Gingerbread Cookie Butter
I’ve been on a serious peanut kick lately, and I do mean S.E.R.I.O.U.S. It’s like I have this major craving for the things and it just won’t go away. Everyday, I wake up wanting more. Funny thing is I never was really big on peanuts to start with, or peanut butter, for that matter.
Perhaps the little buggers feel insulted that I completely cut them out of my diet for a couple of years, and now they’re coming at me with a vengeance.
I’m kidding, of course, but the fact remains that I haven’t been able to get them out of my mind lately, and I’m really puzzled as to why that is. It’s feels like I suddenly fell madly in love with someone who had been in my life for years, but never more than an acquaintance, you know. And then I woke up one morning wanting to marry them and have their children…
Hopefully, it’ll pass soon, but in the meantime, I guess it will come as no surprise to you if I tell you that this Gingerbread Cookie Butter I just made uses peanuts as a base. Not only that, but I also consider it to be the most insanely addictive and taste-bud-pleasing nut butter that I’ve ever created. I could literally bathe in the stuff. Its texture is absolute perfection: creamy, velvety and unctuous but still thick enough that it holds its shape when you draw little swirls in it. Just like pure frosting!
As for its flavor, it simply BLASTS the inside your mouth on contact, exploding with sweet gingerbread spiciness and just what it takes of saltiness. Then comes forth just enough nuttiness to remind you that it IS peanut butter you’re eating after all; not a cookie, not a piece of cake, and not cake frosting either (although I think I could really see myself using it as exactly that!)
And I guess if you preferred to stay away from them peanuts yourself, you could very well make a version using almonds instead. While it wouldn’t taste exactly the same, or have that same crazy texture, I think it would still yield a very, very moreish spread.
I’ve really made a habit of using my Vitamix to make nut butters, because I love how it makes them so very silky smooth and creamy. If you happen to have one of them dream machines, then by all means, put it to work right now! If you don’t have one, though, fear not; all is not lost. You could very well do this nut butter in a regular food processor, providing that it’s powerful enough. The steps will be pretty much identical, only it will take quite a little bit longer, and more importantly, the final product won’t be nearly as smooth. But still. It’ll get the job done.
So place the peanuts, peanut oil, chopped vanilla bean and salt in the bowl of your High-Speed Blender or food processor.
Don’t even bother scraping the seeds of the vanilla bean. Just throw the whole thing in there; it’ll get pulverized, don’t worry.
Process on low speed for about 30 seconds while pushing down with the tamper to force the peanuts into the blades, until the nuts look like thick cement.
If using a regular food processor, you’ll have to stop the motor and scrape the sides quite a few times.
Now, slowly increase the speed to 5-6 and continue processing until the butter starts to become creamy and actually looks like slightly chunky peanut butter, about 30 seconds to a minute.
Next, remove the lid and scrape the sides with a rubber spatula, and then resume processing, progressively increasing the speed all the way up to 10.
Let her rip for about 60 to 90 seconds, until the peanut butter becomes really warm and has the consistency of a thin pancake batter.
If using a regular food processor, it’ll most likely take several minutes to get to that stage.
Now add the ground ginger (and LOTS of it!), ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground clove, maple syrup and blackstrap molasses.
Mix on high speed until the newcomers get completely incorporated and the nut butter becomes thick, which should take about 15 seconds.
Do not overmix at this point because you run the risk of causing your nut butter to separate on you if you do. See how mine still has little streaks of the lighter butter going through it? That’s perfectly fine… and soooo pretty, too! I wish there had been a way to just lift the nut butter out of there and place it in a jar completely undisturbed.
Then I think I’d have never eaten it. I’d only open the jar from time to time, regal my eyes on it, take a good whiff and then put it back…
Unfortunately, all the pretty swirls will get destroyed as you transfer your gingerbread spread into an airtight container…
Oh well. At least now, you’ll get to eat it!
Sprinkle a tiny little pinch of ground nutmeg on top of your nut butter, if your heart wants you to, and then store your beautiful spiced spread in the pantry for up to several weeks, or in the refrigerator for up to a few months.
Gingerbread Spread
Ingredients
- 4 cups unsalted roasted peanuts
- 1/4 cup peanut oil
- 1 whole vanilla bean, chopped (optional, but strongly recommended)
- 1 tsp Himalayan salt
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground Ceylon cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
Instructions
- Place the peanuts, peanut oil, chopped vanilla bean and salt in the bowl of your High-Speed Blender or food processor.
- Process on low speed for about 30 seconds while pushing down with the tamper to force the peanuts into the blades. If using a regular food processor, you'll have to stop the motor and scrape the sides a few times. Slowly increase the speed to 5-6 and continue processing until the butter starts to become creamy, about 30 seconds to a minute.
- Remove the lid and scrape the sides with a rubber spatula, and then resume processing, progressively increasing the speed all the way up to 10. Let her rip for about 60 to 90 seconds, until the peanut butter becomes really warm and has the consistency of a thin pancake batter.
- Add the spices, maple syrup and blackstrap molasses and mix on high speed until the newcomers get completely incorporated and the spread becomes thick, which should take about 15 seconds. Do not overmix.
- Transfer your gingerbread spread to an airtight container and store in the pantry for up to several weeks, or in the refrigerator for up to a few months.
Nutrition
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22 Comments on “Gingerbread Cookie Butter”
This looks out of this world! I’ve been following your blog for awhile and I have to say that you make some delicious nut butters and spreads. This looks fantastic!
Awww, thank you Denise! That is very kind of you to say. I am extremely passionate about them, so I guess it helps a bit! 😉
This looks SO. BEYOND. DELICIOUS.
Those swirls in the blender are so beautiful 🙂
Creamy and smooth and buttery and rich and sweet and spicy. I’m dying, I’m dying, I’m dead.
I know, right? I really think I should print that picture and put it on the cover of my jar!
And really, Jessica, you can’t die BEFORE you’ve actually tried it, so please, please wake-up so you have a chance to whip up a batch. 😀
Oh My Goodness – I am going straight to the kitchen to whip up now!
Thank you for creating and sharing.
The pleasure is all mine, Bridget. And I hope you like this one just as much as I do! 🙂
Once again, you’ve left me drooling all over the keyboard. I LOVE anything gingerbread!
Hahahaha! Thanks Chelsea! Don’t go breaking your computer with all that drool now; you’re gonna need it to make the nut butter! 😀
Your recipes are amazing and you are a real inspiration. I love your cook book too! 🙂
I need your help with an issue though. I have been trying to mix honey with nut butter quite a few times and have failed miserably. You have mentioned that I shouldn’t over process but my nut butter seizes nearly instantly and turns into a dough like consistency.
I have read quite a few times that you can emulsify honey with nut butter without using an added emulsifier. Have you tried this before?
Can you tell me what kinds of nut butters you have been adding the honey to, Laura, and what kind of honey did you use and how much?
I’ve never heard about this emulsifying thing before, but I will definitely look it up… I’m extremely curious now!
ps: thank you so much for your kind words, and for purchasing my cookbook, too! You totally rock!
I have for example read it in this article about Big Spoon Roasters: http://www.bonappetit.com/people/out-of-the-kitchen/article/nut-butter-at-home
They seem to advocate long mixing times which completely fails for me.
The last thing I tried was Hazelnut Butter with Acacia honey. Total disaster. It seized up completely in my Kmix within a few seconds after adding the honey. It turned into nearly knead-able dough like consistency. It might have been the amount of honey I added as I was planning to make chocolate spread and didn’t want to use sugar.
I’ve never had anything like that happen to me, frankly. How much honey did you add, exactly? And did you make sure to add it at the very end, when your nut butter was warm and runny? I mean, hazelnut butter gets particularly runny, so I’m quite surprised to hear that it became THAT thick… Next time that happens to you, though, I suggest adding warm water, a few tablespoons at a time, until your nut butter gets back to a smooth consistency. You will then have to store it in the fridge and it won’t keep for quite as long, but at least it won’t end up in the trash…
I’m too afraid to try this. Fearful I might get addicted 🙂
Hahaha! Totally legit, Hanro! I still think that you should try it, though… 😉
It’s delicious! Do you have any inspirational idea what to eat it with rather than with bread?
I tend to eat mine by the spoonful, all the time… so the only answer that comes to mind would be “a spoon” 😉
Maybe try muffins or sliced apples. That could work!
I’m allergic to peanuts. What other nut would you recommend with these herbs? I like the gingerbread taste 😀
Roasted cashews would be the perfect replacement!
I was so excited to try this in my new Vitamix but it was a disaster. I followed the recipe exactly so I’m at a loss to explain what happened. It tastes really good but is so dry and crumbly that it cannot be spread on anything. I’m trying to think of some way to salvage it.
Real sorry to hear, Karen… did your peanut butter get to the warm and sort of liquid-y stage before you added the rest of the ingredients? And did you just barely mix them in when you added them? You can probably salvage the nub butter by adding a little bit of water to it, a tablespoon at a time, and mixing well between additions, until it eventually reaches the right consistency… Hope this helps!
First time I made this, I didn’t understand the science or had experience. So I added all the syrups in one go and got a split mess (my reasons for losing a star) and found the cloves overpowering for my tastes. Now I know that adding the syrup in a steady stream/pour slowly while the moter is running means the oil and water don’t split, like making homemade mayonnaise.
Today I had almond butter on my mind, and date syrup that needed a purpose (this replaced the maple syrup/black treacle). I adjusted the spice mix to preference (1/2tsp extra cinnamon, 1/8tsp cloves), salt to taste, 2 1/2tsp homemade vanilla extract instead of pod. I added (homemade) coconut butter as I like that in the background, used unrefined rapeseed oil as needed to make a drippy almond butter swoon. I also added a handful of vostizza currants (much nicer than regular currants) to my serving for pops of chew.
When this batch is done, I would love to make this recipe more as written, I find peanuts a strong flavour, so 50/50 with cashews sounds better lol. Thank you for the nut butter inspirations!
Oh and thank you for including metric conversions to your newest recipes! I have a word document with volume to weight conversions for most things, but reading it on the page is so much quicker 🙂