How to make Pecan Butter

With just one simple ingredient and a powerful blender, you can learn how to make pecan butter that is super creamy and unbelievably delicious! Perfect on just about anything from toast to ice cream or adding to other recipes like salad dressing or cookie bars, this foolproof 2-step recipe takes just 20 minutes including the prep time!

Jump to:

• 📖 Why make homemade pecan butter?
• 📖 Smooth pecan butter vs. Crunchy pecan butter
• 🌟 Why this is the best recipe
• 📝 Ingredient notes
• 🥣 Equipment notes to make homemade pecan butter
• 👩‍🍳 How to make this recipe
• ✨ Pecan butter flavor variations
• 🎓 Expert tips
• ❓Pecan Butter Recipe FAQs
• 🍰 Pecan Butter Uses
• More nut butter
• Pecan Butter

📖 Why make homemade pecan butter?

Unlike Cashew Butter and almond butter, pecan butter is not as commonly found in grocery stores. In fact, you’re probably thinking, do they make pecan butter? Because you’ve never seen it on the shelves. They do, but it’s typically found in fancy stores or farmer’s markets. But there is no reason to buy store-bought pecan butter when you can make your own in minutes.

Pecan butter is naturally gluten free and vegan. Not to mention, it’s much healthier to make it yourself with no added sugar or preservatives and way more delicious. And if you’re wondering, is it cheaper to make nut butter at home? The answer is almost always yes!

📖 Smooth pecan butter vs. Crunchy pecan butter

The only difference between these two types of pecan spread is their texture. But how to make pecan butter spread smooth or crunchy is almost exactly the same process except the crunchy requires one extra step. If you want to make a smooth nut butter just follow the instructions in this recipe.

However, if you’d like to make it crunchy all you have to do is remove about a third of the pecans from the blender before they are completely processed while they are still crumbly. Then just finish processing the rest of the nuts in the blender until they are silky smooth and then mix the removed nut crumbles back into the creamy butter. And now you’ve made it crunchy!

🌟 Why this is the best recipe

Quick and easy – In just 20 minutes you can have perfectly smooth homemade pecan spread with this simple recipe. All you need is some raw pecans and a powerful high-speed blender. 

Healthy and delicious – This super rich and creamy pecan butter is both delicious and good for you too! Pecan nuts are rich in several vitamins and minerals as well as high in fiber and omega-3s. 

Super versatile ingredient – What is pecan butter good for? Just about anything! It can be used as a spread on toast, drizzled on brownies and ice cream, or blended into savory sauces. It can also be used to make nut butter recipes like energy bites and cookies.

📝 Ingredient notes

There is only one ingredient required to make this homemade pecan butter recipe! Just some raw unsalted pecans. And for the best pecan butter, choose organic if you can, and never use store-bought already roasted pecans. Toasting your own nuts is an important part of pecan butter recipes. 

🛒 You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the Recipe Card at the bottom of this post

🥣 Equipment notes to make homemade pecan butter

How to make pecan butter? It is not complicated at all! In fact, it’s simple, but just like making Pistachio Butter you need to use a blender that is powerful enough to make nut butters. A standard blender just can’t handle nuts and will burn down. So which blender to make nut butter?

I use my Bosch VitaBoost High Speed Blender 1600W, which turns nuts into smooth butter in just a few minutes. But there are other good options that can do the job just as well like the Vitamix VM0197 Explorian Blender and the Ninja SS151 TWISTi Blender DUO. And as the nuts are getting creamy, I love using my rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of my machine. 

But cooking is a science. So it’s also important to use a digital scale to weigh the nuts and a digital oven thermometer to ensure that you are roasting them at the right temperature. This is how to make pecan butter like a pro!

👩‍🍳 How to make this recipe

If you’ve thought, how do I make pecan butter? Here is your chance to learn. Just follow this easy 2-step method!

1. How to roast pecans

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C / 356 F (no fan).
2. Spread the pecan nuts out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Then roast them for 10 to 12 minutes or until they have slightly browned and are fragrant. 
3. Allow the nuts to cool down to room temperature before starting to process them.

💡 Top Tip: Because pecans are already darker in color take care not to burn them by stirring them halfway through roasting to help them brown more evenly on all sides.

2. How to make pecan butter

1. Put the toasted pecans in your blender or food processor and then process them on high power, stopping every 30 to 60 seconds to scrape down the sides of the machine. 
2. The nuts will first turn into chunky crumbs before becoming a thick paste and then processing into a creamy liquid consistency. 
3. Depending on the power of your machine, making nut butter typically takes between 2 to 10 minutes. 
4. After you’ve reached your desired texture, you can then add a bit of salt, sugar, or any spices you like to enhance the flavor.
5. Store refrigerated in an air-tight container for 4-6 weeks.

💡 Top Tip: Use the right amount of nuts that your machine can easily handle. If needed, you can even make the nut butter spread in batches.

✨ Pecan butter flavor variations

Homemade pecan butter is a stand-alone spread that is amazing on just about anything right out of the blender just like Hazelnut Butter. However, if you’re thinking how can I make pecan butter flavored? Here are some ideas to help you out! Keep in mind that all these additions should be made after the nut butter is made. 

Chocolate: Mix in some cocoa powder and brown sugar to make a chocolate pecan spread. You can also fold in some chunks of dark chocolate. 

Vanilla: Stir in a bit of pure vanilla extract or vanilla sugar.

Espresso Powder: If you add a bit of finely ground espresso powder you can have a coffee-flavored pecan spread. If you like mocha just add some chocolate too.

Caramel: Blend in some of my easy-to-make Homemade Caramel. 

Maple: Sweeten it with a bit of rich maple syrup for maple pecan butter. Honey pecan butter is also delicious.

Ground Cinnamon: Stir in some ground cinnamon. A pinch of nutmeg and ground ginger is yummy too.

Pumpkin Spice: Add a bit of pumpkin pie spice with a little sweetener and you’ve got yummy pumpkin spiced nut butter.

Chai Spiced: Make it chai spiced by adding a combination of cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and just a bit of ground cloves to the nut butter.

Dates: Mix in some chopped-up Medjool dates to add another layer of flavor.

Walnuts: Blend two different kinds of nuts! Mix this nut butter with some Walnut Butter.

🎓 Expert tips

1. Toasting the pecans releases their oil, which makes the nut butter more flavorful and much easier to process. Don’t ever use pre-roasted nuts.
2. Use a timer when roasting the pecans to ensure that you don’t burn them. These already dark nuts can go from slightly browned to charred very quickly.
3. You can also toast the nuts in a dry pan on the stovetop if you prefer. 
4. It is absolutely necessary to use a high-speed blender or food processor to make nut butter or the machine will burn down. 
5. Never process hot pecans. You must let them cool down after they have been toasted. Not doing so can overheat your machine. 
6. If the nuts just don’t seem to be processing well even after 10 minutes, slowly add a bit of coconut oil, water, or maple syrup to thin them out.  
7. Use the right quantity of nuts for your machine. If you use too few they get lost in the blender, but if you use more than 3 to 4 cups it can be hard to process them into nut butter. 
8. Always add any additional ingredients after the pecan spread is made. Any mix-ins added before can cause the nut butter to seize up in the blender.

❓Pecan Butter Recipe FAQs

🍰 Pecan Butter Uses

So you’ve learned how to make homemade pecan butter and you’ve got a jar of it. Now, what to make with pecan butter? Don’t worry, the options are endless! Here are just a few things you can spread it on and ways to incorporate it into other recipes. 

Spread it on a slice of my Pumpkin Bread or Banana Bread.

One of my favorite ways to use pecan butter is on pancakes in combination with caramelized apple topping.

Substitute it in place of hazelnut praline to make a fancy Paris Brest. You just need to add a bit of sugar because the praline is 50% sugar and 50% hazelnut.

Use some pecan spread instead of the praline paste and make a pecan version of my divine Hazelnut Cake. You’ll just need to adjust the amount of sugar.

Make my Pistachio Ice Cream Bar recipe with the pecan spread instead of pistachio paste.

Drizzle it over my fudgy Pecan Brownies.  

Make the best cookie sandwich ever by spreading it between 2 of my Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies. 

Make some chocolate pecan spread with my Easy Homemade Nutella recipe.

Treat yourself to these cinnamon streusel muffins and drizzle the pecan butter on top.

I also love using this pecan butter on coffee cookies, they complement so well each other.

Add it to a breakfast yogurt bowl, overnight oats, drizzle over porridge, or add as a topping for ice cream. You can also use it in other recipes just like you would use peanut butter.

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