Sometimes called coconut manna, coconut butter is the luscious, thick, creamy result of pureeing dried coconut. Much like turning peanuts into peanut butter, the process is quite simple.
Unsweetened Shredded Coconut + Food Processor (or High-Powered Blender) = Coconut Butter.
I’ve made toasted coconut butter before, which is a glorious golden nectar, but plain old coconut butter has it’s place in my kitchen, too. Despite being made from only one ingredient (spoiler alert: it’s just coconut), the final product is something entirely different from munching on spoonfuls of unsweetened dried coconut- an activity that I find entirely unappetizing, for the record. Coconut butter is thick, buttery, slightly sweet, an totally dreamy.
I like to spread it on toast, slather it on bananas, swirl it into oatmeal, use it in place of peanut butter in cookies and energy ball recipes, drizzle it over pancakes and waffles, and sometimes I just eat it off the spoon- yes, it’s that good.
It can be melted and mixed with cocoa powder and maple syrup to form a quick hot fudge sauce, blended up into coffee to make a coconut-y latte, and stirred into soups and curries for an extra thick texture and coconut flavor. You can even turn it into homemade peppermint patties. Yes!
To make this beautiful coconut spread, I start by gently warming the coconut in a pan on the stove. Technically speaking you don’t need to do this, but I find warm coconut turns into butter much more quickly. You aren’t looking to brown the coconut at all (tasty, but a different experience altogether), just to get it slightly warmer than room temperature.
Once it’s warm, dump the coconut into your food processor/blender, and whizz away. After a few minutes, you’ll have a thick, white, drippy, slightly sweet butter that’s ready to be used any way you like it.
For those of you interested- this is the coconut I buy on Amazon. I also find unsweetened shredded coconut for a great price at Trader Joe’s or in the bulk bins at Whole Foods.
Considering store-bought coconut manna goes for around $10-15/jar, making it at home is a total win. For about $4 of coconut and less than 10 minutes of your time, you can make it yourself, anytime you want it!
If you make this recipe, let me know how it turns out! Leave a comment below, or take a picture and share it with me on Instagram. I can’t wait to see all your drippy, creamy coconut butter!
How to Make Coconut Butter
Ingredients
- 12-24 ounces unsweetened shredded coconut*
Instructions
- 1. Put coconut in a large skillet, and warm over medium-low heat for 3-4 minutes. Coconut should be warm to the touch, not hot, and should not be toasted at all.
- 2. Transfer the warm coconut to the bowl of your food processor or high-powered blender (I used my Vitamix, though I find it's actually easier to make in a food processor). Puree until drippy and smooth- anywhere from 4-8 minutes, depending on the powder of your machine. Stop and scrape down the sides, as needed. If your machine is particularly old or slow, feel free to add 1-3 Tablespoons of virgin coconut oil to the mix, just to help loosen everything up and get it blended more easily.
- 3. Pour coconut butter into a jar, let cool to room temperature, then cover and store in your pantry. Coconut butter is solid at room temperature, so I tend to scoop out the amount I want and microwave it for a few seconds to soften up, or just spread it onto warm foods and let it soften that way.