A super easy homemade walnut butter recipe, where your food processor does all the work. Optional and tasty additions include sea salt, honey, and coconut oil.
This homemade walnut butter is wonderful. It is tasty, creamy, and perfect for breakfast or as a healthy snack.
I love nut butters. I have a wide selection of store-bought nut butters at home, including peanut butter, almond butter and sunflower seed butter.
But when it comes to walnuts, it’s not so easy to find the butter in stores, so I like to make it at home using this simple and easy recipe.
Can you make walnut butter?
Absolutely! This healthy, paleo recipe couldn’t be any easier. All you need are shelled walnuts, a food processor, and a little patience.
The process takes 10-15 minutes, and the food processor does all the work, as you can see in the video below.
Should I toast the walnuts first?
This is purely up to you. You can slightly complicate things by lightly toasting the walnuts prior to processing them. I usually use raw walnuts, because I find they produce the creamiest result.
Toasting the walnuts does enhance their flavor though. The raw butter is very mild. If you prefer a more pronounced flavor, certainly toast the walnuts first. It’s not difficult to do.
What should I add to my homemade walnut butter?
You can add tasty additions such as honey, sea salt, and coconut oil. But you don’t have to.
I actually don’t add anything, because I really like the natural taste of walnuts. All I want is to produce the taste of walnuts, with a creamy and spreadable consistency.
But as I said, the plain raw butter is very mild. So if you prefer bolder flavors, do feel free to add more ingredients. See the recipe card below for specific suggestions.
How to eat it?
I confess that I love eating it with a spoon! It’s also excellent on a toasted low carb English muffin, or you can spread it on paleo banana bread.
If you don’t mind the carbs, it’s wonderful when you spread it on fresh bananas or apples.
Is walnut butter healthier than peanut butter?
It probably is. It contains alpha-linolenic acid, a type of omega-3 fatty acid that very few plant foods supply.
And there shouldn’t be as much of an issue with the toxin aflatoxin. Although to be fair, this isn’t really an issue with regulated US peanut butter.
Here’s an interesting discussion on what is the healthiest nut butter.
How long do homemade nut butters last?
Several weeks. I recommend keeping homemade walnut butter for up to 4 weeks, in a sealed glass jar in the fridge. You can probably keep it longer, but I tend to be on the conservative side when it comes to storing food.
Walnut Butter Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups raw shelled walnuts (12 oz)
Optional:
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
INSTRUCTIONS
- If you’d like to toast the walnuts, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast until fragrant, 8-10 minutes. Allow to slightly cool.
- Transfer the walnuts to your food processor. Process on high, stopping 3-4 times to scrape the sides with a spatula and allow the food processor to rest, until smooth and creamy, 10-15 minutes.
- If using the optional additions, now is the time to add the sea salt, honey and coconut oil to the food processor. Process until smooth and fully incorporated, 1-2 more minutes.
- Keep the walnut butter in an airtight container. I keep it on the kitchen counter, but I use a little every day so it only lasts about a week. If you plan to store the walnut butter for longer, I suggest storing it in the fridge. If stored at room temperature, some oil separation will occur – stir before using.
WATCH THE VIDEO:
NOTES
More Healthy Recipes:
Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., has been following a healthy real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She has taken 
