How to Make the Best Whipped Mexican Vanilla Butter
I absolutely love gourmet gifts, and with three ingredients (and about five minutes), you can wow your friends and familia with my whipped vanilla butter. I’ve infused it with Mexican vanilla and sweetened it with agave. It’s absolutely delicious on toasted bread, pancakes, and French toast!
WHAT IS VANILLA BUTTER?
If you’ve heard of honey butter, vanilla butter is an elevated, Mexican version of this sweet butter that pairs deliciously with toast. It’s a type of spread made by combining softened butter with vanilla beans or extract, sweetener, and sometimes salt. You can use sugar or honey to sweeten this butter, but I prefer agave.
If you’re looking to add some sweetness to your life, check out my Guava Butter recipe and the full lineup of dessert recipes!
WHY I LOVE THIS RECIPE
- Quick and easy: Vanilla butter is incredibly easy to make, requiring just three simple ingredients – butter, agave, and vanilla. My kids absolutely love it on toast!
- Gourmet gift: If you love gifting homemade treats, it doesn’t get any easier than this. For a truly gourmet gift, I use Mexican vanilla beans, but vanilla extract works as well.
- Versatile: We love this butter on just about all of our breakfast dishes, from pancakes and French toast, to waffles and bread rolls.
Vanilla butter makes a beautiful edible gift and is a popular topping for bread, toast, pancakes, and waffles. It can also be used as an ingredient in baking recipes.
If you’re looking for more edible gift inspiration, be sure to check out my homemade guava jam as well as my kumquat jam.
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED
- Unsalted butter: At room temperature.
- Agave syrup: If you don’t have agave, you can use honey or powdered sugar instead.
- Vanilla: You can use 1 Mexican vanilla bean or 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract for this recipe. Vanilla bean paste will also work.
RECOMMENDED BY LOLA FOR THIS RECIPE
MEXICAN VANILLA BEANS
For the richest and highest grade beans, I buy in bulk from Voladores Vanilla, which sources traditional varieties directly from small growers in Papantla, Veracruz. They come vacuum sealed and are much fresher than what you’ll find in most spice shops. VIEW PRODUCT
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
1. Whip butter
- Using a stand or hand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip butter for three minutes.
2. Add vanilla bean and agave
- Using a dull knife, gently cut vanilla bean down the middle lengthwise, without cutting through to the other side.
- Next, scrape as much of the seeds out of the vanilla bean and add them to the butter.
- Add agave syrup and whip for an additional two minutes.
- Store in a glass jar with a lid.
3. Serve and enjoy
- Serve on warm dinner rolls, toast, pancakes, and waffles or add to a butter board.
TIPS, TRICKS, AND SUBSTITUTIONS
You’d be surprised how much quality matters when you’re using so few ingredients. You can really taste the difference!
- High-quality ingredients are key in this recipe. I like to use butter with at least 84% butterfat, which ensures the richest, creamiest quality butter.
- As for my Mexican ingredients, I use the most fragrant vanilla beans from Voladores Vanilla, a company that works directly with small farmers to protect and promote the diversity of Mexican vanilla.
- Organic blue agave syrup also generates a premium sweetener, which is higher in fructose and lower on the glycemic index than syrups made from mixed agave.
- If you’re craving that sweet and salty flavor combination, you can also add a pinch of Maldon Sea Salt.
WHAT TO PAIR WITH VANILLA BUTTER
- Breakfast: Pancakes, waffles, French toast, biscuits, bagels, and scones.
- Bread: Apple bread, persimmon bread, cornbread, dinner rolls, or sourdough bread.
- Grilled meats: Chicken, shrimp, or salmon.
LOOKING FOR MORE EDIBLE GIFT IDEAS?
- 30-Minute Guava Jam
- Kumquat Jam with Vanilla (4 Ingredients, No Pectin)
- 10-Minute Spiced Piloncillo Syrup
- 10-Minute Hibiscus Syrup (Jarabe de Flor de Jamaica)
- Dulce de Leche Chocolate Almond Clusters
- No-Bake Dark Chocolate S’mores Clusters
- Easy Chocolate Haystacks with Mini Marshmallows
- Lavender Cookies with Vanilla
- Easy DIY Buñuelos
- DIY Chipotle Sage Butter
- Salsa Amarilla (Yellow Cherry Tomato Salsa Recipe)
- Chile Japones Salsa
- Guacamole Salsa (Guacasalsa)
BEST WHIPPED MEXICAN VANILLA BUTTER RECIPE
Equipment
- Standing mixer or hand mixer
Ingredients
- ½ pound unsalted butter at room temperature
- ⅓ cup agave syrup or honey, or powdered sugar
- 1 Mexican vanilla bean or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whip butter. Using a stand or hand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip butter for three minutes.
- Add vanilla and agave. Using a dull knife, gently cut vanilla bean down the middle lengthwise, without cutting through to the other side.Next, scrape as much of the seeds out of the vanilla bean and add them to the butter. Add agave syrup and whip for an additional two minutes.Store in a glass jar with a lid. PRO TIP: If using vanilla extract, simply measure out one tablespoon and add it to the butter along with the agave syrup.
- Serve and enjoy. Serve as a topping for warm dinner rolls, toast, pancakes, and waffles or add to a butter board.
A Note from Lola
TIPS, TRICKS, AND SUBSTITUTIONS
You’d be surprised how much quality matters when you’re using so few ingredients. You can really taste the difference!- High-quality ingredients are key in this recipe. I like to use butter with at least 84% butterfat, which ensures the richest, creamiest quality butter.
- As for my Mexican ingredients, I use the most fragrant vanilla beans from Voladores Vanilla, a company that works directly with small farmers to protect and promote the diversity of Mexican vanilla.
- Organic blue agave syrup also generates a premium sweetener, which is higher in fructose and lower on the glycemic index than syrups made from mixed agave.
- If you’re craving that sweet and salty flavor combination, you can also add a pinch of Maldon Sea Salt.
Nutrition
Lola’s Cocina is a small business that earns various revenue streams. This includes sponsored posts and affiliate commissions from linked products, which I use and love. This commission is an agreement between Lola’s Cocina and retailers, with no extra cost to readers. This income helps sustains the site.
Photography: Cacey McReavy (hero shots only); process shots by Lola
Lola Wiarco Dweck
Lola is a Mexican-American recipe developer, writer, and cooking instructor who loves sharing her culture with the world. Growing up in California and spending summers in Mexico, Lola celebrates her family’s Mexican recipes and vibrant culture through Lola’s Cocina.
