Mealtime Magic: Compound Butters

As Fall approaches and the gardening season comes to an end, here are a few ideas to help preserve some of your favorite herbs, vegetables, and even fruit.  Why not create some different compound butters?

According to Demetrios Haralambatos, executive chef at Kontos Foods, a New Jersey provider of Greek and Mediterranean foods, compound butters add an abundance of flavors to beef, chicken, pork, turkey, and seafood. “They can also be used atop vegetables such as string beans, asparagus, corn, and Brussels sprouts, to name a few. And, of course, compound butter is a great spread for any kind of bread, including Kontos Pita breads, Flatbreads and Nan breads.”

Making compound butters is simple. For every ¼ pound (one stick) of unsalted butter, plan on about ¼ cup of ingredients. Here are some ideas:

• Maître d’hôtel Butter - parsley, lemon juice, kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper
• Blue Cheese Butter – crumbled blue cheese
• Rosemary Butter (great for Turkey) – rosemary, thyme and garlic
• Sage Butter (great for Turkey) – sage, thyme, and garlic
• Tarragon and Citrus Butter – zest from orange, juice from ½ orange, and tarragon
• Brown Sugar Butter with Walnuts – dark brown sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and toasted walnuts
• Tomato Jalapeño Butter – tomatoes and jalapeños
• Jalapeño/Cilantro Butter – cilantro and jalapeños
• Garlic Herb Butter (also great for Garlic Bread) – parsley, chives, garlic, salt, pepper, and paprika 

Procedure:

1. Allow butter to soften
2. Place butter in mixer and cream
3. Chop selected herbs and collect your spices
4. Add them to the cream butter and mix using low speed 

Next, shape your butter. Here are two ways to do it:

• Use ice cube trays.  Simply remove your mixture from mixing bowl and spoon into ice tray cubes. Place the filled ice tray in refrigerator or freezer.
• Make your own “stick” with waxed or parchment paper. Place the paper with the long side in front of you. Remove the mixture from the mixer and place on the paper, about 4 inches from the nearest edge. Bring the near edge of the paper over the top of the mixture and roll tightly (pulling the paper over the mixture exactly like rolling a sushi roll) making the roll about 1 to 1-1/2 inches round. Grab the ends of the paper and twist. 

Compound butter may be stored refrigerated for 5 days, or frozen for 6-7 months. When you are ready to use your butter, remove as many cubes as you need from the ice cube tray. Or, remove the rolled compound butter from the refrigerator. Using a sharp knife dipped in warm water, slide your knife through the compound butter. Place butter on meat, seafood or vegetables, when you are ready to serve. Or, place in an elegant butter dish as an accompaniment to bread.

Kontos sells its products to retailers and foodservice establishments across North America and around the world. Find Kontos Foods on Twitter @KontosFoods, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Kontosfoods and on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.com/kontosfoods/.
 
About Kontos Foods
Founded in 1987, Kontos Foods, Inc. is a Paterson, New Jersey-based provider of traditional Mediterranean foods for restaurants, hotels, food service, retail specialty stores and supermarkets worldwide. The family-owned company specializes in hand-stretched flatbreads, including the Kontos Pocket-Less Pita®, Fillo dough, pastries, olives, gyro meats, and Greek yogurts, as well as nearly 50 varieties of multi-ethnic flatbreads. Kontos, which has over 225 employees and was founded by Evripides (Evris) Kontos with his son Steven, together bring over 100 years’ experience in the premium food industry. The company’s bread and Fillo products are made in the USA. Visit www.kontos.com