The best-tasting vegan butter! It's plant-based, super buttery, smooth, rich & creamy & can be made in minutes. Use it for all of your spreading, baking, and frying needs. This is a real reader favorite with hundreds of five-star reviews. No fancy ingredients are required and it's palm oil-free!
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FEATURED COMMENT
"I'm impressed! When I read all the comments & high ratings about it tasting as good as real butter, I was hopeful but still skeptical…. However, I proved it to myself today. It came out perfectly first go! Follow the well-detailed directions and you can't go wrong!"
- Clare ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
If there is just one new vegan recipe you are going to try this month, let it be this vegan butter. It is life-changing and absolutely tried and true. It has been one of my most popular recipes since 2015 and it comes with hundreds of five-star reviews.
Make it in your blender in minutes and then use it just like regular butter for all of your spreading and baking needs. It's unbelievably smooth, rich, and creamy, and spreads and melts perfectly. You can even use it to make vegan brown butter!
A slice of no knead sourdough bread, toast, or light whole wheat bread just isn't the same without a thick layer of butter and when you make your own you can avoid the palm oil, emulsifiers etc that are in most store bought vegan butters.
Mel x
What Is Vegan Butter Made Of?
So that you get the very best results when making this vegan butter recipe, here are some important notes on the main ingredients:
- Almond flour - This is crucial for the best buttery flavor and emulsification. Almond flour is made from blanched skinless almonds and is super fine, powdery, soft, and pale creamy yellow in colour. It has a mild, buttery flavor. Almond meal on the other hand is made with raw almonds, often with skins still on. It is coarser and grainier than almond flour, slightly stronger in flavor, and darker in color with small brown flecks throughout if the skins were still intact. For best results, you need to use almond flour for this recipe. Almond flour is found in almost all grocery stores and it will be clearly labelled on the bag that it is made from blanched almonds. I buy mine in bulk from Costco but Bob's Red Mill is a popular brand of almond flour carried in most stores in North America. In the UK you can usually find almond flour at Holland and Barrett or you can order it from Amazon.
- Refined coconut oil - Note that it must be refined (i.e flavorless and odourless) and cannot be MCT oil or liquid coconut oil. This is a crucial ingredient and without it the butter won't set.
- Dairy-free milk - For creaminess and emulsification. It should be a neutral tasting milk and it must be unsweetened and unflavored so be careful to check the ingredients. Vanilla and sugar sneak into a lot of plant milks and they really aren't good additions to savory recipes. My preferences are oat milk, soy milk, or cashew milk. I don't recommend using almond milk because it has quite a strong flavor which you can detect in the finished butter.
- Nutritional yeast - Just a touch for a buttery umami flavor.
- Apple cider vinegar - The butter needs some acid to balance the flavors and apple cider vinegar is milder than most other culinary acids which is why it's used here.
- Oil - Any neutral oil such as mild olive oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, or sunflower oil. This is what makes the butter spreadable.
- Turmeric - Used for color. It gives the butter a yellow hue. This is the only ingredient you can safely omit.
You will also need a high-powered blender.
If you have any questions check the FAQs for the most common ones, and if it's not covered there feel free to leave a comment under the recipe. I'll get back to you a.s.a.p.
Serving Suggestions
Slather this vegan butter on bread, scones, and biscuits, and pancakes, and waffles. You can also add it to all of your favorite buttery recipes like vegan mashed potatoes, vegan cream cheese frosting, and lemon curd, and use it in your vegan baking. It's great for cakes, pastry dough, etc. You can even use it to make brown butter!
Recipe FAQS
If you use unrefined or virgin coconut oil, your butter will taste and smell of coconut, not butter. Refined coconut oil has no coconut flavor or smell which is why it is essential for this recipe.
I have a few readers who use ground-up cashew nuts, sunflower seeds, or pine nuts instead of almonds. Almonds give a more buttery flavour but the results are still ok when using these substitutes.
The nutritional yeast helps with the buttery flavor and the butter is at its best when it is included so I highly recommend using it. However, if you omit it the recipe will still technically work, it just won't taste quite as good.
No. Baking yeast and brewer's yeast are completely different from nutritional yeast and will not work in this recipe.
There is no substitute for coconut oil in this recipe. Nothing else will work.
Yes, it bakes perfectly. Use it in cakes, pies and frosting etc as you would regular butter.
Vegan butter and margarine are similar but not the same. Margarine has a really distinctive flavor and a really soft texture that is not like traditional dairy butter. It is also not always vegan. It often contains milk derivatives amongst other things, even the ones that are sometimes labeled as plant-based" so be careful. Look out for ingredients like whey, lactose, and casein. Also, be wary of lecithin and vitamin D3 which can sometimes be derived from animals. My vegan butter recipe is more like dairy butter in flavor and texture than store-bought margarine.
No. The recipe will not set when made with liquid coconut oil.
Recipe
Vegan Butter
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240 mls) refined coconut oil , it must be refined NOT unrefined
- ½ cup (50 grams or 8 tablespoons) almond flour
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150 mls) dairy-free milk , must be unsweetened & unflavored. See the post above for my fave milks to use.
- 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 pinch ground turmeric , optional but helps make colour a little more yellow
- ¼ cup (60 ml ml) neutral liquid oil , such as light olive, canola, vegetable, or sunflower oil.
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
Please see the recipe notes before proceeding if you intend on using this butter for frying/sautéing.
- Gently melt the coconut oil. I put it in the microwave on defrost for about 20 seconds but you can also stand the jar in some hot water. Measure it when it's liquid and not solid, then set aside for a few minutes to cool to room temperature. Do not use it while warm or hot.
- Place the almond flour, milk, salt, nutritional yeast, vinegar, and turmeric into a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth. Touch the blender jar and make sure the contents aren't really warm or hot. If they are wait until they are at room temperature again before moving onto the next step.
- Pour in the refined coconut oil and olive oil then blend again until completely emulsified. It's important not to let the contents of the blender get warm/hot so blend in short bursts and give it a break for a minute or two in between if you can feel it getting warm.
- Pour the liquid butter into a container, cover and refrigerate until set.
- Let the butter soften at room temperature for a few minutes before spreading for ultimate creaminess and ease of spreading.
NOTES
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Renee says
Made @ 10:00am, tried @ 2:00pm...excellent! Thank you! Plus it has healthy "oil" I used Organic Olive & Organic Coconut...
A Virtual Vegan says
That was a quick turn around! So glad you like it so much Renee and thank you for stopping by to let me know :O)
Kendra says
This is probably the best thing thats happened to me during my dairy free journey! This stuff is amazing. Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Kendra! I am so pleased you are enjoying it. It's been such a popular recipe!
Felicity says
Oh my goodness, this is amazing. I never realized how much I missed butter till I made this! I so enjoyed having it on my homemade bran muffins this morning. Thank you so much for the recipe, I don't plan to try any others! Perfect flavour, perfect consistency, just Perfect! :D
I followed it pretty much to a "t", except I cut out a step making the almond meal. I had slivered almonds (and I'm lazy), so I just added the slivered almonds with all ingredients except the coconut oil and blended! I also didn't want to dirty dishes melting the coconut oil, so I just let the heat from the blender melt it as the speed increased. I did have to scrape down the edges near the end to ensure everything was smooth throughout, but it worked awesome! I was tempted(as I often am) to deviate with some of the measurements in ingredients, but I'm so glad I didn't! You got it just right!
A Virtual Vegan says
Wow Felicity I am so glad you like it so much! It's good to know it blended down smoothly enough using slivered almonds. Do you have a super duper blender though like a Vitamix? Perhaps a lower powered one wouldn't do quite such a good job. I like your thinking about cutting out the melting of the coconut oil step and I'm so glad you didn't play around with the measurements. I tried so many variations when I was working on this recipe and like you said, it's pretty spot on. I have enough butter in the freezer to last me a life time after all my testing! May you enjoy butter on everything from here on in! By the way..It's awesome on crumpets :O)
Felicity says
Yes, I was going to say that it may not work to use slivered with a lower powered blender, I used a Vitamix. But yes, your hard work payed off! Thanks again, it's a brilliant recipe! :)
Kacie says
Omg! I just made this! Soooo yummy! Thanks so much
Aja says
I was wondering if olive oil can be used as a replacement for the coconut oil. I have coronary artery disease and coconut is an saturated fat, which I tend to stay away from. Thank you for your help.
A Virtual Vegan says
I am really sorry but olive oil won't work for this recipe. It has to be a fat that will solidify hence the coconut oil. Sorry it's not better news :0(
Don Urban says
Excellent! Just made this and it tastes great! Thank you.
A Virtual Vegan says
That's great Don. Thanks so much for stopping by to let me know!
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Kathryn,
My site was redesigned and went live earlier today. There are apparently going to be a few teething problems and that is one of them. I'm so sorry. I have asked my tech guy to look at it and sort it out. Check back later and hopefully it will be working. I will try to let you know when it's working but am on vacation and the wifi is shocking!
Lea says
Hi again
It was time for me to make a new batch of my vegan "butter" so I made both your recipe and mine. I can't say I have a preference in taste. Texture is a bit different but not much. Your recipe is quite good. Its not as fussy as the one I use. Tonight it passed the corn on the cob test. What I like the most is that your recipe, I think, has a better nutritional profile with the almonds and nutritional yeast. I will make your recipe again. I'm thinking I might even try combining it with mine....... That said......... all in all very good. ... Recommend it...
A Virtual Vegan says
Thanks for you feedback Lea. I love it on corn on the cob!
Violeta says
Forgot to say that you should stop creating those delicious recipes as I already ate half of the butter..
Violeta says
Dear Mel,
It is me again..(sorry for that but i need to share this with you)
I tried this morning the butter you created and .. IT IS JUST AMAZING.(even do I did without the yeast and I also mistaked with the coconut oil as it was virgin coconut oil, but those kind of mistakes are tipical me)
I am spanish and l don't know why I was looking for recipes in english but THANKS I DID!! I promess to try all your recipes!!!
Muchisimas gracias!
Vio
:D
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Violeta! I am so glad you shared this with me. You have made me very happy. I am thrilled that you like my butter recipe. It will be even better next time if you can find some refined coconut oil as then you won't have the slight coconut taste that Virgin coconut oil gives it. Thanks so much for letting me know. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!
Violeta says
Hi Stephanie!
This is AMAZING!
I can not find nutritional yeast, is there a problem if I do not use it?
Thank you so much!!
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Violeta, I'm called Mel. Not sure where you got Stephanie from! lol As for the nutritional yeast, it adds a bit of a buttery flavour but it won't affect how the recipe works if you leave it out. Hope that helps :O)
Violeta says
Mel!!
Excuse me please for the mistake!
Thank you so much for your quick answer.
I love your blog. You are doing a incredible job!
I will let you know how it goes :D
A Virtual Vegan says
Great, thanks so much. It means a lot :O)
Stephanie says
I was super excited about this however I can't have almonds due to sensitivity. Any substitute by chance?
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Stephanie, The almonds give it it's buttery flavour but I think cashew, macadamia nuts or even sunflower seeds ground down into a flour would probably work. Macadamia would probably have the butteriest flavour out of the three. I haven't tried it with any of these personally but I am sure it would be ok. I plan to at some point make a nut free version of it to publish so watch this space! Let me know how it goes if you try it!
A Virtual Vegan says
Yay! I am so glad you liked it. It's quicker to make it than it is to go to the store to buy some!
I don't mind you linking to the recipe at all as long as you do not post the ingredients list or method. You are welcome to use one of my pictures with the link if you like.
I just noticed when looking at your blog that you are on Vancouver Island too. It's a small world!
Thanks so much for stopping by to leave feedback. I really appreciate it :O)
Angela V says
I made this yesterday evening and later tried it on a piece of toast because I couldn't believe it could melt like butter....BUT IT DOES! Amazing!! It's quick and easy to make and tastes better than any kind of butter "replacement" I've ever tried. I'm interested to try baking/cooking with it.
Doro says
An amaaaaaaaazing recipe! Thanks so much for sharing it. No more fake butter full of palm oil from the supermarket. Texture is great, just like real butter ! and taste is fine. I used almond/rice milk and it worked well.
I hope that it will do good in my fav' chocolate cake that contains originally butter ;)
Thanks again!
A Virtual Vegan says
Wow thank you so much! I am glad you love the recipe and thank you so much for stopping by to let me know. I have used it in cake recipes with success so hopefully it will be great in your favourite chocolate cake. Enjoy!
aruvqan says
Though you do realize palm oil = coconut oil = tropical oil?
A Virtual Vegan says
Palm oil does not = coconut oil. They are completely different. Palm oil comes from the African Palm Oil Tree and it's growth is responsible for terrible deforestation and wildlife destruction, particularly in the case of orang-utan. Coconuts come from coconut palm trees. Completely different trees, grown in completely different conditions. Whilst I know there are some unethical practices surrounding coconut production (such as the use of monkeys etc), they aren't nearly as bad as the ethics surrounding palm oil and it is easy to source responsibly grown/harvested/produced coconut oil.
rosa says
Absolutely. Palm Oil is horrendous and is much worst the any other oils. Check: pahlmoilinvestigations.org
A Virtual Vegan says
Thanks so much for that link Rosa. I hadn't seen that website. It looks like a great resource. I have followed them on social media. I hope my butter recipe is a good palm oil free solution for you :O)
maggie leiterman says
Bravo Virtual Vegan! Love your website and recipes! The other comment I made about olive oil not being inflammatory was reply to Nancy Brady, I thought I replied to her remark but may not have, perhaps when you moderate the comment you could add that it is response to her claim that olive oil, other oils being inflammatory, absolute false with no science to back it up.
A Virtual Vegan says
Hi Maggie and thank you! I am so glad that you are enjoying my recipes. The other comment does show as being in reply to Nancy on my phone and I will double check on my computer tonight how it appears. I think it's fine though. Thank you for your support x