Raw Recipe: Almond Butter
Making nut butters can be a little tricky. I used to think that I had to do them in my Vitamix, which would drive me batty with all the scraping down that was required. Other times, I would have a fail, only because I quit too early. I didn’t realize how much time it takes, and the process that the nuts have to go through. But if you have a little patience, you can make nut butters that are fabulous. You will never want to buy them again! Almond butter is a good one to start with.
I used my Kitchen Aid 12 cup food processor. It is a strong processor. The bottom warms up a little bit but if you are using an older processor, or a processor with a much weaker motor, common sense needs to prevail.
After 2 minutes it will look like this.
After 4 minutes it will look like this.
After 6 minutes it will look like this.
Around 8 minutes, the almond mixture will ball up. Just let it keep going.
At 10 minutes it has begun to redistribute, but it is not done yet. You want to wait until the oils get released.
At 12 minutes the almonds have released their oil and the butter is ready! If you want to add honey or salt, stir it in by hand.
*Chef’s Note: If using soaked, dehydrated (dried) almonds, you may need to add a little oil. This recipe requires the use of completely dry almonds.
Almond Butter
MAKES 1 1/4 CUPS ALMOND BUTTER
- 2 cups Almonds
- 1 tablespoon Raw Honey (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt (optional)
- Place almonds in food processor. Process for 8-12 minutes. You will need to scrape down the sides in the beginning. If you choose to use the honey and salt, stir in by hand after the butter is made as it will seize the mixture if you try to add it before.
*Chef’s Note: If using soaked, dehydrated (dried) almonds, you may need to add a little oil. This recipe requires the use of completely dry almonds.
Kimberly wrote on March 22, 2012
Another silly questions but there was not a photo before the almonds were ground, so . . .:) Do you use almonds with skin on or off? I’ve always used skins on and just raw, but not dehydrated. I get ok results but not quite as good as yours. I have a KitchenAid 9 cup processor.
Susan wrote on March 22, 2012
I did not remove the skins. 🙂 If I had, I would have stated it in the recipe. Cheers!
Anjanette Harrell wrote on March 21, 2012
after making almond butter where is the best place to store it and how long will it keep?
Susan wrote on March 21, 2012
Consider the ingredients. It is just nuts. But nuts have oils that can go rancid so I store mine in the refrigerator. It keeps for weeks but use common sense, your nose and your tastebuds. Cheers!
Alexis Kimbrough wrote on March 20, 2012
I’ve never had almond butter before, but really wanted to try this because I’m such a PB fan. Made this last night in my Hamilton Beach food processor, eating it now as a breakfast snack with apples 🙂 wonderful. I only made a cup because I wasn’t sure if I’d like it. Thanks for the detailed instructions and photos. I would have thought it didn’t work without the pictures because it did take a while.
Susan wrote on March 19, 2012
Thus the warning…if you have a smaller processor common sense needs to prevail… 🙂
Shari Reid wrote on March 18, 2012
Awesome! Thanks for the recipe with the images through out the processing. Very helpful!
Moriah wrote on March 17, 2012
I just made a batch for the first time using Organic Pastures Raw Almonds. I have a Mini-Cuisinart Food Processor and it took about 12 minutes like it says. The only problem? It completely killed my processor! Even though it’s a little guy, it was quite expensive, so I’m bummed…but lesson learned!
GeoffreyLevens wrote on March 16, 2012
If you start w/ frozen nuts you might find that it takes considerably less time to reach the final product. My wife stumbled on this accidentally while trying to make cashew meal for flourless bread. We store nuts in freezer so they keep better and when she just went straight from freezer to processor, the nuts started to turn to butter very quickly, before even really getting to the “meal” stage. I think being frozen somehow makes the oil separate out a bit though it goes right back into hiding if you thaw the nuts first.
Erika wrote on March 15, 2012
I only used 1 cup of raw almonds and I had to constantly keep scraping (and I have a nice food processor). I’m assuming this could be because I didn’t use enough almonds… ??? Maybe I should have soaked them?
Susan wrote on March 16, 2012
One cup of almonds is not enough. Also, if you soak the almonds you must dehydrate dry. You do not want to make this with wet almonds. You do need to scrape this down.
Gloria Huerta wrote on March 14, 2012
I am making some right now, in my Cuisinart processor. Only the container feels just a little warm to the touch. It’s been spinning now for about 8 minutes… looking good. I am not going to use honey. I am going to add about pitted 2 medjools or 3 honey dates, maybe. This is wonderful. I can’t wait to taste. I am so glad I found your website.