6 Butter Hints and Tips

1. Use prune purée in place of butter in brownies, cakes, biscuits and muffins. Use half the amount of prune purée in place of the butter called for in the recipe. To make prune puree, process ⅓ of a cup of pitted prunes with 6 tablespoons of hot water in a food processor until smooth.
2. To dot a casserole or pie with butter, use a coarse grater to shred cold butter over the dish.
3. If a recipe calls for unsalted butter and you have only salted butter, remember that each 250g of salted butter contains about ¾ teaspoon of salt. Reduce the salt you add to your recipe by that amount.
4. Place softened butter or margarine in a pastry bag fitted with a large rosette tip, then pipe butter roses onto a baking tray and refrigerate until firm. These exquisite butter roses can be served right away or frozen and stored in a plastic bag for future use.
5. To soften ice cold or frozen butter quickly, grate it coarse and leave it briefly at room temperature. It will be just right for creaming in just a few minutes.
6. To soften butter more quickly, rinse electric mixer beaters under very hot water, and then dry them thoroughly before proceeding.

Tagged as: Cooking, dairy