Can a girl ever have enough nut butter? NEVER. Luckily, there's TONS of varieties of nut butters on the market today. So, I decided, why not try my own? The plus of making your own nut butter at home is you can make it any way you want and experiment with combining different nuts (and coconut). This will not be the last nut butter I make at home, stay tuned!

2 cups of raw cashews
2 cups of unsweetened coconut flakes
1 tsp of pure vanilla extract
big pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Parchment a large cookie sheet. 

Spread cashews and coconut flakes out on the cookie sheet, bake for 12-15 min. until golden brown. 

Right out of the oven, transfer toasted cashews and coconut to the food processor. This is important, it will blend and smooth out easier when it's hot! Add vanilla and salt. 

Turn on the processor and begin blending until it becomes a coarse meal. Scrape down the sides and keep blending. A sticky ball of paste will start to form, ALMOST THERE, keep going!! Eventually, the mixture will start to smooth and the "butter" will form. See photos above.

Once the butter is to the consistency you prefer, transfer to an airtight jar and store in the fridge. Then, put that *ish* on EVERYTHING! 

Cashew cream is AMAZING. The uses and variations are endless. It's SO easy to make and a useful nutritional replacement to have on hand. The slightly sweet and buttery cashew nut is packed with energy, antioxidants, minerals and vitamins that are essential for long-lasting health.​

I recently used it as a replacement for heavy cream in my lightened up chicken pot pies. It gave them the same creamy, rich taste and texture that cream does PLUS healthy brain boosting fats. I've also used it as a frosting for chocolate cupcakes. The recipe below is a base and from there you can take it SO many places! Try it sweet, savory, or spicy. 

1 cup of raw organic cashews
filtered water

Place cashews in a bowl and pour in enough filtered water to cover them completely. Let soak for 2-3 hours minimum (out on the counter is fine) or up to overnight (in the fridge). 

After soaking, drain water from cashews. Place cashews in a high-speed blender with (new & clean) filtered water. The amount of water will depend on the thickness you want the cream. If you're making something like a frosting start with a few tablespoons of water. If you're making a liquid cream for soup, pasta, etc. then start with 1 cup and add 1-2 tablespoons at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Once the cream is smooth, pour into an airtight container and store in the fridge until ready to use. This cream will keep around 2 weeks. 

I HEART PESTO <3

Pesto on pizza, pesto on sandwiches, pesto on eggs, pesto on everythinggggg!

So I saw this nut free/vegan version using avocado - genius! So I decided to add a few of my own twists adding spinach & walnut oil, nutritimentation style.

Full of healthy fats and greens, this pesto is a skin-glowing, brain boosting concoction.