Yahoo Lifestyle The Canadian Way to Make Butter 10x Better
There is no shortage of butter types at the American grocery store. Unsalted, salted, American, Irish, European, Amish, sweet cream, grass-fed, clarified and veganājust to name a few.
Where is all butter packed with fresh flavor? If you look around, you may stumble upon a couple options. There's compound butter and other types where you mix butter with a melange of savory herbs and seasonings. Garlic butter and cinnamon butter are both gateways to an epic piece of toast. While nothing is as good as butter adding a mix-in makes in better. Enter the Canadian way to take butter to new heights: maple syrup.
Related: This Is Martha Stewartās Favorite ButterāAnd You Can Get It at a Grocery Store Near You
Why Add Maple Syrup to Butter
Sweet, dark and robust maple syrup (especially maple syrup from Canada) is liquid gold on pancakes, French toast and pretty much everything it touches. And it gets even better with butter. The syrup's caramel-toffee-like warmth acts as a sweet counterpoint to the creamy richness of butter. Whip the two ingredients together. Then, keep a batch of homemade maple butter in the kitchen and smear it on top of pancakes, French toast, cornbread and any fluffy carb. Maple butter would be unreal on a baked sweet potato or with a plate of chicken and waffles.
Related: How to Cut and Prep A Stick of Butter Into Tablespoons
šš SIGN UP to get delicious recipes, handy kitchen hacks & more in our daily Pop Kitchen newsletter š³š
The Difference Between Maple Butter and Maple Cream
For starters, maple butter and maple cream are both delicious. Maple butter is a flavored butter that is made, in essence, by whipping butter and maple syrup together. On the other hand, maple cream is a super thick spread with a consistency similar to peanut butter. Maple cream is produced by heating and stirring pure maple syrup and then cooled back down until it thickens and becomes creamy. All in all, maple butter is easier to prepare at home.
Related: Make-Ahead Brown Butter Is My New Favorite Cooking Hack
How to Make Homemade Maple Butter
Maple butter is a simple mixture of equal parts butter and maple syrup in cups. So if you're using 1/2 cup of maple syrup, you will want to grab 1 stick (or 1/2 cup) of butter.
Related: How to Soften Butter Quickly
Allow the butter to sit at room temperature until softened. Reduce the maple syrup by simmering it over medium-low heat until the liquid reduces by a quarter. The syrup should become thicker, coat the back of a spoon and form larger, slower-moving bubbles in the pan. Remove from heat and allow it to cool completely. Now, whip the maple butter. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the cooled maple syrup plus kosher salt and ground cinnamon for extra seasoning. Continue beating until the mixture is fluffy and lightened in color. Slather, spread and eat this sweet-salty butter to your heart's content.
Up Next:
