Real Peanut Butter

by Shauna Sever — February 27, 2008

With the dangers of trans-fats lurking around every corner, one of the easiest switches to reduce these nasty fats in your diet is to pick up natural peanut butter instead of the eons-shelf stable sugar-laden ones. If you've ever taken advantage of one of those funky, grind-your-own peanut butter machines in grocery stores, you know how good freshly made peanut butter can taste. It's so simple to make at home, and the best part is, you can doctor it up to your liking. It all starts with roasted unsalted peanuts, a little oil, and salt, and beyond that, go nuts! You can spice it up with some cayenne or cinnamon or sweeten it by replacing some of the oil with honey. Add extra interest with bits of dried fruit or get decadent with some chopped dark chocolate. Your PB&J will never be the same.

Homemade Peanut Butter

The basic formula for peanut butter is one tablespoon oil for one cup peanuts, and about ½ teaspoon salt. If you use Spanish peanuts, you may find that you don't need any oil at all. If you want your PB chunky, just chop up a few extra handfuls of peanut nuts and stir them into the mix.

2 cups roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1 teaspoon salt

In a food processor or blender, grind together the peanuts, oil, and salt until a smooth paste forms, adding a bit more oil if necessary to reach the desired consistency. Stir in any additional ingredients by hand. Peanut butter will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.