Better Butter
At last, something to bring the butter and margarine camps together! When I was a kid we only used butter in our house. I am sure most of you are familiar with the frustration of trying to butter toast with cold, hard, straight-from-the-fridge butter. If you’re not, then you should try it. It’s very frustrating. One day, I came home from a friend’s house with the most wonderful news. They was such a thing as a delicious, creamy spreadable butter at the store and we should try it! Of course it was margarine and my mother said no. Once out on my own, though, I rebelled. I experimented with different spreads and picked one I liked with great butter flavor and a high oil content. Then I started learning about trans fats and got a little nervous. Then I had a bunch of kids and spent all of my money and got even more nervous. Finally, I decided mom knew what she was talking about and switched back. I pined for my creamy spread, though. Until, one day someone mentioned mixing a little heart-healthy olive oil into their butter. Better Butter was born!
Better Butter
Makes about 3 cups- 1 lb butter, salted or unsalted, room temperature
- 1 cup olive oil or canola oil, extra light
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the butter on high speed until smooth and fluffy.
- With mixer running, slowly pour in oil. Continue mixing on high speed until thoroughly combined.
- You may need to scrape down the sides and mix again to get a totally smooth combination. The mixture should resemble cake batter: liquid, but thick and fluffy.
- Spoon into some kind of sealable rigid container and refrigerate.
I love love this stuff. It is fantastic as a spread and for sauteing. It has a great buttery taste and the oil makes it possible to cook at a nice high temperature. This is a must-have kitchen staple in my refrigerator and I will find the time to make some even if the only clean dish in the house is the bowl of my stand mixer. You can also use any oil you like, if by chance flax seed or canola is more your cup of tea. If you make Better Butter like me you will put the frozen sticks of butter in a bowl on the counter-because you forgot to put them into the fridge to thaw-and then get busy doing other things and come back to it hours (yes, sometimes days, it is just butter after all and I do have three children) later when its nice and soft. Once it is totally smooth and fluffy, I divide it into 2 Rubbermaid containers and put it in the fridge. It lasts about 2-3 months here depending on how many waffles we are eating around that time.
Make this. You won’t know how you ever lived without it.
Posted in Condiments, Easy, Fast, Things I Love, Tips and Tricks
June 30th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
This is a great idea. I am a fan of real butter myself.
December 7th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
Butter is disgusting and terrible for your health. Modern margarines are very low in trans fats. Butter has a much larger amount of saturated fats and cholesterol. I can’t understand a desire to try and make butter a better so you can substitute it for a healthier, easier alternative. Your parents probably came from a time of great propaganda by butter companies. By teaching your children to use an unhealthy alternative you are practicing bad parenting and increasing their chances of several diseases.
December 7th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
Your faulty logic is disgusting and terrible.
Know what? I’m off to make a batch of this right now and I’ll eat it straight out of the mixer (my kids will help me). We’ll still probably live longer than you; you’ll just end up getting hit by a train one of these days because you’re such a clueless moron.
Go back to your troll hole, you pathetic, odious piece of internet filth.
December 7th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
Guy: you must work for a margarine company. Your narrow mindedness is compounded with the personal attacks on her parents and parenting skills. Butter is perfectly fine to eat in moderation. All those nasty fats people talk about aren’t as bad as the hype. If Americans in general didn’t eat to the excesses we do we wouldn’t be the most obese nation in the world. Moderation is a wonderful thing.
December 7th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
What a great idea! That’s the strangest thing I’ve ever heard Guy.
This makes sense:
“Butter is not what many nutritionists would consider health food, considering the high fat content. That said, I eat butter because I think it tastes better, but I don’t avoid oleo/margarine. It isn’t going to give you cancer or triple your heart disease risk.
So, if you like the convenience of margarine, keep eating it. If you’re worried, eat butter. But remember butter is high fat and cholesterol and if you have high cholesterol, you’re likely better off with an alternative.”
Alex Avery
Hudson Institute
Center for Global Food Issues
December 7th, 2008 at 10:59 pm
This is a fantastic idea!!! I SO love the absolute wonderful flavor of REAL butter (sorry, Guy, but you’re full of it!!)!!
I plan to try this as soon as I can get to the store and buy a pack of butter. Being a Southern cook…I can appreciate the beauty of real butter!!!
Thanks SO much for this great idea, Katie!!!
December 8th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
This is a great idea, thanks for posting. I love butter, too!
December 9th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Salted butter can be stored in a butter dish outside of the fridge for days. Always soft and ready to spread and no need to mix anything in it.
December 9th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
For those who don’t like butter, you can have the spreads and all. For us who love butter this is a wonderful idea. Thank You
December 9th, 2008 at 10:18 pm
Butter is best. No oil on my toast for me. Your on the right track though.
December 27th, 2008 at 5:56 am
not a bad idea, but i’d rather just use smart balance.
January 7th, 2009 at 12:12 am
Just get a Butter Bell. I don’t know how I ever lived without one.
April 25th, 2009 at 11:03 pm
I often take cold butter from the fridge, peel off just one end of the wrapper, and hold it in my hand and rub on the toast. No need for a knife and since it’s cold you don’t use that much. I like this idea though too. Nice for cooking, and olive oil is good on bread too, so this would be great. Thanks for the idea!
January 25th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
will it work on Ghee Butter too?
October 23rd, 2012 at 10:59 am
This works well with browned butter, too. After browning some butter, let it cool and then whip it with the regular butter. The result is nutty and amazing in mashed potatoes.
November 13th, 2012 at 9:24 am
Although olive oil is a fat and has similar calorie levels, it is one of the “good fats” that help break down cholesterol in the blood. This is an excellent way to make delicious butter healthier and more convenient. Julia Child used butter and lived to be 91. She always advocated moderation.
December 20th, 2012 at 7:10 pm
When I discovered that margarine was one chemical away from plastic, I ran! Even a cockroach won’t eat it. If a roach is afraid, we probably should be too.
That being said, I believe I shall try this. 🙂
March 17th, 2013 at 8:27 pm
Been making this for at least 15 years, got the recipe from a dietician when the ex had 3 heart attacks.Been making it ever since. Good stuff!
April 28th, 2013 at 6:31 pm
Land o Lakes makes this. Available in the dairy aisle. Delicious and so spreadable!
September 4th, 2013 at 4:24 pm
Dana, you are an idiot. Water is “one chemical” away from Hydrofluoric Acid, you nitwit.
November 2nd, 2013 at 5:18 pm
just leave organic butter out a stick at a time and you will have soft stuff all the time.
April 11th, 2015 at 4:42 pm
I understand that butter unsalted is better for you. A family member of mine saw how they make margarine and said it was a horrible site before you get to where it looks like it does when you buy it at the store. Hands down for unsalted butter.