In our gradual change over to real food, one of the things we needed to eliminate was tub margarine to homemade spreadable butter. This saves money as well as avoiding chemicals and processing. It is not frugal to buy foods that your body is not processing as nutritional. While margarine may cost less per ounce up front, your body will not use that food for the things it needs.
When I first started making spread I just used olive oil and butter. I thought I would like the olive oil flavor but I found it was an acquired taste we had to get used to. Now I can’t stand the margarine in tubs.
Not-Margarine Spread Recipe
Makes approx. 2 pounds
Ingredients:
- 1 pound butter (one box/four sticks, I use unsalted sweet cream butter but you could try salted/local/organic/homemade)
- 1 1/2 cups olive oil (I use extra virgin)
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (I use extra virgin unrefined)
- dash salt (whatever kind you like, I use sea salt)
Directions:
- I try to make this when I am simmering something so I can use the warm stove to soften the coconut oil. You can take out the butter early to soften at room temperature without hurting anything, some people just leave their butter out, but coconut oil needs to be warmer. If you aren’t patient enough to soften you will get lumps.
- You can use a blender or food processor to blend your spread. My blender has cup marks on the jar, so I just use that and eyeball it.
- Put olive oil in blender.
- Add coconut oil to make two cups.
- Add your four sticks of butter.
- Add a dash of salt, more if your family likes more. You can also add a dash of sugar.
- The more oil you add the softer and more spreadable it will be, but also the more it will taste like olive oil.
- You can taste the coconut oil, but it isn’t any stronger than the olive oil. I love coconut, so it works for me.
- Blend/liquify until your spread is uniform. This may take some coaxing, or adding a little olive oil until you get that vortex in the middle thing.
- You should not have any lumps at this point.
- Pour into your container. You can refill a margarine tub, or use a couple mason jars. When cooled it may have lumps (just think, nuggets of coconut tastiness).
- Store in the fridge.
- Cold from the fridge it will be vaguely spreadable, but at room temp it is fine, and if it really bothers you you can increase the oil.
- You can’t use this as a substitute in baking, but we use butter or coconut oil so we don’t miss that.
- This is especially lovely on sweet bread, or french toast, or adds flavor to grilled cheese.
Another simple spreadable butter recipe can be found at Family Home & Life (this is probably the one I started out with, but I still have baby brain, I don’t remember)
Butter vs Margarine from Authority Nutrition
Butter vs Margarine Showdown from Food Renegade
Why You Should Never Eat Vegetable Oil or Margarine from Wellness Mama
Cost Breakdown
Ingredients costs
Extra virgin olive oil | 33.8 oz | $5.99 | $0.18/oz |
Unrefined coconut oil | 14 oz | $9.49 | $0.68/oz |
Unsalted sweet cream butter | 16 oz | $2.29 | $0.14/oz |
My Recipe Costs
Butter | 1 lb | = 16 oz | = $2.29 | |
Coconut oil | 1/2 c | = 4 oz | x $0.68/oz | = $2.72 |
Olive oil | 1 1/2 c | = 12 oz | x $0.18/oz | = $2.16 |
My recipe total | = $7.17 | / 32 oz | = $0.23/oz |
Margarine (generic tub) |
16 oz | $2.49 | = $0.16/oz |
*I got my prices from the Wegmans site for generics, but I paid less, especially for the coconut oil
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Participated in Moonlight & Mason Jars, Mostly Homemade Mondays, Real Food Wednesday, and Unprocessed Fridays linky parties

*Also see our DIY Natural Orange Homemade Toddler Toothpaste Recipe OR

Just Add Water Chocolate Mug Cake Mix Recipe
Title image from me, The More With Less Mom
We hope you enjoyed our Not-Margarine Spread Recipe – Using Real Butter, Olive Oil, and Coconut Oil post
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whoa, thank you so much for posting this! It is going to be so helpful when I order Coconut Oil online! Super Fabulous!
I’m glad you like it.