♥ Healthy Homemade Nut Butter ♥

As most of you know, I love nuts. Walnuts, peanuts, Brazil nuts, almonds, etc. etc. etc. I also love nut butters. Let’s just say I’m nuts for nuts (lame joke, I know ;))

When I finished my Calvé peanut butter a few weeks back, the world (almost) came to an end. I needed new nut butter but wasn’t about to go fly to Holland to buy some (well, I got pretty close but decided to listen to better judgment). Anyway, since conventional products are never as tasty as home-made products (and are often filled with crap), I thought to myself… why not make my own?  So I did. It was tedious, but it turned out absolutely amazing. I emptied my jars of almond and walnut butter in less than week, and then went on to buy 2 kilos more of nuts and seeds for another batch.

Anyway, let’s recap the 6-step struggle to making your own nut butter at home. Be sure to watch ‘til the end to see which flavors were my favorite and why:

Step 1 

Choose your nuts. I chose almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and sunflower seeds, but you could really choose any nut/seed you like. I’ve read that peanuts, almonds, cashews and sunflower seeds are generally the preferred options… feel free to try any that you fancy!

Also, take as many as you’d like. I used about 300 g for both my almond and walnut butter (and 1 kg each for the Nutella and sunflower seed butter). You can always put some in your freezer if you have too much (or send some to me… I always accept donations ;)).

Step 2 

If (like my walnuts), your nuts still have a shell, crunch them up (with your hands or a nut cracker) and toss out the shells.

Step 3 

Provide your nuts with a nice little salt bath. Here’s why:

Nuts contain protective compounds such as

• Enzyme inhibitors  
• Toxic substances 
• Phytic acid 
• Polyphenols/tannins 
• Goitrogens 

which can strain the digestive mechanism and prevent the absorption of important minerals such as zinc, magnesium and iron.  

Soaking in salt water  

• Deactivates enzyme inhibitors. 
• Makes nuts easier to digest 
• Makes minerals easier to absorb.  

Make sure they are completely submerged.

Step 4 

Dehydrate in the oven or a dehydrator for 12-24 hours at 45ºC or 100ºF. You could add salt or spices, but I left mine untouched. I also left my sunflower seeds in for about 12 hours longer because they were still moist (maybe because there were so many and they were packed a bit too closely together). To prevent them from spoiling, make sure your nuts are completely dry when you take them out.

Step 5 

Put in the blender for 20 minutes… or 1 hour if you’re like me (or a whole freaking day). Regularly stop the blender (I did so every 2 minutes or so) to scrape off the sides and add in other ingredients you fancy. I personally recommend adding cinnamon and coconut oil.   

Step 6 

Wait for magic. It will come (eventually), so be patient.

So, how did my nut butters turn out? In one word: AMAZING. The almond butter was slightly sweeter and much thicker than the other butters, so if you have a bit of a sweet tooth, go for that one! My personal favorite, however, was the walnut butter (I think… but it is such a hard choice to make, and they all go with a different mood/craving/time!). 

Talking about time… more on that next week when I’ll be posting my next video, UPDATE: Help! I’m Midnight Snacking! | HOW TO EAT INTUITIVELY. See you then!  

Have you tried making your own nut butter? How did it turn out? How long did it take to blend? Do leave your comments below! :D

* Credit: music from Boyce Avenue