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Try making your own coconut butter at home for a creamy, rich, and tropical treat for your taste buds! With only 3 ingredients, this naturally sweet spread comes in at a fraction of the cost of store-bought jars. It’s perfect for spreading on your morning toast, drizzling over fresh fruit, or even adding to your favorite vegan desserts.

Table of Contents
❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe
- Simple to make: With just three ingredients and a blender, you’re literally minutes away from your own homemade coconut butter (manna).
- Contains healthy fats: Coconuts are packed with medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), a type of fatty acid thought to aid in weight management, heart health, and gut health.
- Versatile: You can use coconut manna in your baking, spread it on toast in place of butter or peanut butter, or add it to your smoothies for a creamy, tropical twist.
- Perfect for sweet tooths: The natural sweetness from the coconut combined with a touch of maple syrup will satisfy your cravings in a healthier way.
If you love coconut butter, you should check out our coconut yogurt, vegan whipped cream, and vegan condensed milk.
🥥 What is coconut butter?
Coconut butter is a creamy spread made from puréed dried coconut flesh. Its consistency is velvety and spreadable, similar to peanut butter, but with a sweetness and tropical twist that’s uniquely coconut.
Using a high-speed blender or food processor, the coconut is processed until it becomes a heavenly, milky white spread. We typically like to add a bit of coconut oil and maple syrup to achieve the perfect consistency and flavor, but you can just as easily make this recipe with only coconut.
Whatever the case, it’s delicious served on warm toast, mixed into oatmeal, used to bind energy balls, or even as a topping for your favorite vegan desserts. The options are endless!

🤔 Coconut butter vs coconut oil
Navigating the world of coconut products can be a bit confusing, especially when it comes to coconut butter and coconut oil. Don’t worry, we’re here to clear up the confusion! Here are the differences:
- Source: Coconut oil is extracted from the meat or kernel of mature coconuts. On the other hand, coconut manna incorporates whole coconut flesh.
- Texture: Coconut oil is clear and liquid at room temperature, solidifying when cooled. Coconut butter has a thick, spreadable consistency at room temperature (similar to peanut butter).
- Nutrition: Coconut oil is pure fat, while coconut butter also contains fiber and other nutrients from coconut meat, making it a slightly healthier option.
- Use cases: Coconut oil is often used for frying, sautéing, and baking recipes. Coconut butter can be used as a spread, in baking, and in a variety of other dishes for a creamy, coconutty flavor.
- Taste: Both have a coconutty flavor, but coconut manna tends to have a richer, creamier taste due to the coconut meat.
Both coconut products have their unique uses and benefits, so it’s best to have both on hand when the need arises!

🛒 Ingredients & substitutions
- Dried coconut: Provides that classic, tropical flavor. Make sure to use unsweetened coconut shreds or flakes for the best results.
- Coconut oil: While not 100% necessary, we find it helps achieve a smoother coconut manna texture. MCT oil will also work as a substitute.
- Maple syrup: Also optional, but maple syrup adds a hint of extra sweetness to enhance the natural sugars in the coconut. Agave syrup also works here.
For a complete ingredient list and step-by-step guide, scroll down to our recipe card.
📝 How to make coconut butter
Step 1: Blend the coconut
It’s best to use a high-speed blender or food processor for this recipe. This will help you create the smoothest, most buttery-smooth texture.

Add the coconut shreds, oil, and maple syrup to the blender and pulse or blend it until the texture turns creamy. You’ll need to stop every now and then to scrape down the sides and give your blender a rest.
Step 2: Transfer and store
When the coconut butter is nice and smooth, transfer it to a mason jar for easy storage. Happy eating!

If you have questions about this coconut butter recipe, check out our FAQs or leave a comment down below!
🥐 What to serve with coconut butter
- Toast: Spread some on a slice of toasted dairy-free bread or sourdough bread.
- Fruit: Drizzle it over fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, or blackberries.
- Oatmeal: Stir it into your morning vegan oatmeal or high-protein overnight oats.
- Smoothies: Add a spoonful to a mango pineapple smoothie for more tropical vibes.
- Pancakes: Add a drizzle on mini pancakes or even sourdough French toast.
- Baking: Mix it into your vegan baking recipes.
🌡️ Storage
Keep these tips in mind when storing and using your homemade coconut butter:
- Room temperature: Store your coconut butter in a tightly sealed jar in a cool, dry, and dark place (like a cupboard) for up to a month.
- Fridge: If you’d prefer, you can keep coconut manna in the fridge for up to 2-3 months. It will become solid, but it can be easily softened when you need more.
- Freezer: We don’t recommend freezing coconut butter, as it may change the texture too much once thawed.
- Softening: You can warm and soften your coconut manna by placing the jar in a bowl of hot water. Stir it until it’s spreadable again.

♻️ Variations
- Vanilla: Add a splash of pure vanilla extract before blending the coconut butter.
- Chocolate: Blend in some unsweetened cocoa powder for a chocolatey twist.
- Spices: Add a dash of cinnamon, nutmeg, chai spice, or pumpkin pie spice.
- Matcha: Blend in a teaspoon of matcha powder for a superfood boost.
- Citrus: Add in some lemon, lime, or orange zest before blending.
- Berries: Blend in some freeze-dried strawberries or raspberries.
🧑🍳 Top tips
- Use a high-speed blender: This will give you the creamiest coconut butter results.
- Scrape the sides: Make sure to stop and scrape down the sides for even blending
- Adjust the sweetness: Feel free to adjust the amount of maple syrup based on your preference. You can even omit it completely.
- Try different coconut shreds: Experiment with different types of shredded or flaked coconut to find out what you prefer most in this recipe.
- Have patience: It takes a solid 5 or more minutes of blending to reach the right consistency. Just keep stopping and scraping the sides until the coconut releases its natural oils.
- Reheat it correctly: Do not microwave coconut manna. Heat it up by placing the jar in a bowl of hot water to prevent it from turning grainy.
💬 FAQ
Yes, you can also use a high-quality food processor. It may take a bit longer, but you should be able to achieve similar results.
Coconut butter can sometimes separate as the oil rises to the top, especially when it’s stored in the fridge (similar to natural peanut butter). Just soften it in a hot water bath and give it a good stir before using it.
Yes, coconut butter can be used as a 1:1 substitute for regular vegan butter in most baking recipes. Just keep in mind it will add a more pronounced coconut flavor.
Yes, coconut butter is healthy in moderation. It contains healthy fats, known as medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), and it is a good source of fiber and even protein. However, like all fats, it should be consumed in moderation.
Yes, coconut butter is high in fats and low in carbs, making it suitable for a keto diet.
🍴 More vegan basics
If you like kitchen basics like this coconut manna recipe, check out some more of our vegan basics like these:
- Vegan Heavy Cream: A rich and flavorful alternative to heavy cream.
- Vegan Pizza Dough: Simple pizza dough made at home.
- Dairy-Free Sour Cream: Rich, thick, and creamy sour cream replacement.
- Vegan Cream Cheese: A tangy cream cheese made from tofu and a few other pantry staples.

Homemade Coconut Butter
Equipment
- High-speed blender
Ingredients
- 4 cups coconut shreds
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Add the coconut shreds, coconut oil, and maple syrup to a high-speed blender or food processor.
- Blend the mixture for 5-10 minutes until the texture turns creamy. Stop every 1-2 minutes to scrape down the sides and give your blender a rest.
- When the coconut butter is nice and smooth, transfer it to a mason jar for easy storage. Happy eating!
Notes
- Use a high-speed blender: This will give you the creamiest coconut butter results.
- Scrape the sides: Make sure to stop and scrape down the sides for even blending
- Adjust the sweetness: Feel free to adjust the amount of maple syrup based on your preference. You can even omit it completely.
- Try different coconut shreds: Experiment with different types of shredded or flaked coconut to find out what you prefer most in this recipe.
- Have patience: It takes a solid 5 or more minutes of blending to reach the right consistency. Just keep stopping and scraping the sides until the coconut releases its natural oils.
- Reheat it correctly: Do not microwave coconut butter. Heat it up by placing the jar in a bowl of hot water to prevent it from turning grainy.
- Nutritional information is a rough estimate and should not be taken as health advice.
Nutrition
Note: We’ve updated this post to include new information and helpful tips about the recipe.
Just curious….my butter looks thin. Is it suposed to be the consistency of butter? Or, more liquid?
Hi Dayla!
It is quite runny, especially when it’s slightly warm from blending. Once it cools, it’s more like the consistency of peanut butter, not regular butter. Hope that helps!