Homemade Peanut Butter - Tip of the Day

by Sarah LeTrent, Posted Sep 28th 2009 @ 9:00AM

Why buy a jar of processed peanut butter when you can easily make it at home?

Peanuts in a food processor before grinding. Photo: Melissa Bernais, Flickr.

Considered to be a kitchen staple right up there with milk and bread, the nutty, creamy flavor of peanut butter makes it a favorite sandwich spread. It's easier to avoid the added sugar and partially hydrogenated oils found in the conventional processed stuff than you think. Try making your own peanut butter at home -- all you need is a food processor or a blender.

You'll need 2 cups roasted peanuts, a generous tablespoon of peanut oil and salt to taste. Blend the ingredients together until you reach your desired consistency, be it creamy or crunchy. (If you use roasted, salted peanuts, omit the salt.)

You may have to scrape the sides of the container with a rubber spatula in the middle of the process to ensure that everything gets mixed well. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy!

Do you want to get creative? Try adding different flavors like honey, maple or cinnamon, and tell us exactly how you like your homemade PB in the comments.

Filed Under: Tip of the Day, Ingredients
Tags: flavored peanut butter, FlavoredPeanutButter, homemade peanut butter, HomemadePeanutButter, nuts, peanut butter, PeanutButter, seeds, tip of the day, TipOfTheDay

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

9-28-2009 @9:54AM Numb said... This may sound strange, but I once tried to make cashew butter using the same method described above, and ended up with what was basically a really greasy cashew dough... just a dense, solid ball of cashew paste that I couldn't get to turn into 'butter' no matter what I tried - adding more oil, adding water, etc. Any thoughts on the matter?
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9-28-2009 @12:10PM slashfoodteam said... It usually helps to add more oil (one teaspoon at a time) if a smoother butter is desired. Since that didn't seem to work for you, you may want to process the cashews first until they are as powdery as possible -- then add in the oil and salt. If that doesn't work, you might need a higher powered blender/processor. Try it out again and let us know if our suggestions helped!
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9-28-2009 @9:47PM QTKitty said... I look forward to mixing some up! I was wondering,whats the shelf life? Can the canning proccess be used like you do for fruits? It would make a nice gift.
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10-01-2009 @5:00PM Melissa Bernais said... Oh, that's my photograph!

I never add any oil or salt and have never had a batch not turn out. I make sure to use dry roasted, unseasoned nuts as well. What you see in the image is cinnamon sticks that I pulverized in a spice grinder. Cinnamon peanut butter is one of my favourite things in the world.
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