In my third instalment of the nut butter diaries, I will be reviewing a local nut butter, created on my home turf, London. I fortuitously stumbled upon Butter Nut of London during a weekend visit to Hampstead Farmers’ Market.
Butter Nut of London’s range consists of four delightful flavours, and through a sample-sized gift pack I got to taste them all. Here is the rundown on each of the spreads.
ABC
This creamy concoction is a mix of almonds, Brazil nuts and cashews. The natural sweetness embodies the combined flavours of all three nuts. The spread is delicately seasoned with Himalayan pink salt, which gives it a hint of saltiness after the nut hit. If I have to be at all critical, the texture could have been slightly firmer as compared to some of the others in the range this one is slightly runny. Also I prefer my nut butters au naturel, so I would be partial to a bit less salt.
Almond and Coconut
The first thing that struck me with this flavour was the texture, which is neither runny nor rubbery. Moving swiftly onto taste, which is obviously the key factor, the distinct coconut flavour instantly shone through. Unlike other almond butters on the market, this particular one has lovely discernible chunks of almonds and is a definite contender to the similarly flavoured spread from Meridian. If I had to compare, I’d probably give the upper hand to Butter Nut of London, given their mastery of texture and full-bodied infusion of crunchy almond pieces.
Hazelnut and Cacao
This is one of the most popular in the range – think a healthier alternative to everyone’s favourite Nutella. This spread is a mixture of cacao and hazelnuts with some cashews and medjool dates as well. I definitely liked this mixture but it was my least favourite of the range. Taste and consistency were spot on, however I tend to prefer less chocolaty and more nutty spreads. But if you love chocolate, this is the one for you.
Cashew Maple Turmeric
This is hands down my favourite of the spreads. It is just so utterly unique. The turmeric is a bold choice and it really pays off. The spread has hints of other spices too, including cinnamon and ginger, which give it an earthy and full-bodied flavour. This is a hands-down winning spread with a signature taste profile.
Nut Butter of London spreads are devoid of palm oil, refined sugar and gluten, and they do not contain any nasty preservatives or additives. From a macro perspective, they all have a fairly similar macro breakdown. Per 15g serving, you’re roughly looking at 3g protein, 8g fat and 1g of carbs. Luckily, my favourite, the Cashew Maple Turmeric spread, has about a gram less fat per serving relative to the others.
As with all good things, these butters don’t come cheap, with a 250g jar costing £7.95. However, if you don’t want to make this initial outlay, do what I did and get 4 x 33g jars in a gift pack for £10.
I can’t praise this range enough, and am so proud that it is produced locally in London. I urge you to give it a try, as your tastebuds will thank you. You can either visit Butter Nut of London online (https://butter-nut.com/) or meet them on the weekend at various farmers’ markets as listed on their website.