Amlou

A nut butter, made from the nuts grown on argan trees which are native to southwestern Morocco. Uncommon in other areas of the world, argan trees are twisted and gnarled in appearance with thorny branches. The tree yields a green fruit containing a hard-shelled interior that covers several almond-like nuts. Eaten raw, the nuts have a bitter flavor. When processed into argan oil, the slower traditional methods of production generally require 20 to 30 hours of work to produce a liter of oil, resulting in a higher priced oil.

Following the removal of the oil from the nut kernels, the remaining by-product is a thick nut paste that is deep brown in color. Similar to tahini or peanut butter, amlou is most often used as a dip or spreading butter to be served over bread, toast or crackers.