Ever wondered how to make cashew butter? This cinnamon cashew butter is the ultimate creamy topping for toast, apples, granola or whatever your heart desires and is made with just 5 simple ingredients!
C likes to joke that I roped him in in the early days by baking him decadent sweet treats and then a few years into our relationship I flipped at 180 and went hardcore healthy. He isn’t wrong. I have always loved to bake and especially love a good decadent dessert. I don’t share many of these recipes on here, and TBH rarely bake super decadent foods these days but occasionally I still do. Most of the time though I am coming up with healthier swaps or copycats that could fool even C’s sweet tooth.
One of C’s favorite foods and my go-to baking obsession is speculoos or cookie butter. Around the time we started dating (2011), cookie butter came out at Trader Joe’s and it was all the rage. I made cookie butter cookies, cookie butter STUFFED cookies, cookie butter blondies, donuts, banana bread etc…The obsession was real and I have zero shame in it. That being said, I haven’t bought cookie butter in years and for good reason, I have no self-control around it. I’m okay not having it in the house.
And then I made this cashew butter and everything changed. It wasn’t intentional but when I added the cinnamon it basically came out with the same flavor as cookie butter. C and I can’t stop eating this by the spoonful! BUT this version is healthy made with roasted cashews, cinnamon and maple syrup to sweeten. So I accidentally recreated an old favorite and let’s just say that C is very happy about it!
What You Need For Cashew Butter
- Raw Cashews – you can also buy pre-roasted cashews if you’re short on time
- Cinnamon
- Sea salt – don’t skimp on the salt! It makes all the difference
- Maple syrup – adjust amount to preferred sweetness
- Vanilla extract
How to Make Cashew Butter
STEP 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread your cashews out on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until cashews are lightly roasted. Watch carefully to ensure they don’t burn. Remove cashews from oven and let cool slightly until they can be handled.
STEP 2: Add your cashews to your food processor or high speed blender and process until broken down into small bits. This usually takes under 1 minute.
STEP 3: Add in your remaining ingredients and process until everything comes together. Your cashew butter will likely form into a ball at which point you’ll break down the ball and continue processing. Repeat this process about 10 times until creamy consistency is reached.
STEP 4: IMPORTANT NOTE: Cashew butter rarely gets drippy but the more you process it the creamier it will get. Feel free to stop whenever it’s reached your consistency preference.
To Roast or Not to Roast
Roasting your cashews is totally optional but helps bring out their flavor. If you’re in a rush, you can absolutely buy pre-roasted cashews. I personally like to buy raw so I can roast them to my preference and also guarantees they are dry roasted instead of roasted in canola or vegetable oil. But again, making cashew butter with roasted or raw cashews is 100% up to you!
Is Cashew Butter Good For You?
Yes! Cashews are a fantastic source of healthy unsaturated fats. They’re also a great source of minerals including magnesium and copper and even tryptophan which helps with getting restful sleep. Cashews are rich in phytosterols and phytonutrients that can block cholesterol absorption and lower cholesterol levels in the body. This cashew butter is also minimally sweetened with maple syrup so you won’t go overboard on the sugar.
What to Eat with This Cinnamon Cashew Butter
- Apples – this is my personal favorite, especially in the fall! Just slice up an apple and either drizzle or dip your apples right into the cashew butter.
- Toast – Toast up some bread and spread this cinnamon cashew butter all over. It tastes like a delicious sweet treat that’s actually good for you!
- Smoothie Bowl – I highly recommend this sweet potato smoothie bowl with a drizzle of cashew butter and some apple cinnamon granola!
- Eat by the spoonful – guilty as charged! This does not last long in our house for this reason…
Cinnamon Cashew Butter
Ever wondered how to make cashew butter? This cinnamon cashew butter is the ultimate creamy topping for toast, apples, granola or whatever your heart desires and is made with just 5 simple ingredients!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 16 servings 1x
- Category: Nut Butter
- Method: Blend
- Diet: Vegan
Scale
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw cashews
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1–2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Spread your cashews out on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until cashews are lightly roasted. Watch carefully to ensure they don’t burn
- Remove cashews from oven and let cool slightly until they can be handled.
- Add your cashews to your food processor or high speed blender and process until broken down into small bits. This usually takes under 1 minute.
- Add in your remaining ingredients and process until everything comes together. Your cashew butter will likely form into a ball at which point you’ll break down the ball and continue processing. Repeat this process about 10 times until creamy consistency is reached.
- NOTE: Cashew butter rarely gets drippy but the more you process it the creamier it will get. Feel free to stop whenever it’s reached your consistency preference.
- Store in a jar or airtight container for up to 1 month (or longer in fridge)
Like this cinnamon cashew butter? Here are some other recipes you might enjoy:
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