ROASTED ALMOND BUTTER

Hey guys! This is André here. Recipes for nuts and seeds butters can be found throughout dozens of books and blogs. So even though this is actually not an original recipe we've created, it is one we've adapted to our own use and repeat time and time again. This simple almond butter is a staple in our pantry and you will find it in many of our future recipes (like these Toasts, this Easter "Cheesecake" and this Spirulina Banana Whip), so it totally makes sense that we'd share it with you guys.

We used to always have a few different store-bought nut butters at home until we realized one day how much cheaper and healthier it is to make our own without all the added nasties. It turned out to be the simplest (and most spectacular!) thing ever and now we make sure we never run out of some sort of homemade nut and/or seed butter. Almond butter definitely takes home the prize for being the one we make the most, but we've also tried cashew, pumpkin seed, hazelnut (+ raw cacao + natural sweetener = healthy nutella! [YUM] ) and even pistachio. We've kept this recipe as plain as it gets because we add it to so many meals, from smoothies to desserts or even stews and curries. But adding a teaspoon of salt or even a few teaspoons of maple syrup will take them to a whole new dimension if you plan on eating it on toast (... or by the spoonful...).

Roasting whichever nuts and seeds you want to turn into butter not only enhances their flavours but it helps them release their oils much faster. The actual amount of time it will take to achieve the smooth texture we recommend will totally depend on a few other factors such as the power of your food processor/blender and, ultimately, the quality of the nuts/seeds you're using. We've had batches of roasted almonds take over 20 minutes to turn into smooth butter and others take under 5 minutes. In the slideshow below you can get a better idea of what the stages of nut butter-making look like.