How to Make Homemade Nut Butter (Pecan Butter Recipe)

Making homemade nut butters can be a fun way to experiment with your diet, while staying healthy. An article in Harvard Health describes that nuts contain healthy omega-3 fatty acids, that help reduce blood clotting and prevent the development of irregular heart beats. They contain glucagon-like peptides, which may help control glucose and insulin levels for those who have prediabetes. Beyond that they can just help with satiety with amounts of fiber and protein that will help keep us away from too much unhealthy food in our daily intake.

Essentials of Nut Butters

What do you need to make homemade almond butter in a blender?

All you need is a blender and nuts! Seriously, for a lot of nuts you can get away with just blending the nuts into a butter. However, nuts come in a lot of varieties. One difference is the oil content, so some nuts will need a neutral oil added during the blending. Most nuts you will use, shouldn’t need extra oil, but if the consistency you’re getting is not smooth enough, a small amount of oil will take it the rest of the way.

Feel free to experiment with the types of nuts you use. You can go with standard peanut butter. Almonds provide a great new flavor if you’re just getting into making your own nut butters. Using cashews results in a sweeter taste, so it can be a great addition to any recipe. 

Are there any other ingredients besides nuts?

If it is needed, you can always add salt while you’re blending your nut butter. If you’re looking for a little more flavor after you’ve made your first nut butter, there are countless ways to spice it up. 

Are there ways to spice up the nut butter recipes?

Yep! In addition to experimenting with different nuts, you can experiment by adding a bunch of other ingredients if you’re looking for a unique flavor to your nut butter. In one of the recipes below we’ll look at an Almond Butter Chocolate Spread! By adding dark chocolate to the recipe.

    If you’re looking to sweeten up your nut butter try adding small amounts of maple syrup. A good combo with syrup would be vanilla, cocoa, cinnamon or cardamom which will add some warmth to your nut butter and give it festive flair.

    You can also add different seeds and fruits, like pumpkin seeds or raisins to create a unique flavor. We’ll be experimenting with a PB&J nut butter for a future recipe!

Experiment with fun recipes to expand your nut butter collection.

We’re covering just almond butter recipes here, you can experiment with other nuts and even try combining them to create more unique flavors and textures. You can use almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, pistachios, macadamia, or Brazil nuts.

How do you make a nut butter in a blender?

The process of making a nut butter is relatively simple. Put nuts in a blender, and let the blender break down the nuts and release the oils inside. The result is a smooth butter, that’s great for many applications in the kitchen. Continue reading for some of the nuances of making nut butters.

What kind of blender do you need to make a nut butter?

To make a nut butter in a blender, you will want a high-power blender. We recommend brands like Vitamix, Blendtec, etc. These blenders will have the power to first crush the nuts, but also continue blending the butter as it thickens and do it for an extended period. You can check out this Certified Reconditioned Vitamix E310 on Amazon which will go for around $270, which is a great value for a blender in this range.

How long does it take to make nut butter?

This will vary depending on the nuts you are using. Drier nuts may need more coaxing, but more oily nuts like pecans will be a little easier to start with. In the recipe below, we make a simple pecan butter that should only take 15-30 minutes. The freshness of the nuts you have may also affect the way the blend, as nuts can dry out over time.

How do you make nut butter in a blender?

To make nut butter in a blender, all you need is a little patience. Start on a slow speed and let the nuts break up initially. Once they break apart and create a crumbly texture you can speed up a little.

The faster speed you use at this step will increase the amount you will have to stop and scrape the sides of the container. We recommend going slow until the mixture starts to stick together a little more and smooths out. At this point you can start to add any additional ingredients you want, like salt and any spices if you’d like.

As you speed up the blender, you can always slow down if the mixture is getting thrown on to the sides of the blender. We’ve found using smaller containers, more importantly skinny containers can help with this.

The most important thing, is to really get a smooth and liquid texture. The butter will heat up as a result of extended blending, so it will look done but may stiffen when you let it cool. When the butter looks done, turn up the speed and let it go for just a little longer.