Compound Brown Butter
How can you make butter better? Brown it! How can you make brown butter better? Compound it! Chilling brown butter helps suspend those delicious, caramelized milk solids in the butter fat for a more uniform, heavenly experience. While you're at it, it only seems logical to add some sage and roasted garlic to the mix. This is a perfect final touch for those fall and winter dinner parties.
Equipment
- Aluminum Foil, Plastic Wrap or Parchment Paper, Normal Kitchen Utensils.
Ingredients
- 1 Head Garlic
- 1/4 tsp Olive Oil
- 1 Stick Butter Unsalted
- 1 Tbsp Shallot or Onion Minced
- 1 Tbsp Fresh Sage Or 1 tsp Dried
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Pepper
- 1 Heavy Pinch Nutmeg (Optional)
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
Instructions
- Start by making the roasted garlic. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. (See the notes for different temperature and time combos).
- Cut about 1/4 off the top of the head of garlic to expose all of the cloves. Pour the olive oil over the exposed cloves and wrap tightly in aluminum foil.1 Head Garlic, 1/4 tsp Olive Oil
- Place the foil-wrapped garlic on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 40 minutes at 400 degrees.
- After the garlic has roasted, place it on a dish in your refrigerator to cool.
- Next, brown the butter. Cut the butter into Tbsp-size pieces and place it in a sauce pan on medium heat.1 Stick Butter
- Stir constantly as the butter melts. It will start to foam and then darken to a nutty brown as the milk solids in the butter caramelize. This takes around 5-8 minutes but happens fast at the end. Have a bowl ready to pour the butter into. Be sure to remove it from the pan once it browns, or it will burn.
- While the butter cools, prep the seasonings. If you are using powdered sage, add it to the hot butter right away. Do the same with the salt, pepper and (optional) nutmeg.1/4 tsp Salt, 1/4 tsp Pepper, 1 Heavy Pinch Nutmeg
- At this point, the roasted garlic should be cool enough to work with. The best way to get the garlic out of the head/husk is to simply squeeze it until all the cloves pop out.
- Mince the onion and fresh sage with 1 Tbsp of the roasted garlic (save the rest of the garlic for another recipe). Mix this into the brown butter mixture.1 Tbsp Fresh Sage, 1 Tbsp Shallot or Onion
- Chill the butter in the refrigerator for roughly 30 minutes, or until it is nearly solidified but still pliable. Give it a final taste and add salt and pepper if needed.Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Once shapeable and perfect in flavor, scoop the butter onto plastic wrap or parchment paper. Roll it into a log and twist the ends of the wrap. Chill another hour and a half, or until the butter is fully solidified.
- The easiest way to serve your compound brown butter is to leave it wrapped, slice it into rounds, and then unwrap the rounds. You can also unwrap it and leave it out on a dish to warm to a spreadable temperature. Serve mixed with hot tortellini or on top of chicken or pork. It also goes well on butternut squash, sweet potatoes, corn, or peas.
Notes
Feel free to try other combinations of seasonings that pair well with brown butter, such as thyme, tarragon and/or rosemary.
Use the below temperature and time combos to roast garlic (in case you are already using the oven for something else at a specific temperature):
350 degrees – 55 minutes
375 degrees – 45 minutes
400 degrees – 40 minutes