These days, manufacturers are selling all different kinds of nut and non-nut butters, but why let them have all the fun? Your Vitamix makes it easy to make your own—without additives or preservatives, so it’s exactly the taste and texture you prefer.

Our Vitamix chefs have created some delicious, whole-food recipes, whether you’re a traditional peanut butter lover, prefer the flavor of almond butter, or go nut-free due to household allergies or school restrictions.

Along with these recipes, our chefs are sharing all their favorite butter-making tips to ensure the process is as smooth as the final product:

Ingredient Options

If you want to make a simple recipe without additional ingredients, be sure to use roasted nuts or seeds. To make it extra-easy, go ahead and buy nuts that are already roasted. But if you want to ensure everything’s exactly how you like it, feel free to roast your own.

That said, raw nuts are a perfectly valid option as well. You’ll just need to add some liquid so they blend properly. Our chefs like using coconut milk, but you can choose a neutral oil if you don’t want to change the flavor.

Speaking of changing the flavor, that’s always an option as well! Consider adding spices to your butters to create unique flavors.

Our Best Blending Tips

One of the main rules for making nut and non-nut butters is to put enough ingredients into your blender. This is especially true if you use our 64-ounce Low-Profile Container. At a minimum, start with four cups of nuts. Our favorite approach is starting with six cups of nuts, which leads to a three-cup yield. Regardless of how much you make, it can always be stored in the fridge for later.

To ensure all the ingredients get blended, use the tamper to press the ingredients toward the blades until the mixture’s flowing on its own. If you prefer your butter a bit grainy, blend for one minute. To create that smooth texture Vitamix is famous for, blend for up to two minutes.

Enjoy Every Last Bit!

Once you’re done blending, you’re going to want to get all that delicious butter out of the container, right? To do that, we suggest using our under blade scraper or silicone blender spatula to get as much as you can.

That said, there may be a little butter left under the blades and on the sides of the container even after scraping. Instead of jumping right to full-out cleaning mode, consider making a smoothie, hot soup, or hot chocolate in your blender. The rest of the butter will melt off the container while adding a richness to your follow-up recipe!

Of course, your nut and seed butters are great in other ways too. For example, they make the perfect on-the-go snack for kids and adults—just pack it up, dip some fruit or veggies in, and enjoy a tasty, healthy, whole-food treat wherever you are.