Have you ever made compound butter?? Do you even know what that is?
I’d seen it in swanky restaurants but never tried to make it myself – although, I often thought, how hard can that be?
Turns out, not hard at all 😉
Compound butter is, by definition, softened butter creamed together with herbs, spices, and/or other ingredients. You can use this magnificent butter as a flavoring for so many foods or as a spread for baked goods.
My butter is made with edible flowers…edible flowers, you say??
EDIBLE FLOWERS:
So many flowers are edible and add beauty and flavour to so many dishes! One of my favourites are nasturtium petals because they have a peppery bite, but many other bright flowers add such a wonderful element to so many dishes. Some that are well know are pansies, marigolds and honeysuckle. But, hands down, my number one love when it comes to edible flowers are chive blossoms.
These perennials come back every year AND you can do so many thing with them (check out this chive flower vinegar and this chive flower salt!!).
HOW TO HARVEST CHIVE BLOSSOMS
When you’re making this recipe, it’s best to use open blossoms. Snip the blossom off a few inches below the flower, and discard the hardened chive/stem that the blossom is growing on (you’ll notice it’s much harder that the chives with no blossom. Use chives that are not flowering (the green part) to dice up and add to the butter.
Remember that once the chive grows a flower (this, in essence, means it’s gone to seed), the green part has most likely become tough.
You’ll want to shake them well before bringing them inside to make sure you’re not carrying any unwanted insects into your home (although, it’s really no biggie!). Once you bring them in, spray them with a bit of water (even run the flowers under water and put them through a salad spinner) and then, remove the small florets from the base of the flower.
Add the chopped chives and blossoms to the softened butter …
…and smoosh into the butter! Once it’s all mixed in, roll it into a log shape and set aside.
Lay a piece of plastic wrap on your counter and sprinkle the reserved florets on the plastic.
Place the log on top and press down firmly.
Roll it tightly in the plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to harden.
When it’s solid, remove the plastic wrap and place next to your bread basket. Your friends will be in awe!
Better still, wrap it up nicely in some parchment and bring it along to your next gathering as a hostess gift – don’t forget to pick up a crusty loaf from you local bakery!
Show me a pic of your compound beauty!!!
Chive Flower Compound Butter
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter softened
- 1/4 cup chopped chives
- 1/4 cup chive blossoms
- sea salt if needed
Instructions
- Soften butter at room temperature and place in a bowl.
- Gently wash chive blossoms and chives, patting dry with a clean towel (you can even spritz them with a bit of white vinegar); set aside a few blossoms for decoration.
- Use scissors to finely chop the chives and mix the chives and the chive blossoms into butter; taste and add a pinch of sea salt if needed.
- Lay a piece of plastic wrap on your counter and sprinkle with the blossoms you set aside.
- Mold your compound butter into a log and place it on top of the plastic wrap, pressing into the blossoms gently.
- Roll the butter log and wrap in the plastic wrap.
- Store in the fridge or in the freezer until ready to use.