I never thought I'd make my own nut butters. I'm just not the type. Seriously, you can just pick up a really good and healthy cashew butter at Trader Joe's. So easy. However, I've come to realize that making nut and seed butters is not only fun but kind of addicting. Watching the transformation from crunchy whole nuts to a creamy smooth spread is pretty cool. Plus, all the possible flavor profiles!
This chocolate swirl toasted sunflower seed butter is a great healthy snack, nut free and with the addition of dark chocolate, just a tad sweet. It's perfect for an afternoon snack, spread on toast for breakfast or with fruit for a late night treat.
The first step is picking up a big bag of roasted sunflower seeds at Trader Joe's, which are extremely affordable, and toasting them in the oven for about ten minutes. The bonus in this process - toasting sunflower seeds in the oven smells like your baking cookies. It's an absolutely amazing aroma. Not sure why, but believe me, pure heaven.
Then the processing which goes like this:
Sandy!
Clumpy!
Chunky!
Getting there!
And walla!
So definitely give homemade nut and seed butters a try. With a basic food processor and about 30 to 45 minutes you'll be off and running to butter nirvana.
Chocolate Swirl Toasted Sunflower Seed Butter
Total time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 cups
Ingredients
- 4 cups roasted sunflower seeds
- 3 teaspoons turbinado sugar, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Spread the seeds out on a sheet pan and bake 10 to 15 minutes, until they are golden brown. Let the seeds cool to room temperature.
- Place seeds, 2 teaspoons of sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor and blend for 15 to 20 minutes. Every 2 to 3 minutes scrape down the sides and break up any large clumps. Once the seeds become creamy let them blend continually for 5 minutes.
- Remove 2 cups of the seed mixture into a medium bowl. Add chocolate chips and 1 teaspoon of sugar to the remaining seed butter. Process for another 2 minutes or until the chips have completely melted and are blended thoroughly. Swirl the chocolate butter into the plain butter.
