Holiday(Anyday)Sweet Flavored Butters

These butters are great for toast, bagels or muffins and are equally at home melted over pancakes or waffles. Many chefs will tell you to use unsalted real butter for flavored butters, but that's foolish! I rather enjoy the slight salty with the sweet and I think you will as well. Listed from top to bottom, enjoy any of these sweet spreads anytime.

Salted Caramel Butter

 

This is where the salty nature of plain butter or margarine is perfect with caramel.

5 caramel candies
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature

Unwrap caramels and place in a bowl with maple syrup. Cover and microwave for 20-30 seconds, or until caramel is melted and it is slightly foaming. Be careful when removing the cover to stir, it will be extremely hot. Set aside to cool for about 10 minutes, or until room temperature. Place in refrigerator if desired to hasten cooling. Beat butter with caramel mixture until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

　

Pecan Fig Butter

This is a slightly tricky recipe, Not for the preparation, but because of the type of fig you can use. If using dried figs, pour boiling water over them and let sit for about 30 minutes to soften. Drain well, pushing out the liquid from each fig before continuing with recipe. If using fresh figs, follow the recipe below, but be forewarned. You will not use an entire fig for this recipe, So I guess you will just have to eat the remainder of the unused, sweet, delicious fig. You can also purchase jarred or canned figs as well. Simply squeeze the daylights out of them before continuing with recipe. Raisins can be successfully substituted here as well. Simply treat as dried figs.

1 fresh fig
1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon chopped pecans

It is as easy as removing the stem, and peeling fig if desired before mashing with a sturdy fork and adding to a bowl with remainder of ingredients. Beat until as creamy as possible. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

Apple Cinnamon Butter

What on earth could I possibly say about this butter that the title doesn't already? My favorite butter for everything from muffins to pork chops.

1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup apple jelly, whisked smooth
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Place all ingredients in a bowl and beat until as creamy as possible. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

　

Maple Cranberry Butter

Think you've had cranberry butter before? Wait till you try this one!

1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup apple juice or cider, boiling
1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pour boiling juice over cranberries and let soak for at least 30 minutes. Drain well, squeezing cranberries to remove as much liquid as possible. Place in a bowl with remainder of ingredients and beat until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

　

Orange-Lemon Butter

Sunshine in the morning! Besides coffee,(and percolated coffee at that)the fresh taste of fruit first thing always brings a smile to my face.

1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Place everything in a bowl and beat until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

Merry Berry Butter

And here is a present from me to you. Such a simple butter and one I didn't think of until after I took the picture. This way you won't be looking for that elusive 6th spoon in the image. I dare say there is not one type of jam, preserves or all-fruit that you can't use with this recipe. Just choose and mix!

1 stick(1/2 cup) butter or margarine, room temperature
3 tablespoons berry preserves
1 teaspoon vanilla, almond, rum or mint extract

Place everything in a bowl and beat until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

Just in time for Labor Day!

Ordinarily I would be posting recipes on my new website, theyankeechef.com, but my webmaster told me to stay the hell off it. Apparently I was doing more harm than good. All I can say in my defense is that my 15 year old wasn't there to help me with it. (Pretty sad huh? A grown man needing his young son for help[ with the computer?!)
I gladly relinquish that tedious job, but at least I can still post here once in a while. And besides, I don't need to edit so heavily here on my blog.

My father used to regale me with a story about his grandfather cooking corn. He told me that Frank(his grandfather) would wait by the woodstove for the pot of water to boil, when the corn was ready for picking. When the water started vigorously boiling, he would grab a couple of rags and grab the pot. Wasting no time, he would bolt out the back door with that dangerous pot of boiling water and head for the corn row. Setting it on the ground, Grampy Frank would rip off the corn silk and leaves and bend that stalk over so that the ear of corn would be submersed in that pot of water. It was only then that he would cut the ear from the stalk and continue on to as many as he could fit in that pot.
When full, he would then run back to the house and place that full pot of fresh corn on the cob back onto the stove to continue cooking till done.
Now don't laugh, there is some science behind this. Corn on the cob almost immediately begins to lose its natural sugars the moment it is picked, converting it to starch. So who do you think had the sweetest corn for supper those nights?
These recipes may sound a little out of the ordinary, but I assure you that one of them will be to your liking. So git the napkins out and commence to dripping butter down your chin.




Corn on the Cob with Garlic-Herb Butter
The perfect combination of that garlic flavor will compliment any protein dish you will be enjoying with your corn on the cob.


6 ears fresh corn on the cob, cooked
1 stick of butter or margarine
1 teaspoon minced garlic in oil
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Parsley

Allow butter to come to room temperature. Mash garlic with a a mortar and pestle or simply use a sturdy fork so the garlic is mashed. It doesn't have to be lump-free however. . Beat butter with a hand-held or table top mixer until light and airy. Add the garlic, cayenne pepper and whatever amount of dried or freshly chopped parsley you desire. Continue beating until well blended. Cover and refrigerate until needed to slather on your hot corn on the cob.





Milk-Poached Corn on the Cob
By far, my favorite way to enjoy corn on the cob. I can't quite put my finger on it, but the milk does something to this corn that simple water cannot!


6 ears fresh corn on the cob, broken in half if desired
1 quart milk
2 cups water*
3 tablespoons butter or margarine

Place the milk, water, butter and corn in a large pot with tight fitting lid. Place the pot over medium heat until it starts to boil. Reduce heat to medium low and gently simmer corn for 20 minutes. Remove lid every few minutes to rotate corn if it isn't completely submerged in the poaching liquid. Remove from heat and serve up straight from the liquid.

* or use 1 1/2 quarts low fat milk




Sweet and Salty Corn on the Cob
Hey!!!Don't cringe yet. Give it some thought. The corn is sweet and with the tiny little bit of honey mixed in with the butter, it can only heighten the taste of the corn. And about the bacon. It was just an item that popped into my head and I sure am glad I gave it a whirl. This is delicious, even after the third ear.

6 ears of fresh corn on the cob, cooked
1 stick butter or margarine
3 tablespoons honey
1 strip bacon, cooked and crumbled*

Let butter come to room temperature. With a hand-held or tabletop mixer, beat the butter on high for about 2 minutes, or until it is light and airy. Slowly beat in the honey until well incorporated. Add the bacon and continue beating until mixed well.Transfer to a bowl and cover to refrigerate until needed.



*Turkey bacon works very well here too.