whenever a recipe calls for ground almonds, I use Almond essense. (available as a synthetic or the real thing)
I've used it in cakes & curry dishes instead of the real thing. We don't like the texture the almonds give. You have to be careful how much you use as a little goes a long way
If you want to get the texture of almonds you can add a tablespoon of semolina instead of some of the flour, is it the flavour of ground almonds or the texture they don't like? Surely ground hazlenuts are similar? What about some desiccated coconut?
the almonds are to add flavour and substance. So you could add plain flour or polenta (polenta feels almost exactly the same as ground almonds),, or I prefer to use oat meal that i grind further to make it a similar constitency as the ground almonds would be. Semolina s also an excellent alternative.
Thanks for your answers. It is the flavour the kids do not like. I had thought of semolina but was not sure if it was too dry as ground almonds seem to have some moisture in them. I will give it a go!