So, today, I whipped up a batch of muffins for breakfast, and after I finished them up, I realized that I didn’t have any almond butter, or any nut butter for that matter, to top them with like I usually do. I decided to get creative with the leftover walnuts and a food processor, and the result is this absolutely delicious maple cinnamon vanilla walnut butter…oh, and it went PERFECTLY with the muffins!
Not only is this walnut butter super tasty, it is really good of you! Walnuts have tons of health benefits, such as reducing inflammation, improving cholesterol levels, aiding in brain health, help with sleep, and promoting healthy skin. When made into a nut butter like this, it’s even easier for your body to digest and absorb the nutrients in the walnuts!
I am super excited about this walnut butter, and even though I created it only because I didn’t have any nut butters on hand, I can pretty much guarantee that this will be a regular staple in our household from now on! This stuff is super easy to make, and it goes so well with so many different things – muffins, biscuits, sandwiches…even by itself, it’s amazing! Let’s get to the recipe!
HOMEMADE MAPLE CINNAMON VANILLA WALNUT BUTTER
Ingredients (makes about 3/4 -1 cup of walnut butter):
- 8 ounces chopped walnuts
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tsp. maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
Directions:
1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread the walnuts out on the baking sheet. Place in the oven and bake for 12 minutes total, removing it from the oven and stirring the nuts every 4 minutes (so you’ll stir the nuts a total of two times at 4 minutes and at 8 minutes, then at 12 minutes, remove from the oven). Allow the nuts to cool completely (you can place them in the fridge for about 10 minutes to speed up the cooling if desired).
2.) Once the walnuts are cooled, place them in the bed of a food processor and add in the rest of the ingredients. Process on high, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed, until it takes on a nut butter type consistency. This may take a while, so just keep at it until it gets to the desired consistency.
3.) Transfer to a bowl to serve immediately, or place in an air-tight container and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Spread onto a muffin, biscuit, bread. Use as a dip for fruit or veggies. Eat a spoonful all by itself. Use it in any recipe that calls for a nut butter of some kind. The possibilities for this stuff are endless!
DELICIOUS! Enjoy! 🙂
Loving and Laughing 