Roasted Maple Almond Butter with Cinnamon

Anyone still in denial over the arrival of Fall needs to come running with me in the early morning. Summer didn't make my eyes water from the bitter cold. Summer didn't make my throat and lungs burn with the tease of much more frigid mornings to come. Summer didn't make things more complicated than throwing on some shorts and a light tank top.

I blame Fall for these things. Straight up.

Speaking of Fall, cinnamon and maple are stepping into the spotlight with our other favorite Autumn flavors. I've had this recipe pinned for ages, and after finally having a pile of almonds and apples to use, it was time.

Creamy with the slight singe of time under the flame - there really isn't anything I love more in the Fall and Wintertime than the roasted flavor of nuts, massaged with the attention of maple. This recipe combined all these things, plus the experience of making my own almond butter. It was supposed to be a win-win.... and it certainly was (the Manchild and I ate it all before Ryan came home). But with great sacrifice....

You see, I wrote a while ago about one of my favorite kitchen appliances: my mini food processor.  I used it on almost a daily basis, and it even rivaled my beloved Kitchen Aid mixer for attention. It seemed like it was always out, and I was always using it. It made my life so much easier. We 'was like peas and carrots'.

Then I decided to make almond butter.... and not give the poor lady a rest between almond grinding....

.... long story short: it started smoking (literally), and shut off on it's own. Never to turn on again.

I was devastated - I LOVED that thing. I feel like I should be writing it's obituary or something at this point. Is anyone else this attached to their kitchen appliances? It lasted through my almost daily torture for 5 years! I guess the best way for it to go was by delivering the most beautifully decadent and flavorful almond butter known to man.

 

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Roasted Maple Almond Butter with Cinnamon

Ingredients:

2 C almonds 

1/3 C maple syrup

2 T cinnamon

a pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

2. Line a medium-sized cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread the almonds in a single layer, very close to each other. Drizzle maple syrup over all the almonds. 

3. Roast the almonds for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Roast as long as possible without burning them - when they begin to change color, they burn very fast after that, so watch them closely. 

4. Remove pan fro the oven. Carefully move parchment paper with almonds over to a cooing rack. Let almonds cool for about 5 minutes. You don't want them too hot, but you don't want them cold/warm. If they're too hot, they'll melt your food processor. If they're too cold, they won't be easy to process them into almond butter.
5. Put all the almonds in the food processor and blend until creamy. Stop every few minutes and let your food processor rest. Scrape the sides of the bowl down. Mine took about 15 minutes.  Patience.
6. Add a pinch of salt and cinnamon. Blend a minute or two more. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve!

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Recipe Source: Texanerin