Learn how to make your own creamy homemade cashew butter with just a few basic steps. Simply roast your cashews until warm and toasty (or leave un toasted!) then blend in a high-speed blender or food processor until smooth and enjoy.
Reasons to Make Your Own Homemade Cashew Butter
- Simple Ingredients: All you need are some cashews, a pinch of salt and maybe a little oil to help with the blending. If you really want to keep it simple – use just cashews!
- Adaptable: Do you like your nut butters smooth or crunchy? Sweet? Salty? Sweet and salty? Play around with additional ingredients and flavors to customise the recipe to exactly what you like!
- Easy: Considering the improvement in flavor and texture (not to mention more control over ingredients used), it’s much easier to make homemade nut butter than you might think. So long as your have a strong enough blender or food processor, you’ll be done before you know it!
I’m all for keeping things simple in the kitchen (and in life) when you can! I’m definitely not above buying store-bought nut butter to save on time and effort.
That being said, I totally think it’s worth making your own nut butter at least once! At the very least you’ll earn some bragging rights for your DIY spirit. At best you might just end up making the best nut butter you’ll even have!
Related: You might also like to try making your own homemade almond butter, hazelnut butter or nutella too!
Ingredients & Equipment Needed
- Cashews: I like to start with raw, unsalted cashews and roast them myself for improved flavor. However, you can totally start with pre-roasted cashews to cut down on steps.
- Large Baking Sheet: Use a rimmed tray to reduce the chance of accidental spilling.
- Food Processor or Blender: Food processors are generally better (faster) at handling nut butters, but you can make this in a high-powered blender like I did here.
- Optional Ingredients: Add salt, vanilla extract, cinnamon, maple syrup, coconut sugar, etc for flavor. How much to add is mostly a matter of preference. Added oil will help with the blending. Coconut oil is great for adding a subtle, coconut-y flavor, but you may prefer a neutral oil instead.
Cashew Butter Blending Stages:
The cashews will go through a few different stages before the end so I’ve taken some step-by-step photos incase you need a few visual cues.
Total blending time will vary depending on your equipment, but generally the different stages will look like this:
- whole cashews
- crumbly pieces
- grainy powder
- fine powder
- thick, dry paste
- grainy nut butter
- smooth nut butter
Tip: Patience Is Key!
A super strong blender will transform the nuts in minutes. Some blenders and food processors need a bit more time than that.  Add a bit of oil to help move things along and give your blender a break for a few minutes here and there if needed so it doesn’t overheat.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long will homemade cashew butter last? Homemade nut butters like this will usually keep about 1 month, stored in an airtight container in a cool dark cupboard or pantry or up to 2 months in the fridge.
How much will it make? Three 3 cups of nuts will yield about 1 1/2 cups nut butter or about 15 oz.
Do I have to roast the cashews? Nope! I prefer the nuttier, toastier flavor of roasted nuts, but you can absolutely skip this step and go straight to blending if you like.
What to Make with Homemade Cashew Butter
- Use on bread as a sandwich spread, toast, muffins, etc!
- Bake with it! Swap out your usual nut butter with cashew butter and make cookies, flourless brownies and so much more.
- Add to waffles, french toast or pancakes instead of or in addition to maple syrup.
- Make a coffee shop worthy drink at home with this Salted Cashew Latte.
- Add to smoothies for extra protein and creaminess.
- Mix into a creamy salad dressing like in this Thai Peanut Coleslaw.
- In the mood for something savory? Swap out the peanut butter for cashew butter and make a Cashew Satay Sweet Potato Curry.
Enjoy!
Let me know if you try this homemade cashew butter recipe! Leave a comment and review with your thoughts. I always appreciate the feedback and serving suggestions that you come up with!
Homemade Cashew Butter
Make your own homemade cashew butter with nothing more than a good blender, cashews and a pinch of salt!Â
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole unsalted cashews, raw (425g/ 14oz)
- pinch of salt (optional)
- 2-3 tsp melted coconut oil or a neutral flavored oil (optional)
Instructions
Roast Cashews
- Preheat oven to 325°F/160°C.
- Spread cashews across a large, rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until golden and fragrant.
- Remove from oven and let rest on the tray about 5-10 minutes.
Blend
- Transfer cashews to a high speed blender or food processor. Add salt, if using. Cover and blend on high to breakdown the nuts. As the cashews break down they will start to release their own natural oils which will help transform the whole nuts into a smooth butter. Stop the blender every 1-2 minutes to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Continue blending until you end up with a smooth, creamy butter. This can take anywhere from a few minutes to 15 minutes depending on the strength of your equipment. Add a small amount of oil to help speed the blending up if you think it needs it - the added oil is mostly helpful if you want to blend unroasted nuts.
- Once you've reached your desired consistency, add optional flavors and ingredients then blend once more for about 15 seconds or so to fully mix through.
- Pour the cashew butter into an airtight container and let cool to room temperature. Once cooled, use as you like and enjoy! Keep stored in a cool, dark place at room temperature (like a cupboard or pantry about 3-4 weeks) or in the fridge up to 2 months or until you begin to notice signs of spoilage (black or brown spots appearing in the jar or a sour smell).
Notes
Make Raw Cashew Butter: Skip the roasting and go straight to blending. If your cashews don't easily blend past the powdery/pasty nut stage, add a small amount of oil to speed things along.
Make Crunchy Cashew Butter: Before blending the nuts, add about ¼ cup cashews to the blender/food processor. Pulse into a crumbly texture, then remove from blender. Set aside until the end then stir (don't blend) the small cashew pieces into the smooth nut butter until combined.
Remember: While cashews are inherently gluten free, remember to check the label on the packaging to ensure they're free from cross-contamination!
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