Homemade Almond (Joy) Butter
I always feel like a nut, which is why I totally love almond butter! Honestly, my snack of a green apple with almond butter and a dash of cinnamon is something I look forward to everyday!
I have taken on the Paleo/Whole 30 lifestyle about 90% of the time. In other words, I try not to be a food snob in social settings. Josh and I decided to take the plunge and try Whole 30 in March 2015 after we came back from vacation, more on my little health journey in another post. ;)
I would pay $7 plus for a jar of almond butter every week at the store and when I looked at the ingredients I thought, "Oh yes I can!" So I started pinteresting-yes, I might have made the word up, but it is totally a thing. Like googling only on pinterest, stay with me here.
I had made almond butter at least 50 times and had never been able to get a consistent texture. Then, one day I was scrolling instagram and came across a "How to" from blogger littlecoconutty.com and a light bulb went off! I had finally figured out the missing puzzle piece to my almost perfected and precious almond butter. Try it, you won't regret it!
DIY Almond Butter (If you are Pinteresting there are a million variations, this is what worked for me!)
- Bake 2 cups of almonds in the oven for 5 minutes on 350 degrees. (Eureka! Thank you little coconutty! This allows the almonds to chop quicker and have a much smoother texture.)
- Throw the almonds in a blender (My ninja blender was much more efficient than the ninja food processor) don't stop when it turns to a fine powder, allow it to keep going so the oils release and it starts to clump and then keep going and in just a couple minutes it will start churning like magical butter, because that is exactly what it is!
- Add 2 tablespoons of Coconut Oil.
- Add 1 tablespoon of Pure Maple Syrup.
- Blend, throw it in a jar and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I am not a big follow instructions/recipes to a tee type of girl. I just keep throwing things in and taste testing until it tastes just like I want it. Here are some other suggestions of ingredients you can add in to suite your taste buds.
- Cinnamon
- Sugar
- Cocoa powder
- Honey
Here are some suggestions of how to apply that Almond (Joy) Butter:
- Eat it with a banana.
- Dip apple slices in it (with a sprinkle of cinnamon).
- Use in bite size energy balls (recipe coming soon).
- Use it in your favorite flavor of "nice cream" ( I will share my favorite on this one soon also).
Basically, use it in place of Peanut Butter or on anything and everything because it is joy for your mouth and you will not regret it! EnJOY!
What are some ingredients you like to add to your almond butter? Any super easy applications? (time is of the essence to this Mama) Any eureka moments? Keep educating me! I love to hear what works for others and I want more magical moments that will make my taste buds (and my gut) happy!
Still learning, still a mess and happy to be working through it all with you!
