How is it that it took so long for the nut butter revolution? I certainly would have enjoyed me some vanilla maple almond butter when I was a kid – but NO – it didn’t even exist! Nutella was coming on the radar but it was an expensive specialty spread from Europe – not something we had in my house!Nowadays you can find flavored nut butters in most grocery stores, but either they are quite expensive ($10 to $15 a jar is common) or they are made with unhealthy oils and artificial ingredients (sadly, Nutella is one of those). Definitely read the ingredient label before you buy any nut butter at the store!
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5 Reasons to Make Homemade Nut Butter
(*affiliate links ahead)A better alternative is to make your own nut butter at home. Here’s why homemade nut butter rocks!:
It’s easy! As long as you own either a food processor or a high-speed blender, you can whip up a batch of delicious homemade nut butter in 10 minutes or less!
It’s affordable. Buy your nuts at stores known for good prices (Costco, Trader Joe’s, Aldi, Amazon) to help keep the cost affordable. (I’ve got some Amazon affiliate links at the bottom of this post if you are interested.)
You control the ingredients. Make it simple (just nuts!) or doctor it up with spices, flavorings, chocolate, coconut and even fruit!
It’s healthy. Nuts are a great source of plant-based protein, healthy fats, minerals and vitamins. As long as you don’t go crazy with the sweeteners – and limit yourself to a tablespoon or two, nut butters are a very healthy part of your diet.
It’s versatile. Beyond spreading on toast and bananas (duh!), nut butters are fantastic in smoothies and mixed into oatmeal – or use them in your favorite cookie or dessert recipe!
Homemade Nut Butter Recipes
This roundup of nut butter recipes includes everything from basic nut butter to decadent chocolate and every thing in between. I hope you find a new favorite in this list!
If you’ve never made a nut butter before, I recommend starting with this basicToasted Almond Butter from The Healthy Foodie. Sonia likes to use a blend of 1/2 toasted and 1/2 raw almonds. She also suggests you could add a pinch of cinnamon and/or a vanilla bean, which I’m sure is mighty tasty but again, if this is your first nut butter, start with plain – I guarantee it will become a pantry staple.
Ready to take a basic nut butter to the next level? Just add cocoa! Lee from Fit Foodie Finds shares this Cocoa Peanut Butterrecipe that turns plain jane peanuts into a chocolate lovers heaven!
When you’re ready to branch out to a new type of nuts, try this cashew butter flavored with maple, vanilla & almondfromRunning to the Kitchen. It’s not any harder than peanut or almond butter, in fact, the most difficultpart will be trying not to eat all the maple syrup roasted cashews before you have a chance to blend them.
If you’ve ever had Chai teathen you know how delicious these spices are when mixed together: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, cloves and allspice. Blend then up with raw almonds and you’ve got a Chai Spiced Almond Butter that is terrific on toast or spread on banana slices with a sprinkle of coconut and chocolate chips!
Adding freeze dried strawberries to cashews is not only a unique spin on nut butter but thisStrawberry Cashew Butteris a beautiful color too!
Roasted nuts, coconut sugar, vanilla, maple and of course a bit of salt are what makes this nut butter taste like salted caramel– and who doesn’t love that?!!
If you’re in the mood for somethingdecadent, try thisChocolate Hazelnut Butterfrom Texanerin. UnlikeNutella, which is made with palm oil and refined sugar, this homemade version is made with coconut sugar and has no added oil. Yes you can!
Nut allergy or not, sunflower seed butter is worth a try! This recipe includes a hint of coconut sugar and sea salt for a balanced flavor.
Are you a nut butter fan? Which recipe soundsbest to you?
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If it's been about 10 minutes and your nut butter still isn't getting creamy, you can add a tiny bit of oil. I occasionally have to add 1 – 2 teaspoons of oil (I love using coconut oil) to help with the blending process, but when you're using roasted nuts, it really shouldn't be too much of a problem.
Tips: If you're making almond butter without oil (just roasting) and it seems dry and flaky and not turning into butter, there's likely two reasons: 1) the almonds needed to roast just a little bit longer (see temperature note above), 2) the brand of almonds.
To increase digestion and nutrition, soak 2 cups of almonds in water with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt for about 8 hours. Dehydrate in the oven (or a dehydrator) at around 145-170ºF. Blitz in a food processor until smooth, making sure to give your machine breaks when needed.
With 200 calories, nearly 19 grams of fat, and almost 5 grams of protein, almond butter can help you bridge the gap between meals when you're hungry. It contains heart-healthy monounsaturated fats as well as vitamins and minerals, including vitamin E, magnesium, and calcium.
Now we have the $761 jar of peanut butter, but it's not available from a food outlet. You can only buy it from the U.S. government. It was made by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, an outfit that employs legions of lab technicians to test consumer products for nutritional values.
Just compare the price of one pound of raw almonds to the price of your favorite almond butter. The cost savings depend largely on the almond butter. I've bought jars of almond butter at Trader Joe's for seven dollars, so there's not much savings opportunity there.
It is a rich source of the mineral magnesium. A tablespoon of almond butter delivers 48.5 mg of the stuff, which is about 12% of what your daily intake should be. You can get too much magnesium; the upper limit is 350 mg or a little over 7 tablespoons of almond butter.
Plan ahead: Raw nuts need to soak for at least 12 hours before blending. This saturates the nut from the inside-out, resulting in a smoother, creamier texture. It also yields more liquid, because fully saturated nuts blend better and leave less "pulp" behind.
Once creamy, add salt (or other add-ins) to taste. Then transfer to a clean jar or container and store in the refrigerator up to 3 weeks (sometimes longer). Some other variations include: Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter, Cinnamon Hazelnut Butter, Almond Joy Butter, and Super Seedy Sunflower Butter!
IMPORTANT: Do not add any water to the mixture, it will cause the butter to seize up! If you use a roasted nut or seed, there should be enough oil in the product to create the creamy texture you're looking for, so you don't need any additional oil.
First thing's first: Start with roasted nuts. Roasted nuts are not only more flavorful than their raw brethren (they just taste nuttier), but they're also less spongy-chewy, which makes for a finished product with a better texture.
If your almond butter isn't creamy, it might be because you didn't blend it long enough. It can take up to 10 minutes or more for the almonds to release their natural oils and become smooth and creamy. So, keep blending, and remember, patience is key!
Nuts have a high proportion of fat, so adding more might seem counterintuitive. However, for a truly smooth and creamy nut butter, a secondary fat is necessary. The ideal choice is a fat that stays (relatively) solid at room temperature; you can't add any liquid oil.
The temperature of your butter is critical when creaming butter and sugar. Too cold, and your sugar won't properly dissolve into your butter. Too hot, and your cakes will end up flat and greasy. The magical temperature of softened butter is actually around 65℉, slightly cooler than the ambient temperature of your home.
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Introduction: My name is Madonna Wisozk, I am a attractive, healthy, thoughtful, faithful, open, vivacious, zany person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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How is it that it took so long for the nut butter revolution? I certainly would have enjoyed me some vanilla maple almond butter when I was a kid – but NO – it didn’t even exist! Nutella was coming on the radar but it was an expensive specialty spread from Europe – not something we had in my house!Nowadays you can find flavored nut butters in most grocery stores, but either they are quite expensive ($10 to $15 a jar is common) or they are made with unhealthy oils and artificial ingredients (sadly, Nutella is one of those). Definitely read the ingredient label before you buy any nut butter at the store!
