My herb garden is wild this year. So much spilling out and all over each other. There’s too much to write about herbs so here’s a quick entry about something I discovered this year. Alice Waters recommends herb butters which are easy to make. Obviously, any herb butter is great spread on fresh bread but there’s lots of other ways to use it too. And now trans fats are forbidden, butter redeems itself as a healthy source of fat after all.
herb butter
Soften a stick of cultured butter. Pick a generous cup of an herb (from your garden, of course). Wash and chop finely. (Or better yet, harvest your herb the day after a good rain. The rain will wash the herb for you and you won’t have to wash it a all.) Mix with the butter. Spread thickly.
Here’s a few examples I tried:
- sorrel butter for fish (exquisite!)
- cilantro butter on fresh sweet corn (yum)
- oregano/marjoram butter on pasta with sauteed vegetables
- tarragon butter on chicken just out of the oven or with eggs and toast (the best!)
- thyme butter on rice
Imagine sage butter. Or fresh basil butter. What’s your favorite?