Throughout my childhood, I loved spending time with my dad. Because of his important scientific job, he rarely made it home before dinner and spent at least one day at the office nearly every weekend, so I really cherished the moments he was home. When I grew a little older and understood how much he provided for our family with those long hours, I appreciated our quality family time even more.
(And in case you ever wondered where my workaholism comes from… Let’s just say it’s genetic!)
From swinging on his handmade play structure in the backyard, to playing contact-sport-like games of Monkey in the Middle in the pool, to the Frog Monster stories he told my brother and me every night, to the countless baseball games we traveled to across the country… I loved every minute of it.
And as a tiny little girl, I wanted to eat just like my dad too. I loved the way he carefully smeared butter inside of every hole in my waffles, how he added extra grated cheddar cheese to my quesadillas, and—most importantly—how he spread copious amounts of peanut butter between the slices of whole wheat bread for my sandwiches.
Dad understood that I preferred plain PB sandwiches (no jelly, jam, bananas, or honey for me, thanks!) and never tried to add any extras to mine. I always asked him to make mine “just like his,” and he gladly obliged, with just two minor tweaks: (a) he used creamy peanut butter for mine instead of crunchy {I couldn’t fathom why anyone liked crunchy bits in their smooth nut butters back then!} and (b) he made mine a half sandwich with just one slice of bread {that was more than enough calories for a 5-year-old!}.
Other than that, our sandwiches were identical with enough peanut butter spread between the bread to glue your mouth shut! So now, whenever I eat PB, I think of my dad and those hearty sandwiches that filled my childhood tummy.
And I’ve been eating quite a lot of peanut butter lately! Once I discovered just how easy it was to make almond butter in the blender, I started playing around with other varieties. The peanut version was at the very top of my list, so today I’m sharing how to make the best homemade peanut butter in the blender in just 5 minutes!
Yes, it literally takes 5 minutes. I timed it! It’s the best 5 minutes you’ll ever spend with your blender… Especially when you get to scrape the leftover peanut butter off the sides with your finger when nobody is looking. Pure bliss.
In a {pea}nutshell, the recipe is really straightforward. Add the peanuts to your blender, turn it on to the low speed setting until the peanuts are broken up and start to turn creamy, then flip the blender to the medium speed setting until the PB is completely smooth. (Remember to scrape down the sides as necessary!) Add the salt to taste, transfer to a jar, and TADA you’re done!
When you turn off the blender, the PB will be really warm and liquidy from the heat of the motor. You must chill the peanut butter for at least 8 hours, or overnight (just like cheesecake!), to help it thicken and solidify to a normal PB texture. I know, I know… It’s pure torture waiting that long! That’s why I normally make my homemade peanut butter right before bed—so I can have sweet PB dreams and wake up to a spoonful straight from the jar!
Just a quick note about the equipment… You really need a high-powered blender for the best results. (AKA my parents’ 30+-year-old model wouldn’t quite cut it!) I currently own and use this Ninja blender, and the higher priced Vitamix and Blendtec blenders would work great as well. Food processors are fine too! I’ve made it in my food processor before, and it’s just as creamy.
Now go enjoy your homemade peanut butter! Although you may want to make a double batch… This rarely lasts me more than a week! ? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your peanut butter and feature it in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Easy Blender Peanut Butter | | Print |
- 2 cups (299g) dry-roasted unsalted peanuts
- ¼ - ½ tsp salt (or more, to taste)
- Add the peanuts to a blender, and turn on the blender to its low speed. After the peanuts are completely broken down and begin to turn creamy (about 2-3 minutes), turn the blender to its medium speed. Continue blending until the peanut butter is completely smooth. Add the salt, ¼ teaspoon at a time, and blend for 20-30 seconds, tasting after each addition. Transfer the peanut butter to a jar, and chill for at least 8 hours or overnight to achieve the traditional thick peanut butter texture.
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low carb, sugar-free}
More peanut butter recipes from other food bloggers…
♥ Homemade Honey Roasted Peanut Butter by Sally’s Baking Addiction
♥ Homemade Peanut Butter by Texanerin Baking
♥ Honey Roasted Butterscotch White Chocolate Peanut Butter by Averie Cooks
♥ Peanut Butter by Naturally Ella
if i want chunky peanut butter do i just not blend it as long?
If you’d like to make chunky peanut butter, follow the directions as written to make the creamy peanut butter. Once that’s done, roughly chop a few handfuls of peanuts, and add those to the blender. Pulse a few times until they’re evenly incorporated. I can’t wait to hear what you think of the peanut butter Judy! 🙂
So if I only have the Ninja smoothie blender (the one that only has one setting) is this still doable? I have a bunch of peanuts in the freezer and want to start going through them – this looks awesome.
Thanks for your kind words about my recipe Kate! I haven’t tried this with a single-setting Ninja blender before. I’d recommend looking at the reviews of your blender on Amazon to see if other people have done something similar and made homemade nut butters in theirs. If they have, then it should be fine! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try this peanut butter!
thanx for this great info…PB is expensive in Nigeria but a lot cheaper to make on your own…never thought of that. am making some right away cos peanuts drive me nuts!
It’s my pleasure! I can’t wait to hear what you think of your homemade PB Kelechi! 🙂
Hi! How long will a jar of this PB last in the fridge? I can’t wait to try this!
Nevermind I see the answer above 🙂
I can’t wait to hear what you think of this homemade peanut butter Amanda! 🙂
Can you also make peanutbutter with “normal” peanuts or will I be missing some flavor? I have a lot of peanuts in my pantry, but those are just unsalted, not roasted like the recipe says 🙂
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Jessica! 🙂 It depends! Are they raw peanuts? What’s does the brand/label say? We’ll figure something out so you can use your peanuts in this recipe!
No they are not raw. The package just says unsalted. They are for snacking.
Is there some extra flavor in the ones you use? Or are they “just peanuts”?
If they’re not raw, then they’ve already been roasted — so they’re exactly what you need! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this homemade peanut butter Jessica!
Thank you for the reply! I will definitely try to make the peanutbutter one of these days! 🙂
My pleasure Jessica! I can’t wait to hear how it goes! 🙂
I know my blender isn’t powerful enough to live up to the task so I always make it in my food processor. Ever since I discovered how to make homemade peanut butter, I have bought it from the store. The recipe is so simple after all! I add a little honey near the end of the blending cycle since my kids prefer the peanut butter a little sweet.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this homemade PB Kelly! Your kids are so lucky to have you to customize their PB for them! 🙂
Hi, this is a great recipe. What is the shelf life of this peanut butter? Should we always keep it refrigerated?
Thanks 🙂
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Cheryl! I’ve actually answered your first question already in the text directly beneath the recipe title in the recipe box. It can be easy to miss! 😉 I recommend keeping it refrigerated for the best texture — and because that also ensures it keeps longer! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this homemade peanut butter!
I just attempted to make this peanut butter using roasted salted whole peanuts. I took the shells off and discarded them then followed the instructions but mine never turned creamy and didn’t resemble peanut butter at all. I tried to leave it in the blender for an extra 3-4 minutes to see if maybe it just needed a little longer to come together but it still looked like a crumbly mess (almost like a graham cracker crust) so I put it in my food processor to see if my blender just wasn’t up for the job but after 5 minutes there it still didn’t look any different. I ended up adding 1 tbsp canola oil to it and it came together perfectly and is very creamy (I actually should have used less oil it’s a little runny but I think once it sits it should separate out making it easy for me to dump some of it out later.
I was wondering if maybe I missed something in the original recipe because using just peanuts did not work for me at all. Not sure if it makes a difference but I have a Vitamix blender
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Lacy! How old is your Vitamix? Do you know the exact model number? It could be that your blender’s motor wasn’t strong enough or your blender’s blades were a bit too dull. Those are the two biggest culprits that prevent the peanut butter from turning creamy!
Thanks for the quick reply Amy. I decided to try it again since I had a 5lb bag of nuts that I needed to use. Instead of the 2 cups the recipe called for I did 4 cups and it turned out perfect. When I used only 2 cups my blender kicked it all to the side so I kept having to stop and stir or hit the side of the blender to make it work. But with more nuts it would still kick it off to the side but there were enough nuts that it was still blending on its own. I did have to stop and stir it a couple times to make sure it all got done but I didn’t have to use any oil
That’s GREAT news, Lacy!! Your blender must be a bit larger than mine. That’s the same thing that happens to me when I just use 1 cup of peanuts — my apologies for not thinking of that before! 🙂 I’m really glad your second batch turned out perfectly!