Pistachio Butter Recipe
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Learn how to make homemade Pistachio Butter in just three easy steps! It’s creamy, smooth and full of roasted pistachio flavors. This golden milk spiced edition is made with the addition of warming spices and saffron and naturally sweetened with dates! Enjoy it on toast, with oatmeal and fruit…or eat it by the spoonful out of the jar because it’s that GOOD!
Try my Homemade Pecan Butter recipe next!
About This Recipe
Thanks to the viral Dubai chocolate bar by Fix Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai, pistachios desserts and treats have been EVERYWHERE! I’ve recently been obsessed with pistachios, partly because I see them everywhere right now. The other part is that they were my dad’s favorite type of nut and I miss him. ❤️
Just like with my Homemade Pecan Butter, I started making my own pistachio butter because it’s expensive to buy at the grocery store. Not only is it easy to make and ready in just a few minutes, you can customize it to your liking with gorgeous spices. And that’s exactly what I’ve done here!
This Homemade Pistachio Butter is a golden milk spiced edition. It’s made with perfectly oven roasted pistachios, full of warming spices like cinnamon, cardamom, turmeric, ginger, lightly salted and naturally sweetened with dates. I’ve also added saffron which infuses it with its beautiful floral sweet aromas!
This pistachio butter is not only good for you, it is dangerously addictive and tastes incredible on and with everything! Enjoy it on top of your baked oats, Golden Milk Overnight Oats, on pancakes, with sliced apples, pears or strawberries, slathered on toast, drizzled on top of ice cream, you name it!
My current favorite way to eat it is on top of this Cottage Cheese Chocolate Mousse and Golden Milk Baked Oats.
Oh, and if you want to make a plain pistachio butter without the spices and dates, you can use the same easy method to make a beautiful, decadent, and creamy toasted pistachio butter!
Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
- Quick and easy to make. You only need a few simple ingredients to make it and it’s ready in 3 easy steps! Roast, process and store!
- Cheaper than store-bought pistachio butter. The cost of pistachio butter is high because pistachios are pricey nuts! Pistachios need a specific climate to grow and human labor to sort through the harvest. Hence, manufacturers are currently charging a BOMB for it. It’s much cheaper to make your own at home as you can buy pistachios in bulk for a more cost-effective price.
- Customizable. You can make my golden milk edition by adding some warming spices and saffron or omit them completely to make a plain homemade pistachio butter.
- Great for gifting. Tie a pretty ribbon around a cute small mason jar filled with this golden milk spiced pistachio butter and gift your loved ones with it during the holidays or anytime you need an exquisite homemade gift to give to someone!
- DELICIOUS. It’s full of roasted and creamy pistachio flavors and tastes good on EVERYTHING from toasted bread, oatmeal, ice cream and even on my Cottage Cheese Chocolate Mousse!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutes
- Raw Unsalted Shelled Pistachios. I used a Heritage brand raw unsalted shelled pistachios from Thailand but any high-quality pistachio kernels can be used. Don’t use pre-roasted pistachios as we’ll be roasting them ourselves. This way the toasted flavors will have more depth and the warm pistachios will make the blending process quicker and easier.
- Dates (optional): I used pitted dried Deglet Noor dates (noor is sometimes spelled ‘nour’), to naturally sweeten the pistachio butter and add a sweet caramel-like flavor. Any type of fresh or dried dates such as Medjool, Ajwa, and Bahri dates will work. Alternatively, add 1-2 teaspoons (or more to taste) of maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, agave syrup or date syrup. Leave out the dates if you prefer a natural unsweetened pistachio butter.
- Fine Sea Salt: A small pinch will bring out the roasted flavors of the pistachios and balance out the sweetness from the dates.
- Golden Milk Spices (optional): To give this pistachio butter some golden milk flavors, I added some warming spices – ground cinnamon, cardamon, ginger, turmeric and saffron. The yellow from the turmeric and saffron gives this pistachio butter a lovely, vibrant green color even if your nuts aren’t super bright and green! To make a plain pistachio nut butter, you can leave out the warming spices and dates.
Full ingredient amounts are in the recipe card below.
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How to Make Pistachio Butter
Below is a step-by-step overview on how to make this recipe. Keep scrolling down to get to the recipe card below with the full recipe and detailed instructions!
Storing
Store in a jar or airtight sealed container for up to 1 week in a cool dry area or in the refrigerator for 4-8 weeks. I recommend storing in the fridge so that it stays fresh longer. If the natural oils separate over time, simply give the pistachio butter a good stir like you would with any natural nut butter and it’ll be good to use as you desire!
Ways to Use Pistachio Butter
- Drizzle on top of baked oats or overnight oats. Such as these Golden Milk Overnight Oats, Strawberry Protein Overnight Oats, Matcha Overnight Oats with Berries, Cottage Cheese Overnight Oats or Cottage Cheese Baked Oats!
- Spread it on toast or rice cakes. It’s delicious on toasted wholewheat or sourdough bread and rice cakes. You can top with sliced pears, apples, strawberries or bananas for a well-balanced nutritious snack or breakfast!
- Eat it with fruit or veggies. Sliced pears, apples, or even celery sticks would taste yummy as a healthy snack!
- Add to a pasta. Add a tablespoon or two to this Creamy Pesto Pasta with Shrimp or other simple olive oil based pasta sauce!
- Add to a smoothie. Give your smoothie a boost of healthy fats! It’ll make it extra creamy, nutty and delicious!
- Drizzle it on ice cream or yogurt. Try it with my Ninja Creami Golden Milk Ice Cream or Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream if you have a Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker! It also tastes great drizzled on top of vanilla ice cream or swirled into Greek yogurt.
- Bake with it. Use it in homemade granola, cookies, muffins, cake, baked oats, quick breads, oatmeal bars, brownies, etc.
- Eat it plain. A spoonful straight out of the jar is guaranteed to satisfy your pistachio loving heart and put a smile on your face!
Cook’s Tips
- Use a food processor. Although you might be tempted to use a high-speed blender and though it would do the job too, a food processor bowl is easier to scrape down with a rubber spatula and also to scrape every little last bit of pistachio butter into a jar or airtight container for storing. I personally feel I have more control over the texture with a food processor too. With a blender, you have to use the tamper to keep the nuts moving and it requires more active work.
- Be patient! Depending on how powerful your food processor is, it may take more or less time than what I’ve indicated to pulse the toasted pistachios into a creamy nut butter. Don’t be tempted to add oil or water as they can cause the nut butter to develop a paste-like texture. Once the pistachios start to release their natural oils and the crumbly pistachios start to clump, the pistachios will turn into a delectable and creamy homemade toasted nut butter!
- Use a wide mouth mason jar or container to store the pistachio butter. It’ll be easier to transfer to a container with a wide mouth from the food processor bowl. An old peanut butter jar would be perfect here.
- Make a double batch. You can easily double the recipe to make two batches! One for you and one for gifting…or both for you! 😉
Variations
- Omit the spices and dates. If you’d like to make a plain and unsweetened homemade pistachio butter, you can leave out the dates and golden milk spices and just add the sea salt. For an unsalted version, leave out the salt too.
- Add vanilla extract. A half teaspoon will add cozy and warm vanilla notes. Add it when you add the spices.
- Make a dark chocolate pistachio butter. Omit the warming spices and add half an ounce (14 grams) of dark chocolate and a teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa powder. I recommend Dutch process cocoa powder for a richer chocolate flavor!
- Add seeds. Chia seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds would give this pistachio butter a nutritional boost with more omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids!
- Stir in chopped pistachios. For a crunchy style pistachio butter, reserve one fourth to one third cup (31-42 grams) of the roasted pistachios and finely chop them on a cutting board or pulse in the food processor. Set aside and proceed with blending the rest of the pistachios to make the creamy pistachio butter. Stir the chopped pistachios in by hand once blended or add them to the food processor and pulse briefly until combined. You can use finely chopped pistachios, almonds or any other nuts of your choice!
- Remove the pistachio skin. This is a tedious process so I didn’t bother but it does yield a smoother, more green and extra creamy textured pistachio butter. Boil the pistachios for 5 minutes instead of roasting first. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel. Fold the towel over and rub to help loosen the skin. Then unfold the towel and peel off the skins. Transfer the peeled pistachios to the food processor. Add the dates and process until creamy and smooth as per the recipe.
FAQs
Pistachio butter is made by grinding up nuts until their natural oils release and they transform into a creamy nut butter. It may have salt or a little oil added to it depending on the brand or cook. Pistachio cream is made after removing the skins of the pistachios after boiling and has powdered sugar, oil or butter, and sometimes white chocolate and milk added to it. Pistachio cream is sweeter and richer than a natural pistachio butter and is what is used in the original Dubai chocolate bar.
It’s creamy, smooth and full of roasted pistachio flavors! It’s versatile and can be used in both sweet and savory applications. Try it on your overnight oats instead of peanut butter or spread it on toast. You can even add it to a pasta dish such as this Creamy Pesto Pasta with Shrimp!
Homemade pistachio butter will last up to 1 week in a cool dry area or in the refrigerator for 4-8 weeks. Storing in the fridge will keep it fresher longer and is preferred.
Yes! It’ll make your chocolate bar more nutritious since this pistachio butter is sweetened with dates instead of sugar and doesn’t have any additional fats added to it.
Though adding a little oil would help the pistachio butter come along, you don’t need to add any. The pistachios release their natural oils during processing and transform into a creamy pistachio butter.
2 cups of pistachios will yield about 1 cup of pistachio butter. The final weight after processing and transferring to a jar was 272 grams (9.59 ounces) for this batch.
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Use Pistachio Butter on these Recipes!
Pistachio Butter Recipe
Learn how to make homemade Pistachio Butter in just three easy steps! It’s creamy, smooth and full of roasted pistachio flavors. This golden milk spiced edition is made with the addition of warming spices and saffron and naturally sweetened with dates! Enjoy it on toast, with oatmeal and fruit…or eat it by the spoonful out of the jar because it’s that GOOD!
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 10
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 17 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Pulse
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 2 cups (9 ounces) / 250 grams raw unsalted shelled Pistachios
- 4 pieces / 30 grams pitted Dates (optional – note 1, I used dried Deglet Noor dates)
- ¼ teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
Golden Milk Spices (optional)
- ½ teaspoon ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground Cardamom
- ⅛ teaspoon ground Ginger
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- ½ teaspoon Saffron
Instructions
- Roast the pistachios: Preheat oven to 325°F/165°C. Line a baking sheet pan with parchment paper (nonstick cooking paper). Spread the pistachios out evenly in a single layer. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until you can smell roasted pistachios. They should be lightly toasted but not burnt.
- Process: Carefully transfer the warm toasted pistachios immediately to a food processor bowl and add the pitted dates. Process, pausing to scrape down the edges as needed. It will look crumbly and become like a powder at first, then start to form into a ball and clump together. Continue processing until the crumbled pistachios start to become creamy.
- Add spices: Once the pistachio butter has nearly reached your desired consistency, add the fine sea salt and other spices if using – the ground cinnamon, cardamom, turmeric, ginger and saffron threads. Process to combine until smooth and creamy. It should be slightly runny and drip down from a spatula or spoon once done.
- Storing: Store in a jar or airtight sealed container for up to 1 week in a cool dry area or in the refrigerator for 4-8 weeks (refrigerator recommended – note 2).
Notes
- Dried Dates. I used pitted dried Deglet Noor dates (noor is sometimes spelled ‘nour’), which naturally sweeten the pistachio butter and add a sweet caramel-like flavor. Any type of fresh or dried dates such as Medjool, Ajwa, and Bahri dates will work. Alternatively, add 1-2 teaspoons (or more to taste) of maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, agave syrup or date syrup instead. Leave out the dates if you prefer an unsweetened pistachio butter.
- Storing. I recommend storing in the fridge so that it stays fresh longer. The natural oils may separate over time. Simply give it a good stir to reincorporate them like you would with any natural nut butter and it’ll be good to use as you desire again!
- Time to process and appliance. The time it takes to process until smooth and creamy will vary and depends on your appliance. My Kitchen Aid food processor required about 25 minutes of processing but it may take less or more time for your food processor or blender. A food processor is preferred as it will be less hands on than a blender for which you will need to use the tamper to keep the nuts moving. I personally prefer the food processor as I feel I have more control over the texture.
- Omit the dates and spices. If you’d like to make a plain and unsweetened pistachio butter, leave out the dates and golden milk spices and just add the sea salt. Or for an unsalted version, leave out the salt too.
- Make a double batch. You can easily double the recipe to make two batches! Click the ‘2x’ button at the top of the recipe card for the ingredient amounts for 2 batches, which will yield about 2 cups of pistachio butter.
- Use a wide mouth mason jar or airtight container to store the pistachio butter. It’ll be easier to transfer to a container with a wide mouth from the food processor bowl. An old peanut butter jar would be perfect for storing.
- How to use: Drizzle on top of baked oats or overnight oats such as this Golden Milk Overnight Oats, Golden Milk Baked Oats, Matcha Baked Oats or Matcha Overnight Oats with Berries. You can also spread it on toast, drizzle on ice cream like my Ninja Creami Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream or Golden Milk Ice Cream, enjoy on top of this Cottage Cheese Chocolate Mousse, bake with it, eat with fruit, add to a smoothie, pasta sauce, sandwich, etc. See the ‘Ways to Use Pistachio Butter’ section in the post above for more ideas.
- See the ‘Variations’ section if you’d like to customize this homemade pistachio butter recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tablespoon (16 grams)
- Calories: 88
- Sugar: 2.3g
- Sodium: 23.2mg
- Fat: 6.7g
- Saturated Fat: 0.9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5.8g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 5.5g
- Fiber: 1.8g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
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