Skip to main content

How to Make Your Own Homemade Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is a healthy, delicious staple in the best of times, but now that people are focusing more on shelf-stable items that are also good for you (or bad for you, we’re not here to judge, and we’d be lying if we said we hadn’t stocked up on cheeseballs and Totino’s Pizza Rolls), the classic sandwich spread has taken on a whole new level of importance. If you are looking to try your hand at maybe making your own with all those new cooking skills you’ve been mastering (move aside, Fieri, there’s a new mayor of Flavortown), the thing you might not know is you only need a few ingredients and a blender and boom, you’ve got yourself a batch of creamy peanut butter (or chunky — again, not judging).

homemade peanut butter
Tania Melnyczuk/Unsplash

In order to help in your quest to become the next great quarantine chef, we reached out to a pro to get her recipe for how to make peanut butter at home. This recipe comes to us from chef Sara Bradley of the Freight House in Paducah, Kentucky. Bradley uses an in-house peanut butter (recipe for that here) as a basis for a decadent and delicious pie topping. While you can do that as well, you can also make the peanut butter and use it for, well, whatever else you would use peanut butter for. (We’re fans of a classic peanut butter and jelly or peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwich, but hell, go crazy – it’s quarantine, there are no more rules).

Freight House Peanut Butter

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb raw shelled peanuts (or any combo of nuts)
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp peanut oil
  • 1 tbsp sorghum

Method:

  1. Toast the nuts at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown. Toasting the nuts makes the blending process easier and adds a deep flavor.
  2. In a blender, blend warm nuts on high with salt. Slowly drizzle in oil and sorghum, and blend until smooth. Processing nuts in blender will produce a smoother butter. Use a food processor for a chunkier butter.
  3. If the butter starts to separate in the blender, add 1 tsp water.

Editors' Recommendations

Sam Slaughter
Sam Slaughter was the Food and Drink Editor for The Manual. Born and raised in New Jersey, he’s called the South home for…
Holiday-Inspired Homemade Protein Ball Recipes
Holiday protein balls.

Protein bars are a convenient way to refuel after a hard workout or keep hunger at bay between meals, but they are expensive and often packed with all sorts of fillers, processed ingredients, and artificial sweeteners or sugar alcohols. It is actually quite easy to throw together your own no-bake protein bites at home, and they travel really well. They also make a great substitute for sugar-laden, conventional protein bars, and we’ve specifically created some protein ball recipes to celebrate the flavors of the holiday season.
Now, you can make your own healthier protein-packed version of holiday treats like gingerbread, pumpkin pie, and candy canes. Each recipe is also vegan, gluten-free, and does not contain refined sugars or oils. So, if you want to try your hand at holiday-inspired healthy treats, keep reading for four fun and easy recipes for festive homemade protein balls.

Gingerbread Cookie Protein Balls

Read more
How to Make Hot Chocolate Bombs
red mug filled with hot cocoa, marshmallows, and a candy cane sitting next to a plate of Christmas cookies.

Nothing screams of the cozy winter holiday season more than a mug of creamy, rich hot chocolate. While you can certainly go the conventional route and stir together your favorite powdered mix in warm milk, if you want to kick things up a notch and elevate your hot chocolate game this winter, you can make fun hot chocolate bombs with a few easy steps.
Hot chocolate bombs are delicious spheres of hot chocolate mix and mini marshmallows encased in a luscious chocolate shell. When you drop one in your mug and then pour steaming milk over the top, the hot chocolate sphere starts to melt, releasing the mix and marshmallows into your mug. With a few stirs, you have your creamy, dreamy mug of hot cocoa. It’s a fun way to enjoy the same nostalgic drink, and you can customize your hot chocolate spheres with different fillings and types of chocolate used in the shell. They also make great gifts or party treats when you’re entertaining around the holidays.
Curious to try your hand at making hot chocolate spheres? You’ll just need a silicone mold to form the spheres and a few simple ingredients.

Hot Chocolate Bombs Recipe
Equipment needed

Read more
The 21 Best Halloween Cocktails for Getting Your Boo-ze On

Halloween is upon us, which means haunted houses, slasher flicks, and tasty novelty cocktails. Last year, we stayed in watching Halloween movies, rightfully scared of the pandemic. This year, with things beginning to bounce back, we're putting on our best wigs and looking for a reason to celebrate.

There are two routes one can take when it comes to hyper-festive holiday cocktails. You can go the corny route (looking at you, St. Patrick's Day green beer), or you can embrace the day with a proper cocktail drink that's as good as it is reflective of its spooky context. We're not above a cocktail made with Freddy Kruger's blades or garnished with a witch hat and broom. But you can still have fun without having to hunt down all of the related kitsch. Here are 21 of the best cocktails to whip up this Halloween.

Read more