Is there a spreadable butter?

[mo2]

I want to switch to real butter, having used margarine my entire life. But it's so hard to spread! Is there a spreadable version, or do I just have to soften it before I want to butter my rolls?

 

(Sorry, this may be a dumb question.)

[Mrs Mungo]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

[Whereneverever]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

[8circles]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

:iagree:

[Carol in Cal.]

It's soft enough to spread at room temperature.

If you want VERY soft butter, you can make it out of cream. Put about a pint of cream in your food processor, add 1/2 tsp of lemon juice, and process until it separates. Drain the whey (save it for soups--it makes them taste SO good), and serve the butter in a small bowl with short spreading knives. You can add roasted garlic to it at this point--wonderful! However, use it quickly as this kind of butter spoils extremely fast.

[Beth S]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

 

I make this myself, by mixing 1 part butter to 1 part olive oil, and blending it with one of those "blending rod attachments" on my hand mixer:

 

http://findnsave.sacbee.com/Product/12132319/KitchenAid-Hand-Mixer-Blending-Rod-Attachment

[tammyw]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

I just read an article about this last night. I need to try to find it. Basically the article said that you shouldn't leave butter out for more than two hours because it can spoil and make you sick, especially unsalted butters, but it said even salted butters shouldn't be left out more than two hours. I'll try to track down the article I read last night so I can come back and post.

 

ETA: Found it in the recent Martha Stewart Magazine. I'll paraphrase - salted butter can be left out longer than others, but it isn't always safe. Salt content and fine water dispersion in regular, salted inhibits growth of almost all harmful bacteria but when the balance is changed (unsalted light, etc,) contamination is greater. There have been outbreaks of staphylococcus aureus food poisoning associated with whipped butter left at room temperature. Other bacteria including listeria can grow in low-salt or unsalted. Butter can be contaminated at any point after cream is pasteurized - processing, shipping, your own kitchen. A butter bell may seem like a good way to keep spreadable butter at hand, but it doesn't eliminate the risk of food-borne illnesses if the butter was contaminated. Play it safe by keeping butter in the fridge at 38 degrees and don't leave out for more than two hours while you're using it.

 

Bottom line - salted butter is safer if you're going to leave it on the counter it sounds like.

Edited January 28, 2012 by tammyw

[Denise in Florida]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

Yep, just leave it out on the counter. I keep the box of sticks in the refridgerator and put one stick out on the counter in a butter dish. The only time I keep the 'current' stick in the refridgerator is in the middle of summer when the butter turns to liquid on the counter. yeeck

[Ali in OR]

Challenge and Land O'Lakes both make a spreadable butter that has a little oil in it to make it spread easily--same great butter taste. I always have one in the fridge for toast. There is also whipped butter, but I don't think it spreads as well. Look for them by the regular butter in your grocery store.

[KungFuPanda]

You need a butter bell. I love mine. You put a little water in the crock to keep it cool. Change the water a few times a week. Then, you can keep your butter on the counter. (I do skip using it during the hottest part of the summer.)

 

 

Edited January 28, 2012 by KungFuPanda

[AK_Mom4]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

:iagree: This works great.

[Denise in Florida]

I just read an article about this last night. I need to try to find it. Basically the article said that you shouldn't leave butter out for more than two hours because it can spoil and make you sick, especially unsalted butters, but it said even salted butters shouldn't be left out more than two hours. I'll try to track down the article I read last night so I can come back and post.

 

the butter is fine on the counter. People have done this for years since before everyone had 'ice boxes'.:001_smile:

 

The key is keep the butter dish clean and keep the butter clean use a clean knife to slice a little butter off...don't double dip you will get crumbs and other impurities in the butter. Just like with jelly use a knife and make a single slice, don't use a spoon or make multiple 'wounds' this leads to faster break down of the butter (or jelly). If you are concerned ...give the butter a sniff...you can tell when it goes rancid.

[Forget-Me-Not]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

:iagree: IME it stays good for several days this way, though we usually go through it faster than that.

[Ellie]

Either it's butter and hard to spread when it's cold or it's not. ;-)

 

Plugra butter is not as hard as others. Maybe it's the higher fat content? I dunno.

 

If you go through lots of butter, it should be fine on the counter.

[Parrothead]

I just read an article about this last night. I need to try to find it. Basically the article said that you shouldn't leave butter out for more than two hours because it can spoil and make you sick, especially unsalted butters, but it said even salted butters shouldn't be left out more than two hours. I'll try to track down the article I read last night so I can come back and post.

 

ETA: Found it in the recent Martha Stewart Magazine. I'll paraphrase - salted butter can be left out longer than others, but it isn't always safe. Salt content and fine water dispersion in regular, salted inhibits growth of almost all harmful bacteria but when the balance is changed (unsalted light, etc,) contamination is greater. There have been outbreaks of staphylococcus aureus food poisoning associated with whipped butter left at room temperature. Other bacteria including listeria can grow in low-salt or unsalted. Butter can be contaminated at any point after cream is pasteurized - processing, shipping, your own kitchen. A butter bell may seem like a good way to keep spreadable butter at hand, but it doesn't eliminate the risk of food-borne illnesses if the butter was contaminated. Play it safe by keeping butter in the fridge at 38 degrees and don't leave out for more than two hours while you're using it.

 

Bottom line - salted butter is safer if you're going to leave it on the counter it sounds like.

I'll believe it for whipped butter. Who knows what gets mixed in during the whipping process. But regular stick butter is fine out on the counter.

[Tigger]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

:iagree:

[Parrothead]

You need a butter bell. I love mine. You put a little water in the crock to keep it cool. Change the water a few times a week. Then, you can keep your butter on the counter. (I do skip using it during the hottest part of the summer.)

 

It really does depend on how warm the ambient temp of your house is. My house stays so cool 8 months of the year that the bell thing doesn't do much good.

[KungFuPanda]

It really does depend on how warm the ambient temp of your house is. My house stays so cool 8 months of the year that the bell thing doesn't do much good.

 

We keep a cold house (not MY idea; just everyone else's preference :glare:) Still, it's not quite refridgerator-cold, so I have no trouble spreading the butter that I leave out in the bell.

[mothergooseof4]

I always have a stick on the counter in a butter dish. We have never had issues with it going bad or making us sick.

[Desert Rat]

It doesn't go bad.

[butterflymommy]

The moment the butter comes home from the store, it goes in the freezer. Then I microwave however much I need and leave any extra out on the counter. I know you're not supposed to leave butter out but I have for up to 48 hours. Even though I'm kind of OCD about food safety. I wouldn't recommend this though. You should probably refrigerate or refreeze it after 3 hours.

[nukeswife]

I leave mine out in a covered dish and have no issues with it going bad. The other option is to remember to take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you plan to spread it.

[LucyStoner]

We use a butterbell. No issues at all.

[djsmom]

Yep, just leave it out on the counter. I keep the box of sticks in the refridgerator and put one stick out on the counter in a butter dish. The only time I keep the 'current' stick in the refridgerator is in the middle of summer when the butter turns to liquid on the counter. yeeck

 

:iagree:This is how we have been doing it for years and have never had an issue.

[bbkaren]

I bought a butter bell recently and keep it on the counter. This is the one we got:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Marble-Butter-Keeper-NEW/dp/B0000VZ0WC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327777075&sr=8-1

 

That said, I've kept butter on the counter all my life (hmm...47 years this March) and have never been made sick, nor known anyone who was made sick from butter left out on the counter.

 

The problem I had is, periodically it'd get so warm in here that the butter would liquify and that was a pain.

 

The butter bell doesn't allow the butter to melt; it just stays nicely spreadable!

[HLDoll]

I've been leaving butter on the counter in a covered dish for years and we've never gotten sick. My mother has done this for as long as I can remember, too.

[KungFuPanda]

I bought a butter bell recently and keep it on the counter. This is the one we got:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Marble-Butter-Keeper-NEW/dp/B0000VZ0WC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327777075&sr=8-1

 

That said, I've kept butter on the counter all my life (hmm...47 years this March) and have never been made sick, nor known anyone who was made sick from butter left out on the counter.

 

The problem I had is, periodically it'd get so warm in here that the butter would liquify and that was a pain.

 

The butter bell doesn't allow the butter to melt; it just stays nicely spreadable!

 

Oooh, yours is prettier than mine. Wanna trade? Mine was given to me and has pink flowers on it.

[PrincessMommy]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

 

I make better butter too. I mix mine with canola oil and add a little bit more salt. I take 4 sticks and about 1.5-2cups canola oil and mix it in the blender.

[love2read]

We used a butter keeper (butter bell) for years and when it cracked, I temporarily put a stick of butter into a small mug and pushed it down to the bottom when it softened (as with a butter keeper). I then covered it with cold water and put a little plate over it. When we needed butter, I just poured off the water, spread and added water again. I never did get around to buying another butter keeper because this works just as well and uses the same principle of keeping the butter away from oxygen.

[bnrmom]

We too use a butter bell. I change the water every few days, and wash the whole thing every time it's empty before refilling it. Works great, never had an issue with it going bad.

[HappyCrazyMama]

I always have a stick on the counter in a butter dish. We have never had issues with it going bad or making us sick.

:iagree: (But a stick only lasts us a day or so :blush:)

[Forget-Me-Not]

I had problems with mold and the butter going rancid with a butter bell. So I switched to keeping it in a closed ceramic container and it works fine.

[HiddenJewel]

I use 1 cup butter:1 cup water:1 cup canola oil. It stays a great texture in the fridge.

[Susan in TN]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

 

You can easily make this your ETA:(this post was interrupted by a 5 hour trip to the ER - 3yo fell and hit her head on the coffee table corner. lots of blood. 4 stitches above eyebrow. Doing fine now)

 

...self with 1/2 butter, 1/2 olive oil (I use "light tasting". freezes well, too. Although I see now that others have given about the same recipe ;)

Edited January 29, 2012 by Susan in TN

[Bassoonaroo]

You can easily make this your ETA:(this post was interrupted by a 5 hour trip to the ER - 3yo fell and hit her head on the coffee table corner. lots of blood. 4 stitches above eyebrow. Doing fine now)

 

...self with 1/2 butter, 1/2 olive oil (I use "light tasting". freezes well, too. Although I see now that others have given about the same recipe ;)

 

OUCH -- hate when that happens.

 

We are butter bell users here -- have been for about 10 years. About three times ever, the butter in the bell smelled off.

 

I send the butter bell through the dishwasher after each stick and I think that helps keep the germs down.

[Laura Corin]

I use the kind mixed with olive oil for spreading.

 

She allows butter to soften a bit then mixes it with olive oil. She refrigerates it and can use it directly from the fridge.

 

I just leave butter on the counter.....

 

Laura

[JudoMom]

the butter is fine on the counter. People have done this for years since before everyone had 'ice boxes'.:001_smile:

 

The key is keep the butter dish clean and keep the butter clean use a clean knife to slice a little butter off...don't double dip you will get crumbs and other impurities in the butter. Just like with jelly use a knife and make a single slice, don't use a spoon or make multiple 'wounds' this leads to faster break down of the butter (or jelly). If you are concerned ...give the butter a sniff...you can tell when it goes rancid.

 

:iagree:

[abbeyej]

Traditional butter dish on the counter. As long as it's mid-60s or higher in the house, the butter should spread fine.

[Mergath]

Salted butter in a butter dish on the counter here, too. I grew up eating butter like this and have never become sick from it.

[ma23peas]

I keep mine on the counter in a covered dish so it stays soft.

 

This!