How To : Brown Butter (like a boss)...

How To: Brown Butter (like a boss)...

Oh how I do love brown butter. And it is SO simple to make and it elevates any dish to another level! It's great in savory dishes, like pastas, sauces, or on seafood, but it is also fab in baked goods like cookies, doughnuts, and cakes. Oh and don't forget brown butter ice cream, it could possibly be my favorite flavor. It pairs amazingly with bourbon... which is also a win-win, since I like everything boozy. It is the perfect addition to chocolate chip cookies because it adds a nuttiness without including those pesky walnuts that I can't stand. I always drizzle some on top of my apple pies or just throw a whole stick of brown butter into my pecan pies... it's that good. I have almost 30 recipes featuring it as a prime component. So you need to jump on board and do the same. All you need is a couple sticks of butter, a saute pan, a whisk, & a rubber spatula... and you're in business!! So through this little tutorial, you'll learn how to brown butter, like a boss (just like me)!! Enjoy :)

Throw two sticks of butter into a heated pan.. 

And whisk, whisk, whisk away...

It'll foam, sizzle, & pop... don't worry that's just the water evaporating.

It'll clear up a bit and darken in color...

And shortly, you will see little brown flecks start to appear at the bottom of the pan...

Turn the heat off, but continue to whisk for another 30 seconds or so...

And then get it out of the hot pan and into a dish, where it will continue to brown due to the heat

Now you can use it right away or store it in the refrigerator for baked goods later...

For the Brown Butter:

2 Sticks of Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature

Directions:

1. Heat a light-colored sauté pan over medium heat (you use a lighter color because it will help you to be able to see whether or not the butter is burning or not, so you achieve the perfect caramel colored brown butter).

2. Add the two sticks of softened butter to the warmed skillet. Let the butter melt completely and continue to whisk/move the butter throughout the entire process. After a couple minutes, the butter will begin to bubble, and then foam before it subsides into a bright yellow color (the bubbling & foaming is just a sign that the water is evaporating out of the butter). After this, you should begin to see the butter beginning to darken and little brown bits forming at the bottom of the pan. At this point, you should begin to smell a toasty, nutty aroma (it should be quite intoxicating).

3. The butter should be almost completely golden with a few of brown butter specks; this is the time where you need to cut off the heat. Continue to whisk rigorously to ensure even browning. Using a rubber spatula, pour the butter into a dish and scrape out all of the brown bits into the dish as well (those are the most important part). And don’t worry, because the butter is still hot, it will continue to brown/toast while cooling off in the pan. This is the easiest way to ensure you will not burn the brown butter (yuck).

4. Now you can either toss it right into a dish… such as pasta or in a sauce, or you can refrigerate it so that it hardens again and it will be perfect for baking, like in cookies or cake (make sure to whisk it right before serving, so that the brown bits are evenly distributed throughout the butter). Once your butter has browned and been refrigerated, it should be good for about a week or two (if it’ll last that long).