Back With a Basic: Homemade Peanut Butter

So tomorrow will mark I one week that I have been home and utterly and completely undeceive about what to post around here. I have run through the gamut of ideas that all seemed perfect at the time but yet didn't get to writing about any of them. I guess I have just been relishing being at home. I really like traveling and visiting family, but I love being home. I love having my kitchen back and feeling completely free and at home. Oh, and all of the ingredients and equipment. I may have several non-essentials, but I like them all. I will have you know that I did give away a rolling pin- because who really needs three kinds...

Anyway. I am home and that is what I have been thinking about most. To me home is sacred. Not just for all of the church reasons, which are true; but sacred because I love it that way. It is a safe place. It is where my family is and are most comfortable, where I can teach, feed and play with my children without anyone else watching. 

Back to the kitchen, and moving along. So I was super bummed when the Whole Foods next to me stopped selling fresh ground honey roasted peanut butter. You may scoff that I like the honey roasted peanuts pulverized into butter, but don't say "tsk," until you've tried it. It is like peanut butter candy- if that is the right word. One serving of the stuff packs only two more grams of sugar than regular fresh ground peanut butter. 

And this stuff is so good blogger peanut butter boy instructs that should you find it "fill the nearest 10 gallon pail and proceed to checkout because it is some of the best peanut butter I’ve had." I do not disagree.

So when I couldn't get my peanuts butter fix I decied to just fix some myself. It was an instant success and beyond simple. My husband declared it peanut butter perfection and polished it all off in the few days he had alone before he joined me for vacation.

My friends, it is time to make your own peanuts butter and report back with your success. No, you don't have to spoil yourself with honey roasted peanut butter, you can go naked with regular roasted peanuts and also be beyond content. But please make some peanut butter. 

The texture is superb. My husband loves chunky peanut butter and I was more a fan of the smooth. This is the happiest of middle grounds, no ragged chunks to tear your bread while spreading, yet still toothsome with peanuty grit. You can't buy it in a jar like this- they only offer two extremes. And honestly once you try the middle road of the freshly ground stuff you might just whimper with sadness if you have to go back. One last bonus: buying the stuff was $3.99 a pound, and making it is half of that.

I can't beg you anymore. It is peanut butter time.

                                  

Peanut Butter

1 lb. of your favorite shelled peanuts (they could be honey roasted if you like that sort of thing)

2 T. oil (I used sunflower, but you could have fun and use coconut, mmm...)

Add the peanuts to the food processor pulse until ragged. Add the oil and process until you reach your ideal consistency. Serve on bread with sliced fresh fruit and proceed to peanut butter heaven.

Note: another option of you want to to add honey flavor without the honey roasted peanuts is just to add 2 T. of honey and other flavorings you can dream up. I used trader joe's peanuts but you could also pilfer numerous packets from your summer flights to use- sorry I don't have a packet count as to how many of those you would need.

Enjoy and report back on your success.