I’m in the school of “the more butter, the better.” And what could make butter better? Green chile, of course. Slather this compound butter on your biscuits, or replace the butter in your biscuit recipe. Use it to make the dough for an apple galette, or dab it on your corn bread. Sure, you could use softened sticks of butter in this recipe, but go the extra mile and make butter from cream, and it will be a well-earned reward. You can easily make butter by beating cream into whipped cream, then continuing to beat it until it separates into a liquid and a solid.
Green Chile Butter
Ingredients
- 4 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup green chiles, roasted, peeled, and chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pour heavy cream into a food processor, stand mixer, or blender. Process on high until butter separates. The time to separation will depend on the equipment and the speed you use (anywhere from 3 to 10 minutes). Pay attention and stop processing once the liquid has separated from the solids.
- Transfer solid butter pieces to cheesecloth and squeeze out as much buttermilk as possible; reserve buttermilk for another use. Scrape butter out of cheesecloth and run under cold water, squeezing out excess liquid, until water runs clear.
- Return butter to food processor; add remaining ingredients and blend well. Use a butter mold to shape, if desired, or store in any airtight container. Keep butter refrigerated for up to 3 weeks; frozen, it will last several months.
- The buttermilk you’ll have after making butter is thin and slightly sweet. You shouldn’t bake with it, but it is excellent for adding to stews, braises, and smoothies. Store buttermilk in the refrigerator and use within 1 week.
Stephanie Cameron was raised in Albuquerque and earned a degree in fine arts at the University of New Mexico. She is the art director, head photographer, recipe tester, marketing guru, publisher, and owner of edible New Mexico and The Bite.
