User login
Kitchen Tip Tuesdays: Softened butter, and what to do with extra butter slices
My kitchen tip this week is from the archive. These cookies? Still yummy. :)
As I was baking molasses spice cookies yesterday, I thought of a couple butter tips to share! :)
I have two Rubbermaid butter dishes (so handy, with a lid that snaps tightly!) and I keep them both filled and not refrigerated, so that we never run out of soft butter to spread on bread, etc.
Ever open the butter dish to realize that it's almost empty, and the rest of the butter is in the fridge? This happened to me way too many times growing up, so I have always kept two butter dishes out in our home!
Having extra butter at room temperature is also handy for those last-minute cooking-baking frenzies. Without a microwave to soften butter, I've frequently raided one or both butter dishes for some soft butter for whatever baking project I hadn't planned ahead!
And finally, when I'm cutting a stick of butter for a recipe and there's, say, 3 tablespoons left over, rather than wrapping the little piece and putting it back in the fridge, I check to see if it can fit on a partly-empty butter dish. If so, I add it to the butter dish, and avoid all the random pieces in the fridge. :)
By the way, these cookies are so delicious! My mom has made molasses spice cookies with raisins for as long as I can remember, and they're one of my dad's favorites. Now, I make them especially for Joshua -- although we all really like them! :)
To Participate in Kitchen Tip Tuesdays:
Post a kitchen tip in your blog. Link to this post, and then leave your link here, so we know where to find YOU! :) No giveaways or non-tip posts, please!
In order to keep the kitchen tips more easily accessible, posts not adhering to these guidelines will be removed. We need to be able to easily find/see what your kitchen/cooking tip is. :) Thanks for your participation! :)
Leave your tip links in a comment. I'll manually add them to this post!
1. Cold/softening butter tips (Rachel at Trial and Error Home Ec)
2. Removing baked-on grease (Annie at Annie's Home)
3. Cleaning cookware (Kirstin at Loving Life)
4. Ground beef in bulk (Money Saving Habits)
5. Making powdered sugar (Cammie at Life...More Abundantly)
6. Using sour milk (Rachel at Trial and Error Home Ec)
7. Help -- homemade hollandaise tips (The Local Cook)
8. Cutting/packaging fudge for gifts/parties (Heather at Feel Good About Dinner)
9. Drinking glasses tip for families (Adrienne at Whole New Mom)
10. How to cut a pineapple -- tips (Stacy at Stacy Makes Cents)
11. Adding eggs to a hot recipe (Cheryl at The Bz House That Love Built)
12. How to freeze unbaked apple pie (An Oregon Cottage)
New Recipes
After years of lugging
drinking water home from
the grocery store, we're
saving time and money by
filtering our water with a
Berkey!
Every Berkey purchase
comes with free shipping!
Read Tammy's review of the
Berkey water filtering system
Poll
New Recipe Reviews
Recent comments
- Freezing Cheese
51 min 27 sec ago - Yum!
4 hours 43 min ago - DIY Dry Erase Menu Planner
10 hours 21 min ago - Milk to make kefir
1 day 2 hours ago - Myrrah Powder
2 days 3 hours ago - Tomato worms
3 days 18 hours ago - YUM Sprouts...
6 days 24 min ago - THANK YOU!!!
6 days 5 hours ago - Butter the tops of your
6 days 15 hours ago - Accepted
6 days 17 hours ago
Comments
These look wonderful
Great tip! I keep one butter dish unrefrigerated, but never thought of keeping a second out for those occasions I run out (because it DOES happen).
These cookies look great, I think I'll have to make some! It will help me use up my molasses before we move in a few months and I know my kids will love them!
My own butter tips
Two tips for dealing with cold butter
http://trialanderrorhomeec.blogspot.com/2010/01/ktt-softening-butter.html
Great idea!
That is really a great idea! How long can you keep the butter out without having to worry about it spoiling--days, weeks...? Also, last week I was pulling the egg carton out and dropped it because it wasn't balanced! I had just read your tip, so when I opened a new carton of eggs, I immediately started alternating which eggs I took out so that it would be balanced and I wouldn't drop it again. Thanks!
Butter at room temperature
I know butter will spoil at room temperature, but we must use it quickly enough ( 7-10 days, perhaps? Just a guess, since I am constantly filling the butter dishes!) because I've never had mine spoil. I'm sure the temp. of the location makes a difference, as well... we try to keep our house cool in the winter and in the summer -- if possible I don't put the butter in a spot where it will get too melt-y...
Does anyone else know just how quickly butter will spoil at, say, 70 degrees?? :)
This is a great idea
I wish I could use it, but I don't dare. We are in South Florida and that would probably only work on our coldest days. It would definately save time when you want to butter some hot bread, though!
Actually as long as you use
Actually as long as you use the salted butter it will last about a week. I lived in Arizona for years and was able to do this without a problem and it definately gets HOT there. :) The salt helps keep anything from growing in there.
Salted butter at room temp
Oh, yes! Salted vs. unsalted is another variable, which I had forgotten about. :) We almost always buy salted butter, so perhaps that is another reason I've never had any spoil! :)
kitchen tip
cookies look delicious.
I have shared a tip on my blog of how to remove baked on grease
http://shopannies.blogspot.com/2010/01/kitchen-tip-cleaning-baked-on-grease.html
My Kitchen tip today is
My Kitchen tip today is about Refried Beans
http://kolfinnaskorner.blogspot.com/search/label/kitchen%20tip%20tuesday
Kitchen Tip: Bar Keepers Friend
http://troyerslovinglife.blogspot.com/2010/01/kitchen-tip-tuesday-bar-keepers-friend.html
My tip is about cleaning your cookware
Freezing Beef can save you dough
http://moneysavinghabits.com/2010/01/19/freezing-beef/
keeping butter out
I, too, have kept my stick of butter unrefrigerated, but I do not keep the temp in my house above 70. I have done this for 18 years and we have never fallen ill because of it. At certain times of the year it may take me 7-10 days to go through a stick. I do have a microwave, though, so if I need a softened stick for a recipe I will nuke in 5 second intervals turning the stick over each time if it needs an additional 5 seconds. Have never needed to go over 10 seconds but I have a strong microwave. Love your site!!
kelliinkc
Arepa-making tutorial
Here is my post for this week, a tutorial on how to make Venzuelan corn cakes called arepas. I am having technical difficulties and haven't gotten the pics in the post yet, but am hoping to within the next couple days.
http://www.covenanthomemaking.com/2010/01/arepas-tutorial.html
make powderd sugar.
http://abundantlythriving.blogspot.com/2010/01/i-can-make-my-own-powdered-sugar-whats.html
Food storage
http://therealfoodmama.com/2010/01/20/bulk-food-storage-on-a-dime.aspx
microwave ovens
My kids have requested that we stop using the microwave oven due to health safety. What are your opinions about them? If you dont use a microwave what other type of kitchen appliance helps with those quick needs/meals?
Microwave oven use
I do question the safety of microwave oven use, but don't feel qualified to write about the safety issue at this time. :) We don't have a microwave, so we reheat leftovers on the stovetop or in the oven. I heat water for tea in a tea kettle on the stove. I have heard some people like using a toaster oven for quickly reheating small amounts of food, as well. Most things don't really take so very long to heat (~10 minutes) and I guess we're just accustomed to thinking ahead on some things! :)
microwaves are over -rated
I think people rely on Microwaves way to much. I have heard many negative things about using them, but yet it is so convenient. I went for years with out having one and did just fine, I would freeze foods and to thaw quickly, place in skillet, with a little water and cover. You do have to plan a bit better, for meats and such as they do take a long time to thaw. Ground meats you can place in the pan frozen and scrape off the thawed parts as they thaw. Back then I didn't eat much red meat and so I didn't have much of a need to quickly thaw.
Now having a family, it is nice to be able to thaw a roast in 30 minutes, and have dinner ready two hours afterwards, but that is still about all I use a microwave for, and sometimes that nasty microwave popcorn we all love.
We have a microwave, and I
We have a microwave, and I use it because it's there, but I grew up without one. The only reason we have one now is that my husband considers it a necessity. He never learned to do any cooking, and is afraid to learn. However, he also wants to be able to prepare hot snacks for himself. That's where the microwave comes in...along with the preprocessed, packaged food. Sigh...
Now for me
I think there are risks in anything you use. and I'm not one to get hyped up for stuff. Anything can be bad for you. There are probably preservatives that are not good for us and we still use them. I'm just not overly concerned about it.
The microwave was invented right after I was born, and grew up using one. And will probably use one until I go on to glory.
Nice tip! I keep my butter
Nice tip! I keep my butter in the fridge, but often soften it by setting it on the stovetop, near a burner, while I cook something else. The heat that spreads from the burner is enough to soften the stick, but not melt it.
Here's my tip:
How to use sour milk (with a recipe!)
http://trialanderrorhomeec.blogspot.com/2011/12/ktt-using-sour-milk.html
-Rachel
PS Thanks for reposting my
PS Thanks for reposting my old tip on using butter!
Rachel
Homemade Hollandaise
I finally tried to make homemade hollandaise sauce http://thelocalcook.com/2011/12/18/homemade-hollandaise-first-attempt/ and am hoping those who make it regularly can stop by and offer suggestions. Thanks!
Great tip!
Great tip! I have a butter dish on our dining room table that I often steel from when our rubbermaid kitchen one runs out. The table dish is metal, so I can't see through it. Sometimes I get surprised with both dishes empty, but not as often as when I only had one container.
The kitchen tips I would like to share today are about cutting and packaging fudge for gifts and parties. Thanks so much for sharing! http://www.feelgoodaboutdinner.com/2011/12/homemade-fudge-for-christmas.html
Time Saving and Clutter Busting Tip for Drinking Glasses
Hello Tammy!
This tip is about drinking glasses. We always have a ton of glasses all over the counter and we wonder whose is whose.
I finally found a way to keep track of the glasses (which is particularly important during flu season).
Here is my tip:
http://wholenewmom.com/whole-new-budget/sharpie-permanent-marker-rubberband-water-glasses/
Blessings!
I do love my Butter Bell!
I do love my Butter Bell! :-) Makes life a lot easier.
Here is my tip for the week - cutting a pineapple:
http://www.stacymakescents.com/how-to-cut-a-pineapple
~Stacy from Stacy Makes Cents
Hi Tammy :-D How is your
Hi Tammy :-D
How is your pregnancy going? I think of you sometimes as I am still adjusting to suddenly having a two and a half year old and a five month old in the house.
My tip this week has to do with adding eggs to a hot recipe.
http://thebzhousethatlovebuilt.blogspot.com/2011/12/home-made-butterscotch-pudding-pie.html
Merry CHRISTmas my friend!
Cheryl B.
The Bz House That Love Built
http://thebzhousethatlovebuilt.blogspot.com
I so totally lost track of
I so totally lost track of time and didn't get a post ready for this week. Sigh. I've never left butter out. We don't really use that much. However growing up there was almost always a covered butter dish on the table.
Love your blog Tammy!
Freezing An Unbaked Crumb-Topped Apple Pie
http://www.anoregoncottage.com/2011/12/crumb-topped-apple-pie-to-bake-now-or.html
This is my favorite apple pie- and i love that it can be frozen! I've done this with berry pies as well. It's nice to have ready to go.
Oh, and for more than 20 years we've left butter at room temp and we've never gotten sick or noticed it going bad. I'm sure it's been more than a week at times, but I've never kept track. LOVE having butter that's easily spreadable, just like you. :-)
Post new comment