good recipe to cook with butter?

[chloe23]

I just bought my first Normandy butter at Dean and Deluca in the city this past weekend because of the episode I saw on "Follow that Food". Anyhow, I had to see what is so different with American butter as to Normandy butter. I came home and first thing I did was to try a little piece of the butter. Wow! I'm not a fan of butter but this Normandy butter is so wonderful! It's really rich and has a sweetness to it. Anyways, my question to any of you out there is, what kind of food should I cook with my butter? I mean, this butter isn't cheap and I don't want to waste it on just bread and some simple stuff. So if you have any ideas as to what I can cook with this butter, I greatly appreciate it

[Svadhisthana]

The Best Recipe Sweet Milk Scones
Makes 8 or 9 Scones

2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup whole milk

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Whisk flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and sugar together in large bowl, or measure into workbowl of a food processor fitted with steel blade; pulse until blended. With fingertips, pastry blender, 2 knives, or steel blade of a food processor, cut or process butter into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal with a few slightly larger butter lumps.

3. If making by hand, make a well in the center and pour in milk. Working quickly, blend ingredients together with a rubber spatula into a soft, slightly wet dough. If using a food processor, pour milk through feed tube, pulse until dough just starts to gather into a rough ball (do not overprocess or scones will be tough). Turn dough onto a well floured work surface.

4. Quickly roll dough to thickness of 1/2 inch. Use a lighly greased and floured 3-inch biscuit cutter to stamp dough with one decisive punch, cutting close together to generate as few scraps as possible. Dip cutter into flour as often as necessary to keep dough from sticking. Push scraps of dough together so that edges join; firmly pinch edges with fingertips to make a partial seal. Pat this remaining dough to 1/2 inch thick; continue to cut 3 inch rounds. Place dough rounds 1 1/2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake until scones are lighly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve immediately.


This recipe was shared with us in the recipe exchange forum upon request from Isa. I have made them and they were a big hit with everyone.

[Suzanne]

I don't want to waste it on just bread

PLEASE don't say that! Get the best bread you can (maybe you could persuade KyleW to give you some ), slather on the butter, and enjoy! All right, you could have a simple green salad with vinaigrette, too, if you must. But great bread-and-butter is my idea of a close-to-perfect meal.

[cape chef]

Originally posted by Suzanne


PLEASE don't say that! Get the best bread you can (maybe you could persuade KyleW to give you some ), slather on the butter, and enjoy! All right, you could have a simple green salad with vinaigrette, too, if you must. But great bread-and-butter is my idea of a close-to-perfect meal.

No need to add to that.

Bread was created to harmonize with the finest olive oils and butters.

Simple is best when dealing with the best

[mudbug]

chloe23,

I agree, if you want to enjoy the ingredient, the best way to do so is in it's purest form. If you cook with it, you may not be able to enjoy it for what it's worth. Make or buy your favorite bread by all means! Try using it for dipping lobster or artichokes in, homemade waffles, etc.

Keep it simple with few ingredients so you can truely enjoy the quality.

[thebighat]

Scrambled eggs.

[chiffonade]

How about clarifying some, add a hint of garlic and a pinch of salt and dip some steamed lobster into it?

As for "wasting butter on bread" - I think you've gotten chastised enough for that one . BTW, in many religious, the word for "bread" is the same as the word for "God."

[cape chef]

Chloe,
Sorry if I "chastised"you

****, that's a pretty harsh thing to say.

Careful off your "high" horse

[Isa]

Originally posted by Svadhisthana

This recipe was shared with us in the recipe exchange forum upon request from Isa. I have made them and they were a big hit with everyone.

I'm so glad to have found a scone fan Svad.


Do you do them plain or add ginger or fruits?


Have you tried any other scone recipes?

[Isa]

From The New York Times:


Some Can Never Be Too Rich or Too Fat

Some American butter makers are turning out richer butters, with more butterfat than the federal minimum of 80 percent. This is good news for serious home bakers because more fat means less moisture, making pastry easier to handle and yielding better results. Even in clarifying lower-moisture butter for cooking there is less residue to skim off.

Most of the butters here are labeled European-style or extra-creamy, and you will find them in supermarkets. Plugra, made by Keller's in Pennsylvania, has been available to professionals in one-pound blocks and is being sold in half pounds for home use. Plugra is 82 percent fat, and so is the new Horizon Organic European-Style. Land O Lakes Ultra-Creamy is 83 percent, and Organic Valley European Style is 84 percent. Horizon has the richest aroma but a slight greasiness. Land O Lakes is the mildest.

If you want even more butterfat, some fancy food shops carry Strauss Family Creamery Organic at 84 to 86 percent and Vermont Butter and Cheese at 86 percent. At 86 percent, those two are the densest made. The butters range from $2.89 to $3.79 for a half pound.

[Mezzaluna]

I also saw the butter show... I use a lot of butter- a good knob every morning with my scrambled eggs. Every so often I buy some Normandy butter and enjoy it on plain, steamed veggies or with my eggs. I don't eat much bread, but when I do, it has to be this butter!

Here's a Fran McCullough recipe that is ne plus ultra! It's from "The Low Carb Cookbook". I've never tried it myself...


Spinach with a Ton of Butter (Serves 4)

2 pounds spinach, heavy stems removed
1 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat a big pot of salted water to the boil and add the spinach. Turn off the heat and let it stand 2 minutes, then drain and rinse under cold water. Squeeze it gently and chop it roughly.

Melt 1 stick of the butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Add the spinach and cook it gently, stirring constantly, until all the butter disappears into the spinach. Put the spinach in a bowl and cover; chill until the next day.

Repeat the process with the next stick of butter and the same spinach for three days running. When you'r ready to serve the spinach, warm it through and add salt and pepper to taste. Drain it of any liquid butter.

[shroomgirl]

BINGO!!!YES!!! Slow Foods did a butter tasting here a couple of months ago...one of my favorite was Grasslands (Egg Farm Dairy guy runs it) anyway I just found it for $1.70 a #.....this is too cool...

[chloe23]

I should rephrase my words when I said "waste it on bread." I know good breads go really well with butter. I guess I just want to try something other than using the butter with bread. But I thank everyone for his/her inputs and the recipes. I will definitely try the recipes and to find the best bread to use with this butter. This might be subjective, but does anyone have any suggestions as to what you consider the best bread?

[Kimmie]

Homemade breads are ALWAYS the BEST!

[ShawtyCat]

Homemade bread or bread straight out of the baker's oven. Id camp out at the bakery for the fresh made bread. ~drool~