I love almond butter. It’s truly the best nut butter out there. It far surpasses peanut butter in my list of favorite nut butters to eat. Is it crazy that I can talk about how much I love almond butter? Yes, but it’s that good!
Ever since the first time I bought MaraNatha’s No Stir Almond Butter at Whole Foods to try it I’ve been hooked. I love it a million times more than peanut butter and I could eat a whole jar of it in no time (luckily, I restrain myself from doing so).
Don’t even get me started on Justin’s Classic Almond Butter
or the even more delicious Justin’s Maple Almond Butter.
It’s so amazing. I love Justin’s nut butters especially the maple almond butter in individual squeeze packs. I wish Amazon would ship internationally.
But here in New Zealand almond butter is ridiculously expensive. It costs $8.60 for this tiny jar of organic almond butter (which is the only kind I can find).
Yikes! I’m used to buying something for half the price with twice as much almond butter. (I miss America?) But since it’s not popular here there aren’t many brands and there is no price competition. They can charge that much and people like me who love it will pay. Except I won’t. I can’t.
I can’t afford to shell out that much for almond butter. So I decided to make my own. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a while, and we finally found a place with almonds at a reasonable price. I bought a big bag of almonds for $7 and set out to make my very own almond butter.
Turns out making almond butter is really, really easy.
How To Make Homemade Almond Butter
How do you do it? Well first buy almonds. Try not to eat them all before you use them.
Optional – You can roast your almonds before using them for almond butter or just keep them raw. I chose to go the raw route although in the future will experiment with roasting (and flavors).
Put the almonds in a food processor. Don’t over fill it.
Let the food processor do it’s thing. Whirl, whirl, chop, chop, blend, blend… essentially process.
Step 4 – 20: When the crumbed almonds rise up the sides you should stop the food processor and scrape them down. This happens a lot. It takes many many stops and starts so be prepared to scrape down the sides a lot. I admit I got lazy and gave the food processor a hit or two to knock the crumbs off, which works just as well.
Soon it will stop looking crumby and start looking doughy. Debate making some sort of almond cookie but move on an continue with original goal of making almond butter.
Eventually, after your food processor works it butt off for 20 minutes, almost overheats and smokes just a little bit, it will start getting creamy. This is the point where I added sea salt, but you can add almost anything here to flavor the almond butter.
And since it’s finally creamy after all that hard work it’s time for a test taste.
Yum.
Pour the almond butter from the food processor into a container.
Let it settle then store it in the fridge for future use on just about everything you can think of… within reason. I like using it on my favorite nut butter and banana french toast combo.
You can also use your almond butter in a lot of other things like on sweet potatoes or in protein balls.
Making almond butter was a lesson in patience. It took a lot longer than I expected, but I knew from previous internet research that it would work. I got a little worried when I thought the food processor was overheating, but it was just the almonds getting hot and in the end it worked out.
The almond butter tasted great. It wasn’t the best I’ve ever had, but I’m sure I can figure out how to make it better. Plus, I love the fact that I can make it and create my own flavors and control the amount of salt in it. Having total control over your food always takes more time and effort but it’s the best way to get what you want and control what you are consuming.
Now I can snack on almond butter without feeling guilty about the price! My $7 almonds purchase will yield about double the amount that’s in the jar from the store and it will be exactly what I want. Win!
**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.
MizFit says
It took me forever but I finally can make an almond butter I like better than the store (I know SHOCKING :) to me anyway) in my vitamix!
Christie {Honoring Health} says
I haven’t made almond butter in ages. Thanks for the reminder! I think I want to make some macadamia nut butter!
Mary says
Oooooh, that sounds delicious. I just saw a post the other day from someone who made pecan butter… that sounds awesome too.
Mary says
Next time? I also really want to try making maple almond butter!
Julie says
I love making almond butter! Or any nut butter for that matter! I guarantee, if you buy roasted almonds (or roast them yourself), your almond butter will taste amazing– much better than the store bought kind! I like adding a bit of agave or maple syrup (or sugar?) and a teaspoon of vanilla for a slightly sweet vanilla AB. But my all time favorite is cashew butter with agave and dark cocoa powder– it is the most delicious thing in the world! I can’t make it anymore coz i eat it too quickly!!
Marisa @ Loser for Life says
Homemade almond butter is the best! I roast my almonds for about 5 minutes before processing them; gives it a great flavor!
Andrew(AJH) says
I was pretty addicted to commercial peanut butter but have cut it out recently, might have to try this. Re previous post, your country certainly is beautiful! My wife and I spent our honeymoon there and have been thinking about another visit.
Anele says
Mmm, that sounds good! I don’t have a food processor though. Hmmph.
Tracey @ I'm Not Superhuman says
I can’t believe how few steps are involved. It’s amazing how you don’t have to add any oil or anything to get it going during the crumb stage. I think maple would be awesome.
Mary says
Some tutorials suggested adding oil to “help it along” but I didn’t want anything in it besides almonds and sea salt. That meant it took longer but it was worth it!
Maple would be awesome… I’m trying that next time!
Diana the Scale Junkie says
Great job getting creative! I promise to appreciate my giant jar of Costco almond butter even more now! I think a tiny bit of vanilla extract would taste awesome with almond butter.
Karen says
Looks great and makes me think I could make a mixed butter, throw in some cashews and a few peanuts too. Yum.
Mary says
Oooooh, I’m going to try that eventually too!
Alissa says
I’ve always wanted to try that, looks like it actually works!
Angelika says
Impressive! I may have to get that a try!
Randi says
I am amazed at how easy this was. Now I cannot wait to make my own almond butter!
Lori says
I love almond butter! But I think Cashew Butter has to be my all time favorite. I have a VitaMix and have been meaning to make my own nut butters.
I hear that if you add a bit of grapeseed oil it will process easier and turn out nice and creamy :)
Mary says
I’ve had cashew butter and it’s nice, but almond butter is my all time favorite. I prefer cashews raw though.
Adding oil will definitely make the process easier, but it turns out very creamy without it. Just takes longer. :)
Ashley @ Nourishing the Soul says
MAKING almond butter!?! Oh no, I could have a major problem on my hands if I even start with this… ;-)
Kat says
Ohh, interesting. Does it taste like the store bought variety? I’ll experiment on this some day soon! Oh the possibilities with a food processor. :-) Thanks for the ideas!
Mary says
It doesn’t taste exactly like the store bought kind but then again I’ve never had two brands that tasted exactly a like. It’s pretty close though and for a first attempt it’s great. I probably could make it taste more like store brands if I roast the almonds first. Raw almonds taste a bit different.
Becky says
Yum. That looks delicious! I’ll have to try it. My husband LOVES almond butter.
Kelly (KellyisLosingWeight) says
Mmm – that looks good! I’m a peanut butter girl myself.
Charlene says
Looks quite tasty, I might have to give it a whirl!!
janetha g. says
your commentary is hilarious. i love you.
Rachel says
Hi…Thank you so much for this post. I always buy the bags of raw almonds and had no idea it was this easy. Thanks again and God bless you.
Diana @ frontyardfoodie says
Very nice! I’m always amazed at what a food processor and the right ingredients can do!
Kendra says
I just got a new food processor so I’m thinking about making some of these things. Almond butter with maple sounds like the best idea ever.
Billie says
wow that looks gorgeous. I think I may try it. I love nut butters. Been following your blog for a while – hang in there Kid. x
Mary says
Thanks Billie. ;)
merri says
Hmm so the jar you bought at the store was half the amount you can buy in the US, and the amount you made yourself was double the amount you bought, so basically you made the same amount you would buy in the US, for $7, that we can buy here for $4. Good bargain for you in NZ, probably not a good bargain for me in SF. Although, maybe the actual nuts are cheaper here too. Very cool though..i would have stopped at the crumb stage and thought I was doing it wrong! I always thought that it woud need something to make it liquidy, but I guess thinking about it, nuts are oily enough in themselves. I love how youre always making things yourself that most people (me) would just be lazy and buy! I never manage to eat almond butter that often..it takes me at least six months or more to get through a jar..all those yrs of conditioning of not eating peanutbutter, I cant ever think of times to actually eat almond butter, ways to incorporate it into my daily food.
Mary says
Yeah you probably could find cheaper nuts somewhere. Almonds here are pretty high. In the regular grocery stores they are almost not worth buying. I’m glad we found the place with cheaper almonds. I guess it pays to wander into small stores and see what they have.
Hehe. It takes me a couple weeks to go through a jar. I can’t imagine it taking months. I love the stuff and eat some almost every day (just not a lot)!
Melissa @ Journey to Marvelous says
I’ve never looked into making my own nut butters…thanks for sharing! I’m surprised that you don’t have to add any liquid, but hey…just makes it that much easier with fewer ingredients!
Alesia says
Sounds like a new way for you to make money for your wedding…come up with some incredible Almond Butter Recipes and sell them at local farmers markets!
Mary says
Hahaha. We will see. I’ve got to check out a farmer’s market soon. Haven’t yet!
Cilla says
Oh, now I REALLY want a food processor. Looks amazing, and the flavoured variety appeals very much! I buy the 300g jar of the Ceres AB for around $11 from Bin Inn, but I agree that it’s still ridiculously expensive.
Mary says
I never had a food processor before I moved to NZ. It’s my new favorite thing. So many things you can do and make with it!
Eventually I’m going to hit up Bin Inn and check out everything they have. There just isn’t one super close to us.
Tami says
I love nut butters but I find that they are difficult for me to have portion control with so I avoid them for now! Sigh.
Maggie says
Oh YUM! I’m gonna try this on the weekend…I looooove Almond butter! I just need to make sure to keep hubby away from it!
Jody - Fit at 52 says
YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I don’t have a high powered mixer or a food processor so I guess I am lucky I have Trader Joes!
Erin says
My food processor is itty bitty so I make micro-batches. Only takes me 10 minutes and like you said, you can flavor it different ways. Chocolate peppermint is a favorite for the holidays – I just add a few chocolate chips (maybe 10?) and a mini-candy-cane to an almost done almond or cashew butter (I do 1 cup of raw or dry roasted nuts at a time). Sooooo good!
shauna says
My poor mixer has never been the same since I made almond butter… it whines like a dog that’s been kicked! But it was worth it :P
maria @ Chasing the Now says
Roasting the almonds gives it a much better flavor, I think. More “nutty.” Also, adding some cinnamon, maple syrup, and vanilla extract makes AWESOME nut butter… but addicting!
The Binge Diary says
So cool! Looks like it turned out great
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