If you haven’t ever tried a compound butter, then you are missing out. I think butter might just be my very favorite food. It is an ingredient in everything good. So, if there is something that you put butter on before eating, then you can make it even better with a compound butter. Think bread, toast, corn on the cob, scones, pancakes, waffles, garlic bread and so on.
What is compound butter, you ask. It is basically butter with stuff mixed into it. Wow! That sounds pretty enticing. Let’s see if I can do better. Honey butter. That is a compound butter that most everybody has heard of. It is butter with honey mixed into it. Who doesn’t enjoy honey butter? But it can go way beyond honey butter.
Today I’m going to share three compound butter ideas, but pretty much if you can imagine it, you can make it.
The basics to making compound butter:
1. Take softened salted butter, (It should give if you push your finger into it, but shouldn’t just mush,) and
2. Add whatever ingredients you want.
3. Use a stand mixer, hand held mixer or even a food processor, mix together until it is uniform. (The more liquid in the additions, the longer and more patience it will take.)
4. Scrape the mixed butter onto a rectangle of plastic wrap and use the plastic wrap to form it into a small log.
5. Wrap it up, twisting the ends (like a tootsie roll) and put it in the refrigerator until it is firm.
6. Spread it on everything and anything you want.
Here are three ideas for compound butters:
Raspberry Honey Butter
Sun Dried Tomato Parmesan Butter
Chili Lime Butter
and a bonus of my favorite ratio for honey butter, (there is a lot of honey in it!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/4 cup fresh raspberries, mashed thoroughly
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes chopped (if packed in oil or water, thoroughly dried before use)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne (more or less depending on how spicy you like it.)
- zest and juice of one lime
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- For each compound butter, placed softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or a food processor. Butter should give when pressed with a finger, but should not be completely soft.
- Mix or pulse until all the ingredients are combined and the mixture is uniform. This will take longer with butters that have liquidy ingredients (Raspberry and lime juice)
- Place a rectangle of plastic wrap on the counter, scoop the butter mixture into the center of the plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to form it into a log shape.
- Wrap the butter in the plastic wrap, twisting both ends of the plastic wrap, so it is shaped like a tootsie roll.
- Place in the refrigerator until it is firm. Then spread it on whatever you can think of. Toast, scones, pancakes, corn on the cob etc.
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