The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (2024)

by Debbie Chapman

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This monkey butter is soooooo good. Seriously. I was shocked. You watch the ingredients go in the pan, and then you watch them cook. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably be thinking, “meh, it’s just pineapple and banana, so what?” But just as the banana melts down and the sugar starts to bubble, you’ll find it hard not to sneak a taste. As soon as my mixure was done simmering, I couldn’t resist any longer, and I tried a steaming little spoonful. And then I smiled.

It was so good that it actually made me smile. That’s pretty rare! It was sweet and tangy, with this awesome buttery texture. How have I never tried this before?!

It reminds me of a banana split. And let me just say it would taste AMAZING on ice cream. AMAZING. You know those delicious little pineapple bits that you get in a banana split? It’s always my favourite part of eating a banana split to taste the combination of banana, ice cream and pineapple, all together in one delicious mouthful. Yum! (Guess what I’ll be having for dessert tonight, maybe with a little chocolate syrup drizzled over top?! Mmmm…)

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (1)

Try to use bananas that are perfectly ripe. I was kind of stressing about finding “perfectly ripe” bananas. WhenI went to the grocery store Ipanicked a bit that all the bananas on the shelf this week were either extremely green, or completely covered in brown spots. Go figure!

I’m apparently the crazy person who visits two grocery stores to try to find perfectbananas and ends up buying about two dozen bananas. (Which may sound excessive, but our little family of five goes through a shocking number of bananas in a week…). And then withtwo dozen bananas sitting on the counter, every time my husband would reach forone, I’d yell, “ONLY EAT THE UGLY ONES!!” Yup. I might be losing it.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe | Banana Jam

As far as recipes go, this one is really easy. Only 5 ingredients. The full printable recipe is at the end of this post, but here’s what you’ll need:

  • Bananas
  • Crushed Pineapple
  • Ground Coconut
  • White Sugar
  • Bottled Lemon Juice

So these are the best bananas I could find! (I may or may not have edited out a few brown spots… 😉 ) Ifyou can’t find perfect bananas either, don’t worry about it. These ever-so-slightly under ripe bananas worked perfectlyand I’m sure that bananas with a couple of spots would work as well.

I just don’trecommend using over ripe bananas, or it will end up tasting crazy sweet.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (2)

I used “macaroon” coconut from the bulk store. It’s just ground coconut flakes (unsweetened). If you have any troubles finding it, throw a couple of tablespoons of regular coconut flakes into a small food processor and pulse until it turns into small bits.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (3)

Put all the ingredients into a large nonstick pan.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (4)

Bring the mixture to a boil on high heat, stirring frequently.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (5)

Then reduce the heat to low and simmer it until the banana has completely dissolved and the mixture thickens up. It took about 15 to 20 minutes.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (6)

It ends up having a texture similar to apple sauce. Maybe just a little bit thicker than apple sauce.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (7)

As I said, it would go PERFECTLY with ice cream. Or you could spread it on toast, or serve it on pancakes or waffles. I bet it would taste amazing if you added a bit right to the pancake batter too.

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The lemon juice keeps the bananas from going brown, so it will last in the refrigerator for about 4 to 6 weeks.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (9)

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe

This five ingredient monkey butter is so easy to make and tastes sooooooooo good.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time25 minutes mins

Servings: 3 cups

Ingredients

  • 4 perfectly ripe bananas no spots
  • 14 oz can of crushed pineapple with the juice
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons unsweetened ground coconut I used "macaroon" coconut
  • 3 Tablespoons lemon juice from a bottle

Instructions

  • Chop the banana into thin slices.

  • Combine all of the ingredients in a large nonstick pan.

  • Bring to a rolling boil, stirring often.

  • Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the banana has dissolved and the mixture has thickened slightly (about 15 to 20 minutes), stirring frequently.

  • Serve warm over ice cream or on toast, pancakes or waffles.

  • Can be stored in the fridge for 4 to 6 weeks.

The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (11)

This five ingredient monkey butter is so easy to make and tastes sooooooooo good. I was eating it by the spoonful. It tastes amazing on ice cream, or you can serve it with pancakes, waffles or even spread it on toast or english muffins. Yum!

If you’re looking for more delicious banana recipes, check out our pan fried cinnamon bananas. These end up with an ever so slightly caramelized coating. So good!

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About Debbie Chapman, the Author of this Post

I'm Debbie Chapman, founder of One Little Project and author of the book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids. I love creating fun and easy crafts and cooking up delicious recipes for my husband and 3 kids.

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Desserts and Sweets, RecipesTagged With: bananas, jam, mason jars, pineapple

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Reader Interactions

Let us know what you think:

  1. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (14)Jeffrey Gray says

    The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (15)
    I made the Monkey Butter recipe today, it turned out to be very tasty. I did one extra step, after I put the butter into canning jars I boiled them for twenty minutes so I can keep them longer than 4 to 6 months and not refrigerate it. Thank you.

    Reply

    • The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (16)One Little Project says

      So glad you enjoy the recipe, Jeffrey! And it seems like a lot of people have had success with canning the Monkey Butter, which is good to know.

      Reply

  2. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (17)Liz says

    The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (18)
    This is perfect for dipping coconut shrimp in

    Reply

  3. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (19)Liz says

    The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (20)
    Perfect for dipping fried shrimp or coconut shrimp in 🍤 😋

    Reply

  4. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (21)Popeye says

    My wife detests coconut. From the taste, smell and texture, she can’t stand it. Does it add anything to the recipe that you would miss if it were omitted?

    Reply

    • The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (22)One Little Project says

      We haven’t made it without the coconut, but I do think it would be fine to omit it.

      Reply

  5. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (23)Honi says

    Hi Debbie
    Could you cut down on the sugar at all for this monkey butter recipe ?
    Kind regards
    Honi

    Reply

    • The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (24)One Little Project says

      Hi Honi! Since the texture of the monkey butter is like applesauce/jam, the amount of sugar is important for the consistency (and the taste). But if you don’t mind a thinner sauce that’s less sweet, you can definitely reduce the amount of sugar.

      Reply

  6. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (25)Edith says

    can I make this with less or no sugar ?

    Reply

    • The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (26)One Little Project says

      Hi Edith. You can definitely try making it without the sugar… the ingredients themselves will definitely be tasty together (though if leaving out the sugar I would probably only do a splash of the lemon juice). However, it won’t have the same consistency or flavour without the sugar. You could also try making it with Splenda or another sugar substitute.

      Reply

  7. The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (27)Dayna says

    The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (28)
    Made this today and realized I forgot the lemon juice. I water bathed them. Do you think the bananas will turn brown after being canned or should I re-process with the lemon juice? It’s super yummy!!!

    Reply

    • The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (29)One Little Project says

      Hi Dayna — so glad you’re enjoying this recipe! 🙂

      Since canning removes most of the air, I don’t think that the bananas will turn brown in the jars. That’s just a guesstimate, though, so it’s up to you whether you think it’s worth re-doing.

      Reply

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The BEST Monkey Butter Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is monkey butter made of? ›

If you haven't heard of or tried monkey butter, let us fill you in on how yummy it is; filled with pineapple, bananas and coconut, this tropical, fruity concoction is tasty on so many things!

Is monkey butter good? ›

This five ingredient monkey butter is so easy to make and tastes sooooooooo good. I was eating it by the spoonful. It tastes amazing on ice cream, or you can serve it with pancakes, waffles or even spread it on toast or english muffins. Yum!

How much cream to make a pound of butter? ›

Homemade Butter Recipe Tips

Here's a tip: If you start with one quart of cream (32 ounces), you'll make about one pound of butter (16 ounces, or four sticks) and two cups of buttermilk.

What strain is monkey butter? ›

Gorilla Butter, also known as "Gorilla Butter F2 #12," “Monkey Butter,” and "Gorilla Butter F2," is a hybrid weed strain made by crossing Peanut Butter Breath with GG4. With 18% THC, the effects of Gorilla Butter are believed to be balanced.

What is butters main ingredient? ›

Heavy cream is the core ingredient in butter, making it a dairy product that contains milk solids, and those solids help distinguish the product's many uses.

What is gorilla butter? ›

About Gorilla Butter

A perfectly curated cross between Peanut Butter Breath and Gorilla Glue #4 (GG4), Gorilla Butter is a balanced Indica/Sativa hybrid strain that both soothes and uplifts. Both the parents of Peanut Butter Breath (Do-Si-Dos x Mendo Breath) give this strain relaxing effects that do not knock you out.

Why is peanut butter called monkey butter? ›

Peanut Butter Slang

The slang term for peanut butter in World War II was “monkey butter.” A monkey visited the lab at Kellogg's one day and dipped his banana in a jar of peanut butter, and he's been ape over the combination ever since.

Does good butter make a difference? ›

High-quality butter has higher milk fat content, which gives you richer, flakier and more flavourful baked goods that tend to have better shape and structure. A lower-quality butter has more water content, which will produce, for example, a crisper, flatter cookie with more crunch.

What is the best milk to make butter with? ›

The best option would be fresh, raw cream from pastured Jersey cows. Milk from Jersey cows has the highest fat content, which is why they are primarily dairy cattle. In addition, the fat in their milk has larger globules in it which makes it perfect for churning butter.

What is the best cream to make butter with? ›

It may affect the flavor and yield though. Fresh Sweet Cream The ideal cream is non-ultra pasteurized, high butterfat content (36-40%), organic, and from pastured cows. Jersey cream makes churning faster, due to larger butterfat globules.

Is it cheaper to make your own butter? ›

Butter isn't that expensive — it's about $3 per pound at the wholesale level. Cream costs roughly $3.50 for 16 ounces, or less if you buy a larger carton. That means the price of making your own butter isn't much more than buying it in the store, and often you can get organic cream cheaper than organic butter.

What does monkey butter taste like? ›

Monkey Butter is basically a thick fruit jam that has banana, pineapple and coconut in it, definitely has a strong tropical vibe. That's why in my rendition of Monkey Butter I spiked it with spiced rum.

What is Butter runtz? ›

Butter Runtz is the result of crossing the flavorful and potent Peanut Butter Breath strain with the iconic Runtz strain. The marriage of these two outstanding strains has given birth to a cannabis experience that is both delightful and powerful.

What is the Donkey Butter strain? ›

Donkey Butter, also known as Donkey Butt, is an indica-dominant hybrid from Exotic Genetix based out of Colorado. The top reported aromas are a pungent diesel scent, with earth and pine undertones. The top reported flavors are a peppery, earthy flavor with diesel and chemical notes.

What is monkey meat made of? ›

Monkey meat is the flesh and other edible parts derived from monkeys, a kind of bushmeat. Human consumption of monkey meat has been historically recorded in numerous parts of the world, including multiple Asian and African nations.

What are monkey balls made of? ›

The fruits, or monkey balls, typically weigh between 1 and 5 pounds and are usually the size of a baseball. Only the female trees produce fruit, according to The Incline. The fruits are not edible for humans and are basically a ball of latex with white, sticky glue. Some people swear they can be used for pest control.

What does monkey bread contain? ›

Homemade monkey bread combines several tiny balls of dough coated in butter, cinnamon, and sugar. It's basically a giant Bundt pan of gooey cinnamon rolls! Finish this fun breakfast or dessert treat with vanilla icing and serve pull apart style. This recipe is brought to you in partnership with Red Star Yeast.

What is animal butter made of? ›

Most frequently made from cow's milk, butter can also be manufactured from the milk of other mammals, including sheep, goats, buffalo, and yaks. It is made by churning milk or cream to separate the fat globules from the buttermilk.

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