with Chocolate. I like the almond flavoring, so I suppose my question is how do I make my own almond paste? Thanks for any help.

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What quantity of almond paste is in your recipe? –  KatieK Dec 18 '12 at 19:12
Can you tell us a little more about the cookie recipe? Might help folks come up with a suitable substitute. –  JoeFish Dec 18 '12 at 20:27
Can you define what you mean by substitute? Are you looking for something other than almonds, or something still containing almonds? Almond paste in its basic form is ground almonds and the same quantity of sugar with a binding agent such as egg white, cream, water etc. From there you can create whatever paste you wanted to use. –  spiceyokooko Dec 18 '12 at 22:10
To clarify the other questions -- (a) how is the almond paste used in the recipe (eg, if it were chocolate, melting & mixing in is completely different than stirring in chunks); (b) what are you reasons for the substitution (are you trying to avoid all nuts, don't like the flavor, or is it just something you're having trouble finding (or at a reasonable cost)?) –  Joe Dec 18 '12 at 22:43
Welcome to Seasoned Advice! We like to keep questions and answers separated here. If you forgot to mention something in your question, you can just edit it so everybody sees all the info in one place. This time I copied your additional information into your question for you. –  rumtscho Dec 19 '12 at 17:23

3 Answers 3

The most common substitute is persipan - a paste made from apricot kernels. It has less taste than almond paste itself, but you can add artificial almond flavoring. I don't know where you live, but in some countries, this combination is easier to find in the supermarket than real almond paste.

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How to make almond paste?

Start with good quality raw almonds. Blanch, grind, cook with up to equal weight sugar in a pot with a bit of water to get started. Stir frequently. When it pulls away from sides and sugar is melted in, done. Add bitter almond flavor to taste.


Some folks find mixing ground almond and powdered sugar with liquid an acceptable paste.

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Almond paste has no known substitute, that would not radically alter the taste of the dish. You could try cashew nut or peanut butter (paste), but the flavor profile is nothing like almond.

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What about adding almond extract to one of those? –  Jefromi Dec 20 '12 at 15:28

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