A recipe for delicious whipped herb butter with rosemary that makes a perfect gift with fresh bread.
I’m excited to be joining the Handmade Holidays Blog Hop food gifts and recipes day for the first time this year! This is the first recipe I’ve posted here on Simple Practical Beautiful because my Bread Basket gift that I shared earlier this week needs bread and butter to go with it. And not just any butter, whipped herb butter. It’s delicious and easy to make.
After you’ve read the herb butter recipe, be sure to take a look at all the other food gift recipes listed below. There are some delicious ideas that anyone on your list would be happy to receive.
Some tips for making whipped herb butter:
Whipping Butter
I used a Cuisinart food processor to whip the butter, but you could also use a stand mixer or a hand-held mixer. I tried to whip just the 1/4 cup of butter that I need for my bread basket gift, but it was too little for my food processor to effectively whip. I had to use 1/2 cup of butter or more to get it to whip well. Luckily, you can whip as much butter as you’d like and then just mix the herbs into a small portion of it. That way you can test different flavors (although it’s butter, any flavor is going to taste good).
Milk or Water
Most whipped butter recipes use milk instead of water to lighten the butter because it mixes more easily with the butter and it gives it a creamier flavor. But since my whipped herb butter is going to be a gift, I have no idea how long it might sit out at room temperature. The milk might go bad, so I used water instead. Water does the same job of thinning out the butter so it becomes lighter and more filled with air.
Crushing the Rosemary
I love using rosemary to flavor almost anything savory. It’s delicious and pungent. But if you use rosemary straight off the bush or straight out of the jar, it’s too sharp. Not the flavor, the leaves will actually stab your mouth.
You can chop it up (in your food processor before you whip the butter), but I prefer to crush it with a mortar and pestle. Crushing it releases the oils and makes any dried herb smell and taste more. It does take longer to crush herbs than chop them, but I think it’s worth it. Also, crushing only works for dried herbs. Fresh herbs need to be chopped.
Other Herbs and Flavors of Whipped Butter
I made a rosemary butter and a lemon parsley butter. My family loved both (who doesn’t love butter), but preferred the rosemary flavor. So that’s the one I’m sharing.
You can make herb butter with just about any herb you can think of: oregano, chives, thyme, sage, tarragon, etc. Or try combinations. My next flavor to try is garlic basil whipped butter with roasted garlic and fresh basil from my self-watering planter.
Challah Bread
I love making challah bread, especially as a gift because it’s so easy, it tastes wonderful, and it looks really impressive. Braiding the dough together makes it look really fancy, but it’s really simple. I always use my favorite recipe from Williams-Sonoma. You can find it on their website.
Whipped Herb Butter as a Gift
I used a large frosting tip to put the butter into a small mason jar to give as a gift. The frosting tip made the whole process less messy and the finished gift more professional-looking.
Whipped Rosemary Butter Recipe
1/2 cup Butter
3 Tbsp. Water
2 tsp. Crushed or Finely Chopped Rosemary
1/2 tsp. Salt
- Place the butter in a food processor or stand mixer and whip. Sprinkle water on top of butter, and continue whipping until the butter is pale and fluffy.
- Add rosemary and salt to taste. Mix well.
- Serve at room temperature.
Variations: Add 2 tsp. of parsley and the zest of one lemon instead of the rosemary and salt for Lemon Parsley Whipped Butter.
Add this delicious herb butter to a Bread Basket Gift, with a decorated cutting board and bread bag. There’s even a video on how to make a simple linen bread bag that will keep your bread fresh and look beautiful.
A big thank you to our Blog Hop sponsors: Walnut Hollow, HomeRight, Smart Fun DIY, and Scrapbook Adhesives.
Be sure to check out all these other delicious holiday recipes: