Maine Garden Ideas
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How to Make Herbed Compound Butter

Picture
Making your own herbed compound butter from fresh herbs in the garden allows you to season meats and vegetables on the grill or to enhance the flavor of vegetables at serving time. This herbed butter creates melt-in-your-mouth poultry dishes and can be served on crispy Italian bread or rolls. I'm often asked, "But how do I know which herbs to use?" The simple answer is: use the herbs that you prefer. My personal favorites are lemon thyme, oregano, basil, sage, rosemary and chives, but you may prefer others.

  1. Gather your favorite herbs in the early morning when they are fresh and have not suffered the effects of summer heat. Flavor is at its peak just before blooming begins, but herbs can be harvested and used at any time.
  2. Wash the herbs in cold water to remove garden soil or insect residue and pat them dry with a paper towel.
  3. Mince the herbs. For those with woody stems, strip the leaves and discard the stem before chopping.
  4. Soften two sticks of butter (or margarine) in a bowl with a fork. For lighter herbed butter you may wish to whip the butter with a mixer or whisk before adding the herbs.
  5. Add 2 to 4 tablespoons of your favorite herbs to the butter. I typically add a clove of minced garlic or grated Parmesan cheese, particularly if I intend to use herbed butter for breads or pasta. Blend the herbs into the butter with a fork. Spoon the mixture into a butter tub or similar container and store in the refrigerator.
To create patties of herbed butter, spread the mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap and roll into a log approximately the size of a stick of butter. Place it in the refrigerator to chill until it is firm. Cut the roll into ¼ inch slices for individual servings of herbed butter.

Use herbed compound butter to season grilled vegetables and meats, as an alternative to traditional garlic butter for garlic bread, served on hot pasta or baked potatoes or even too add flavor to stews of sauces. Don't be afraid to experiment to find the combination you prefer. You will be amazed with the flavor combinations that you may discover while adding your secret ingredient to recipes.




Copyright © 2014 Nannette Richford



  • Home
  • Garden Thyme Blog
  • Themes
    • Butterfly Gardens
    • Moon Gardens
    • Sensory Gardens
    • All About Fairies
  • Flowers
    • Annual Flowers >
      • Alyssum
      • Cosmos
      • Geraniums
      • Marigolds
      • Morning Glories
      • Nasturtiums
      • Petunias >
        • Reviving Petunias
      • Snapdragons
      • Sunflowers
      • Sweet Peas
      • Zinnias
    • Perennial Flowers >
      • Golden Glow (Rudbeckia laciniata ‘Hortensia’)
      • Lupines
      • Purple Coneflower (Echinacea Purpurea)
    • Maine Wildflowers
  • Veggies
    • Warm Season Vegetables >
      • Beans >
        • Growing Beans
        • Growing Pole Beans
        • How to Make a Teepee Trellis
      • About Corn >
        • Growing Corn
        • What is Baby Corn, anyway?
        • Can you grow corn in containers?
      • Cucumbers >
        • Grow a cucumber in a bottle
        • Growing Pickling Cucumbers
        • Growing cucamelons (Mexican Gherkin)
        • Why do cucumbers blossom but fail to set fruit?
        • Trellising Cucumbers
        • Making Cucumber Relish
        • Powdery Mildew on Cucumbers
      • Melons
      • Peppers >
        • Growing Peppers
      • Squash >
        • Growing Zucchini
        • Spaghetti Squash
      • Tomatoes >
        • How to Harden Off Tomato Plants
        • How (and when) to Prune Tomatoes
        • Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt) for Tomatoes
        • Blossom End Rot in Tomatoes
        • Growing Cherry Tomatoes in Hanging Baskets
        • 4 Best Tomatoes for Short Seasons - Early Tomatoes
        • 5 Early Maturing Tomatoes for Short Season Gardening
        • How to Ripen Green Tomatoes
        • How to Make Sun-Dried Tomatoes at Home
        • Grow Your Own Amazing Pomato Plant - Tomatoes on the Top and Potatoes on the Bottom
    • Cool Season Vegetables >
      • Cole Crops
      • Greens >
        • How to Grow Spinach
        • How to Grow Malabar Spinach
        • How to Grow Swiss Chard
        • Harvesting and Cooking Beet Greens
        • How to Grow Microgreens
      • Onions & Garlic >
        • How to Grow Garlic
        • How to Grow Onions
      • Peas >
        • Growing Garden (shelling) Peas
        • Growing Sugar Snap Peas
      • Potatoes >
        • How to Grow Potatoes in Containers
        • How to Grow Potatoes in Hay Bales
      • Root Crops >
        • Growing Beets
        • How to Grow Carrots
  • Herbs
    • Growing Basil
    • Growing Chives
    • Growing Lavender
    • Herbal Tea Garden
    • How to Grow a Culinary Herb Garden
    • How to Grow Herbs in Sponges
    • Colonial Herb Garden - Classroom Project
    • Herbed Butter
    • Making Herbed Oils
  • Gardening Basics
    • Seed Starting Basics
    • Grafting Basics
    • Soil >
      • Starting a New Garden
      • How to Prepare Soil
      • How to Test Soil Drainage
      • What Type of Soil Do You Have
      • Soil Mix Recipe for Containers
      • How to Make Compost Tea
      • How to Use Mulch
      • Control Blister Beetles
  • Birds
    • Hummingbirds >
      • DIY Hummingbird Feeders from Recycled Bottles
      • Annuals for Hummingbird Gardens
      • Perennials for Hummingbird Gardens
    • About Birdseed
    • Choosing a Birdfeeder
  • Fiddleheads and Fairies
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • How to Marinate Roasted Vegetables