I saw articles at bonappetit.com and somewhere else about making your own nut butters, and decided that I had to try it.  I am currently eating almond butter that I made Sunday evening, and it's pretty good.

Here's the thing- making your own nut butter is easy, but it takes forever so I don't recommend it unless you don't have a store that allows you to grind your own or unless you want to make a butter that's not sold in stores, such as walnut or hazelnut butter.  Homemade nut butters are leaps and bounds above pre-packaged, store bought butters, so for quality purposes it may be worth it.  I am fortunate to live near a health food store that has grinders stocked with almonds and peanuts, so for me, making my own almond or peanut butter isn't entirely worth it, but you have to decide that. 



One cup of whole nuts will yield about 1/2 to 2/3 cup butter.

Homemade Almond Butter

In a food processor, chop nuts with power "on" until a paste or at least fine crumbs form.  At that point, turn off the processor and begin pulsing until you have a creamy, finely ground substance that suits your tastes.  If you pulse long enough, the oils will release to a point that you have a moist, dense nut butter.  This takes several minutes of pulsing.  If you don't want to wait that long, you can add some flavorless oil, such as canola or vegetable.  I didn't.