Walnut Butter is such an easy food that vegans/vegetarians (or anyone for that matter) should incorporate into their diet. Walnuts are a great source of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega 3's are really important mainly for the simple reason that you body needs them to work properly.
There are 3 different types of omega 3's : ALA, EPA, DHA
Plants with omega 3's, like walnuts, flaxseeds and soybeans, only contain ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). ALA is an important building block for our bodies and it help improve cardiovascular health, lower cholesterol, improve lung function for people with asthma and even lower the risk of high blood pressure. (Source)
That being said, ALA is important but as vegans or vegetarian we can't ignore the other two types of Omega 3's. DHA and EPA are vital for cognitive health (I'm talking about your brain here !). If you are pregnant or have been pregnant at some point then you will have definitely heard of the importance of DHA for your baby's developing brain.
However, EPA is just as important as it's been shown to help treat depression. If you've read my About Me page then you'll probably be aware that that's something very personal.
The problem here though is that EPA and DHA are mainly just found in fatty fish which obviously is a issue for vegans and vegetarians. You can find very small amounts of it in seaweed (think spirulina, agar-agar, and kelp). If you can often incorporate those into your diet then great, otherwise I would recommend a supplement. Even though I'm a great hater of supplements. Just something to think about ;)
Anyways, eating super yummy things like walnut butter will definitely keep you on the right track of getting enough ALA for your body.
So just how do you make it? Well...let me tell you ;D
Making walnut butter is just as easy as making coconut butter. Who would have known!?! It really is done in the exact same way with the only exception being...take a guess...yep, walnuts instead of coconut flakes. However, I did promise you a step by step guide on how to make walnut butter so here it goes.
Put some walnuts into a food processor. Pulse until you get chopped walnuts and then keep going until you have finely chopped walnuts.
Then keep...any guesses?...yes, keep pulsing ;)
You might get to the point where you think there is no way you'll get creamy walnut butter. This will especially be the case if you don't have a high powered food processor. However, even then you can still make walnut butter it will just take a little bit more time.
Either way just keep pulsing your walnuts, scraping down the sides until a smooth walnut paste forms. Walnut butter is a little different than peanut butter in texture so it might not look super smooth in your food processor but if you put some on a spoon you should be able to see that it smears perfectly.
So now you learned how to make raw walnut butter. If you want more of a nutty taste then you can also toast your walnuts in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 5 minutes.
Now if you want to take your walnut butter to a whole new level then you can take a step further and make either a chocolate walnut butter or maple walnut butter. Both are incredibly delicious. No lies!
The chocolate walnut butter is a nice alternative to nutella.
The maple walnut butter tastes so much like cookie dough. It's unreal. It blew my mind that I actually rolled some of the maple walnut butter into little balls and baked them at 350F (175C) for roughly 11 minutes. They reminded me of little cookies you might serve with coffee at a café. Super delicious! Note that it doesn't work with the chocolate walnut butter.
How to make Walnut Butter - 3 Ways (Raw, Maple, Chocolate)
Ingredients
Raw Walnut Butter
- 2 cups 200 g Raw Walnut Halves
- Pinch of Salt optional
Maple Walnut Butter
- ¾ of a cup 200 g Raw Walnut Butter
- Pinch of Salt
- 2-3 teaspoons Pure Maple Syrup
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract optional
Chocolate Walnut Butter
- ¾ of a cup 200 g Raw Walnut Butter
- 1-2 tablespoons Raw Cacao Powder not sweetened cocoa powder!
- 2-3 teaspoons Pure Maple Syrup
- Pinch of Salt or more if you liked salted chocolate
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract optional
Instructions
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Add walnut halves to a food processor and pulse, scraping down the sides occasionally until a walnut butter consistency is achieved. Add salt if desired.
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To make maple walnut butter pulse raw walnut butter, salt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract in a food processor until evenly mixed.
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To make chocolate walnut butter mix together raw walnut butter, cacao powder, maple syrup, salt and vanilla extract together in a food processor.
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Spread on toast, eat with apple slices or use for cookies.
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Walnut butter should be kept in a glass jar with a lid in the fridge. All 3 walnut butter types will last several weeks in the fridge.
Recipe Notes
1.) If you prefer more of a toasted, nutty walnut butter then toast you walnuts in the oven at 350F (175C) for roughly 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn them! Add the toasted walnuts to your food processor and make the same way you would make the raw variety.2.) 2 cups raw walnut halves make ¾ of a cup raw walnut butter. Keep that in mind when trying to adjust the amount to fit recipes.
Interested in making Coconut Butter too? Check it out!
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit says
There is absolutely no way to decide between these 3 flavors! My first thought was go with chocolate. But then I LOVE the subtle sweetness of raw nut butters. But then you mentioned cookie dough so naturally I need the maple one too! And baking it into cookies is such a neat idea. I bet those little balls would be awesome covered in chocolate too :)
Sophia, Veggies Don't Bite says
I love walnut butter! It's so yummy! And I love all the flavors you have here!
Kelly @ TastingPage says
I love walnuts and have forgotten about walnut butter. Thanks for the reminder and all of the great options to try!
Linda @ Veganosity says
I think I'd spread all three on one piece of bread, or put a spoon of each in a smoothie. There's no way to choose just one.
I love this post, Vanessa. Thanks for the great nutritional information.
Letty / Letty's Kitchen says
Ahh walnuts--so delicious and good for us. Thanks for these great recipes. Pinning them!
Uma says
I liked your maple walnut butter recipe. I will try this soon. I have plenty of walnuts right now!
Aimee / Wallflower Kitchen says
Maple walnut butter? I need this in my life!
Vanessa Croessmann says
You really do, Aimee! It's amazing!
Mel @ avirtualvegan.com says
I am a sucker for nut butters. I make my own almond and peanut but have never made walnut. I can see I need to though!
Sina @ Vegan Heaven says
What a genius idea, Vanessa! I LOVE walnuts but I've never thought of making walnut butter. I so need to try this!! :-)
Vanessa Croessmann says
Thanks, Sina! You definitely need to try walnut butter. It's so good!
Hauke Fox says
WOAHH!!! These look awesome. Definitely going to try out one of the flavours :-)
Vegan spreads are always great to try out!
Vanessa Croessmann says
Thanks Hauke! Let me know when you try them out :)
Nicole Dawson says
YUM! Who needs to buy a nut butter like this when you can make it so easily. I love the chocolate version especially :)
Nicole Dawson says
No need to buy those expensive spreads when you can make it as easily as this! I love that chocolate version too,,,,well, I love any chocolate version :)
Manju | Cooking Curries says
Nut butters are my favorites to put on anythign and everything. The chocolate walnut butter looks especially good!
Vanessa Croessmann says
Thanks Manju! Nut butter really is delicious! The chocolate walnut butter is crazy good ;)
Cody Linton says
Is there any way you could exchange the maple syrup for a honey instead