Herb Butter

An herbed butter can come in handy for all sorts of recipes. I almost always make some whenever I'm doing roast chicken or turkey, but it can be used for breads, potatoes, just about anything.

It's quick, easy and keeps well in the fridge, so if you're anything like me, that's a big plus.

The thing to remember with this is that any combination of herbs you like can work in this, it is very versatile.

This particular combination was what I used on the roast chicken that I'll be posting next. This is a nice combination for poultry, especially if you plan to keep the broth and the separated butter after roasting for chicken and noodles or a casserole.

You'll need:

1 stick of butter, softened

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp celery salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp thyme (if dried, more if fresh, chopped nicely)

1/2 tsp garlic salt or garlic salt with parsley

I also added 1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash - but that is just because I wanted a little extra kick, this is not necessary by any means.

Soften your butter in a bowl that will give you a bit of room to mix in, a large soup bowl works well. Mix all the herbs in, making sure to get fairly even distribution.

Taste just a bit to see if it has the right combination of flavors for what you're doing.  You can always adjust.  If it seems to strong, add more butter, not strong enough, add more herbs.  The butter will melt away, leaving you with the lovely tastes and will season 

You can use this immediately to rub down a chicken or chicken breasts to roast, or you can store in the fridge to add a nice "herby" taste to baked potatoes or spread on a halved baguette and toast.

This can be kept in the fridge for a week or two, in a tightly sealed container. If you use fresh herbs, the shelf life might be reduced slightly as they may start to wilt.

This is one of the easiest ways to add flavor to anything with very little work.

Now, I've done this with thyme, sage, rosemary and garlic and is lovely for that Thanksgiving type flavor every roasted turkey needs. You could also do a mint or lemon pepper type butter for fish. The possibilities are endless.  Just remember, trial and error can help you learn alot and all you'll be out if it doesn't work is a stick of butter and a few dried herbs.