Monday, April 4, 2011

Real Butter Spread

One of the little things I always forget to do is set my butter out to soften before I need it.  And there's nothing worse than going to butter a piece of bread and having hard-as-a-rock butter that tears up the bread.

I grew up always having some kind of soft spread on hand, but after switching to real butter, that wasn't an option.  Lately, my family's been using the "spreadable butter" that is mixed with olive oil (or canola when the olive oil kind is not on sale).  I am not wild about any extra canola oil in my family's diet (and we eat quite a lot of toast and butter), and I have yet to find an organic version of the butter-oil mixture.



Luckily, we ran out of spreadable butter last week, and in slight desperation at toast time, I tried this!

Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil (if you don't like that olive-y taste very much, you can use light)
pinch of salt (if your butter is unsalted)

Instructions:
Process in food processor (mixing with a spatula does NOT work... it leaves it really lumpy)
Refrigerate.

It only takes a minute to mix.



So... why in the world have I been going out of my way to buy this stuff pre-mixed?  Great question.  This homemade spreadable butter tastes just like store-bought (and I can even use organic, pastured butter)!



6 comments:

  1. We used to do this but I have found that it is no big deal to leave the butter out on the counter. I haven't bought olive oil in awhile either because all of the regular super market olive oils are cut with canola oil. There are a few high end olive oils that are pure, EVOO should have a natural cloudiness to it, but I don't like olive oil that much to spend the extra money on it. On the plus side I found grass-fed butter the other day and it is so good!

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  2. Easy! I just leave my pastured butter out, but sometimes they complain that it's too flavorful.
    BLessings
    LIb
    http://bit.ly/ibO3PU

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  3. Great idea. I leave mine out on the counter too (in a beautiful butter dish). Sometimes it still is too cold though so great idea for winter time.

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  4. Have you ever tried a Butter Bell (or crock)? We love ours- and the butter is always ready to go, no more torn bread! :)

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  5. Great post! I just came upon your blog for the first time this afternoon. We have been blending oil with butter for over thirty years. :-)

    For those leaving butter out on the counter, a Butter Bell or Crock is the best idea. Unless you are using up your butter within a few days, the likelihood of it going rancid is great, particularly if it is unsalted. (The salt preserves it a little while longer.) If you've never had rancid butter, it can taste strong and perhaps somewhat bitter, maybe a bit 'off.' I grew up disliking butter, probably because it was rancid but we didn't know. Rancidity happens because of the fat oxidizing, due to exposure to light and heat. Not a healthy thing. If you do leave it out, be sure it is in a covered glass dish, away from heat, and used within a few days. In summer, butter can go rancid very quickly, so it's best to use a Butter Bell/Crock, or mix it with oil to make it spreadable, or leave it whole in the refrigerator until ready to use unless you keep your kitchen quite cool.

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  6. Megan, I hadn't heard that about store-bought olive-oils. Do they have to list that in the ingredients if they blend with canola? Seems sneaky!
    Em and Lib and Nicola, I've had my butter out on the counter the last few days, now that you've given me the great idea!
    Jill, I've heard about them, and they seem like a really smart idea. I'll have to keep investigating. Thanks for the idea!
    Susie, we do use our butter up very quickly, always in less than a week, and our house is generally quite cool. The rancidity does sound like it can be a serious problem, though especially in butter from pasteurized milk. I'll keep looking into the Butter Bell. Thank you so much for visiting and for your insight.

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