Raw Nut & Seed Butter

[Guest guest]

Freshly made raw nut or seed butter is not only delicious but a good source

of nutrients

 

such as protein and essential fats. Raw is far more nutritious than roasted

as heat

 

denatures the essential fats which are necessary for proper function of the

brain, skin,

 

nervous system and sexual organs.

200 g Nuts or seeds of choice

Oil Seasoning (optional)

Powder nuts or seeds in a coffee grinder or Vitamix. The powder should be as

fine as you

 

can get it although a few chunks are OK. If using a Vitamix be careful not

to blend too

 

long as this will heat the nuts and denature the fatty acids. Chilling your

Vitamix

 

container beforehand and storing nuts in the freezer can help prevent

heating.

Transfer to a food processor. While processor is running, add oil one

tablespoon at a time

 

until desired consistency is reached. The consistency should be a little

runnier than your

 

normal preference as raw nut butters must be refrigerated which will cause

them to thicken.

 

The amount of oil you add will vary depending on the type of nut or seed you

are using

 

(some nuts have a higher natural oil content than others). Add seasonings as

desired.

 

Seasonings will depend on the type of nut butter being made. I have found

that a dash of

 

sea salt and a teaspoon of honey taste great with almond butter. When your

nut butter is

 

made, transfer into a glass jar and store in the refrigerator. Oil will

separate during

 

storage so stir before using.

Nuts: almonds, walnuts, cashews, peanuts and pecans make great nut butters.

Seeds: sesame seeds, hemp, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds are also good

choices;

 

however, use caution with these types of seeds. Their oils tend to be

volatile and it only

 

takes a few " bad seeds " to ruin of whole batch of seed butter. I learned

this the hard way

 

with my first batch of pumpkin seed butter. My friend Ruth (a long time raw

foodist who

 

taught me how to make nut butter) explained that seeds should be carefully

scrutinized

 

before making your butter. Remove any that are discoloured as this indicates

that they are

 

likely rancid.

Unhulled sesame seeds while higher in calcium than hulled are usually a

little bitter

 

tasting. Hemp seed needs to be hulled for good results. Look for hulled hemp

seed

 

(sometimes called hemp nut) either in vacuum sealed packages or in the

refrigerated section

 

of your local health food store.

All nuts and seeds should be purchased as fresh as possible and stored in

the fridge or

 

freezer.

Oils: I recommend using an oil blend such as Udo's Choice or Omega Essential

Balance. These

 

oil blends help ensure your diet is rich in both omega-3 and omega-6

essential fatty acids.

 

If you feel your overall diet is deficient in omega-3 then you can use any

good brand of

 

flax oil.

" Another excellent raw food recipe! I made raw almond butter and took it to

two parties.

 

Served with rice crackers, it was very well received. My sesame tahini was a

tad bitter and

 

my pumpkin seed butter was awful . The most likely reason is that some of

the seeds were

 

rancid. Next time I will definitely sort out any discoloured seeds. "

Robin Russell, tester

Winter 2002-2003 RecipeNet Kitchen

www.recipenet.org

[Guest guest]

rawfood , " Andy & Shell " <andy.mich@n...> wrote:

>

>

> Freshly made raw nut or seed butter is not only delicious but a

good source

> of nutrients

>

> such as protein and essential fats. Raw is far more nutritious than

roasted

> as heat

 

[snip]

 

Thanks, Andy. Appreciate the info. As a raw fooder who started this

journey 13 years ago, it was nice to see all the info and to refresh

my memory on certain aspects.

 

Was hoping for actual recipes, too. I've been making nut butters for

years now with oil but for making a true " butter " , there's just

something lacking and I haven't figured it out yet, despite all the

times I've experimented. That's why I joined this group. I have

tasted a true nut butter, but cannot contact the person who sold it

to me.

 

Here's hoping someone has some tasty and original actual NUT BUTTER

recipes to share. Not the dump-the-nuts in the homogenizer juicer

kind, nor just the nut-meal-and-oil kind. These are fine for many

uses but not when an actual nut butter spread is needed.

 

Thanks Andy! :oD