Peanut Butter

(or other Nut Butter - see note at end of post)

(Please note: to make peanut butter you will either need a food processor or a strong blender (or Magic Bullet.)

You probably know by now that I'm kind of a DIY junkie when it comes to food. So when the organic peanut butter that I've been in love with for years started getting outside my price range, I looked for a way to make my own instead of looking for a cheaper brand. Turns out, it's not that hard, if you've got the right equipment. I use my large food processor, but you could also use a particularly strong blender or a Magic Bullet or equivalent. Anything strong enough to puree nuts.

When I started searching, I looked all over for a source for organic raw peanuts, but as you may remember, there was a big salmonella outbreak a few years ago that was linked back to peanut butter. So you can't buy raw peanuts any more. They have to at least be blanched if they're not roasted. (Yes, it would be possible to grow my own, but I don't think I'm quite ready to go that far.) Eventually I settled for blanched because it's a close to raw as I can get.

I buy my peanuts through my aunt's health food store in a 30 lb bag. (I divide up the 30 pounds into smaller packages and store them in the freezer so they don't go rancid before I use them.) The 30 lb bag lasts me for about 5-6 months, but I also use a LOT of peanut butter because I make granola bars once a week.

The peanut variety that you use for your butter is entirely up to you. Variety will affect both taste and texture of your finished product, so you can experiment with different types if you like, or just go with the most convenient. I have been fortunate that the variety I buy is particularly good for making peanut butter, meaning it releases its oil relatively easily and creates a pretty smooth product.

Because there are very few ingredients, I'll just write this recipe in narrative form.

Start by filling your food processor or blender with peanuts. (I've found that I actually have better results if I start with frozen peanuts, but if they're not frozen don't worry, it'll still work.) Sprinkle a little salt over the nuts. Push start.

IT WILL BE LOUD. Earsplitting. Run-away-with-your-hands-over-your-ears noisy. Give it a minute and the noise will subside as the peanut pieces get smaller.

Eventually, you'll reach the point where the food processor doesn't seem to be making any progress. You'll have a big blob of chopped up nuts that don't want to go any further. At this point, I let everything rest for about 30 minutes. (You don't have to...you could just push on and eventually you'll get the mass to puree, but I find that if I let it rest, it's a whole lot easier.)

Turn it back on. Gradually the mass will begin to liquidize as the nuts release their oil. 

 If you like smooth peanut butter, keep going for several minutes until everything smooths out. 

If you like chunky peanut butter, you can stop sooner, but your peanut butter may be more difficult to spread because the oil won't have been fully released. You can add a little peanut oil, if you like, or you can process everything to smoothness and then add some chopped nuts (the latter is the way “they” actually make chunky peanut butter).

If you prefer your peanut butter sweet (I really really don't!), you can add a little honey – just start with a little bit, and add more to taste. Taste for saltiness as well, and add more if you want to.

Transfer your peanut butter to a container and enjoy!

Note:

Since I first planned to write this post I've been diagnosed with a mild food allergy to peanut butter. Fortunately, the allergy level I have is by no means life threatening, and might not really be affecting me physically at all, but it still means I've been experimenting with alternatives. If you have a peanut allergy in your family, you can follow the same method above to make pretty much any nut butter – although so far I've only tried almond. I had to add just a little oil (I used coconut oil, and the result was amazing), and the resulting almond butter is somewhat gritty due to the almond skins, but it's definitely a good peanut butter alternative once you get used to the different texture. I experimented with blanching some almonds to use instead, hoping the texture would be more like peanut butter, but I ended up with almond paste instead of almond butter (too much moisture!). Experiment with your own and see what you come up with!