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Roasted Tomato Butter (Dairy Free)

Tomato butter is made with blistered ripe tomatoes, fresh herbs, dairy free or unsalted butter, and a few other simple ingredients to create the most delicious tomato compound butter. Enjoy with pasta, toast, veggies, and so much more!

Looking for more tomato recipes? Try my cherry tomato confitpeach tomato salad, Margherita pasta, or avocado toast with marinated tomatoes.

What You’ll Love About This Recipe

  • Simple recipe – This homemade condiment uses gorgeous fresh tomatoes, fresh herbs, and other pantry staples to create the most flavorful spread.
  • Flavorful – This will soon become a favorite tomato condiment.
  • Versatile – A great way to use up an abundance of summer tomatoes. Add this tomato butter to hot pasta, roasted veggies, a slice of good bread with dairy free mozzarella, cooked chicken or fish, etc.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this tomato butter sauce:

  • Cherry tomatoes – during the summer I love to get these locally at the farmer’s market when possible for the best flavor. 
  • Garlic clove – a great tomato pairing.
  • Dairy free butter – or unsalted butter if not dairy free. This creates the base of the sauce/spread.
  • Fresh herbs – I used a combination of fresh basil and fresh thyme, but you can use whatever you have on hand.
  • Sherry vinegar – a hit of acid helps round out the flavor and adds brightness.
  • Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper – to taste.

How To Make Tomato Butter: Step By Step

Here are some quick visual instructions. The full instructions and ingredient list will be in the printable recipe card below!

1. Preheat the oven. Arrange an oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler and preheat your oven to the broil setting.

2. Broil tomatoes. Place the cherry tomatoes and garlic on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Broil the tomatoes for 6-10 minutes, shaking the pan every 2 minutes for even blistering. Let the tomatoes and garlic cool to room temperature.

3. Whip together. Add the cooled blistered tomatoes and garlic to a food processor fitted with the S-blade with the rest of the ingredients along with any additional add-ins if using. Process until well combined. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Helpful Tips

  • Too hot to turn the oven on? Blister the tomatoes in a large cast iron pan over medium heat with a little bit of olive oil. Shake the pan every few minutes for even blistering.
  • For an even more concentrated tomato flavor, stir in a tablespoon of tomato paste to the warm blistered tomatoes and garlic once they come out of the oven. 
  • Use softened butter, not melted.

Quick Tip: If your mixture turns to liquid in the food processor (this can happen with dairy free butter or if the tomatoes haven’t cooled enough), refrigerate the tomato butter to firm up before using.

Storage

Fridge: Store tomato butter in the fridge for up to 10 days.

Freezer: To freeze, spoon the compound butter into ice cube trays until frozen. Once frozen, pop into a freezer-safe bag where it’ll keep for up to 3 months. When ready to use, add the cubes directly to a hot skillet, or let thaw overnight in the fridge first.

Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations

Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.

How can you make this tomato butter recipe using what you already have? Here are some ideas…

  • Not dairy free? ​- use unsalted butter.
  • No sherry vinegar? – you can also use fresh lemon juice, white wine vinegar, champagne vinegar, or red wine vinegar.
  • Add-ins – a pinch of brown sugar to bring out the sweetness of the tomatoes, lemon zest, use a mix of blistered cherry tomatoes and oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, red pepper flakes for a bit of heat, etc.

Variations

  • Tomato brown butter – add more dimension of flavor by browning the butter first until nutty then remove from the heat and let cool to firm up before processing with the rest of the ingredients.
  • Green tomato butter – make this recipe with green tomatoes for a different flavor profile, but you’ll need to add a bit of sugar to balance out the bitterness of the tomatoes.

How To Use

Slather tomato butter on grilled corn on the cob or toss with skillet blackened corn, cook eggs in it, smear on a piece of toast, sandwich (BLTs, grilled cheese sandwiches, etc.), fish such as lemon butter fish, pasta, roasted vegetables, risotto, grilled chicken, add to tomato sauce for a richer sauce, brush on top of crispy smashed potatoes, etc.

The options are endless. You can’t go wrong!

More Tomato Recipes

I hope you love this Tomato Butter! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment & a star rating so I know how you liked it!

Roasted Tomato Butter (Dairy Free)

Jars of homemade tomato butter on a cutting board next to fresh thyme sprigs.
Tomato butter is made with blistered ripe tomatoes whipped with fresh herbs, butter, and a few other simple ingredients to create the most delicious tomato compound butter. Enjoy with pasta, toast, veggies, and more!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Serving Size 0

Ingredients
 

  • 12 ounces cherry tomatoes about 2 cups or 341 grams
  • 2 garlic cloves peeled
  • 1 cup room temperature dairy free butter or unsalted butter cut into cubes
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
  • 1 tablespoon fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar or substitute, see notes below
  • ½ teaspoon diamond crystal kosher salt, plus more to taste start with ¼ teaspoon if using any other kind
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven. Arrange an oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler and preheat your oven to the broil setting.
  • Broil tomatoes. Place the cherry tomatoes and garlic on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Broil the tomatoes for 6-8 minutes, shaking the pan every 2 minutes for even blistering. Let the tomatoes and garlic cool to room temperature.
  • Whip together. Add the cooled blistered tomatoes and garlic to a food processor fitted with the S-blade with the cubed butter, fresh herbs, sherry vinegar, kosher salt, and pepper (along with any additional add-ins if using). Process until well combined.
  • Season to taste. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. The butter can be used right away or if it melted in the food processor, store in the fridge for about an hour to firm up.

Notes

Makes about 2 cups of tomato butter.
If your mixture turns to liquid in the food processor (this can happen with dairy free butter or if the blistered tomatoes aren’t cool enough), refrigerate the tomato butter to firm up before using.
See the blog post for more helpful tips, storage instructions, and ideas on how to use it.

Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations

Not dairy free? ​- use unsalted butter.
No sherry vinegar? – you can also use fresh lemon juice, white wine vinegar, champagne vinegar, or red wine vinegar.
Add-ins – a pinch of brown sugar to bring out the sweetness of the tomatoes, lemon zest, use a mix of blistered cherry tomatoes and oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, red pepper flakes for a bit of heat, etc.

Variations

Tomato brown butter – add more dimension of flavor by browning the butter first until nutty then remove from the heat and let cool to firm up before processing with the rest of the ingredients.
Green tomato butter – make this recipe with green tomatoes for a different flavor profile, but you’ll need to add a bit of sugar to balance out the bitterness of the tomatoes.

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