Keeping butter fresh and ready to use!

I'm one of the few 'dieters' who still eats real, honest-to-goodness butter. I've flirted with margarine over the years, and even tried butter spread. But I always come back to butter, for many very good reasons!  Because of its rich, creamy mouth feel and flavor butter is by far the preferred fat to use for nearly every preparation with cooking. This includes everything from sauce making to baking to using it every morning as spread.

Why butter is so great?

Butter is a natural food product, therefore there are no chemicals, no preservatives, just cow's milk churned into buttery goodness. When heated, butter develops a magnificent nutty flavor and when used as a cooking medium, such as for sautéeing vegetables, it complements and enhances the flavors to the food that is being cooked in it. It also adds complexity to the flavor of sauces.

The butter on my grocer's shelf is wrapped in paper, four sticks to a cardboard box. I store butter in a butter dish, also known as a butter crock.  I’ve gotten a ton of question about my butter holder, the unique design of a butter crock keeps butter at the perfect "spreading" consistency by reflecting outside heat while insulating and cooling the butter. Flavor and freshness is protected by an airtight seal of water at the base of the crock. I also got a matching antique creamer which I got from ButterBell.

For Proper maintenance of a butter dish butter crock: Water should be changed out every three days. Replace existing water in the base with fresh, cold water. The crock should be stored away from heat or sunlight.

The butter crock holds up to one full stick (1/2 cup) of butter. Softened butter is packed firmly into the bell-shaped lid. Cold water is poured into the base of the crock. The lid is placed upside down back into the base of the crock. Soft, spreadable butter may be enjoyed and served right from the crock!