Browned Butter: Savory or Sweet

Browned butter (beurre noisette), is having its moment in the spotlight for good reason. Not that butter isn’t beautiful on its own, but a few minutes of carefully applied heat transforms its subtle sweet saltiness to nutty brown cheesiness, creating a rather magical sauce in the process. If you’ve ever bathed your palate in the beauty of sole meunier, you’ve experienced the flavor punch of browned butter. Ditto financier cakes, nothing more than almond flour, browned butter, and egg whites but powerfully rich and lovely. Basically everything is made better with browned butter (popcorn!), so keep this simple technique tucked in the back of your hungry mind for fast, impressive meals.As special as butternut squash ravioli with sage browned butter is, remember that the sauce alone can turn a simple bowl of spaghetti into restaurant-worthy fare.

In 10 minutes.

Yes!For a fast-sweet treat, toss ripe berries into a panful of browned butter and swirl until bright and syrupy. Spoon over crepes, pancakes, or waffles for a memorable brunch.

Basic Browned Butter

Makes 1 cup

8 oz. unsalted butter

Place butter in a medium saucepan and set over medium heat. Butter will melt and then become foamy. After the foam subsides, swirl the pan a few times as brown flecks begin to appear in the butter. Keep swirling as butter grows uniformly brown, removing from heat when butter is a nice golden color. The butter should smell deliciously nutty (not burned).

Sage Browned Butter

Follow instructions above, adding 20 sage leaves to the pan after foam subsides. When butter is browned, sage leaves will be crisp.

Berry Browned Butter

Follow instructions above, adding 1 cup of berries (whole blackberries, raspberries, or small strawberries) to the pan after butter is browned. Continue swirling the pan until sauce is syrupy, about 3 minutes. Add a tablespoon of honey, if you like, and/or a tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves.

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The pasta in the photo is Tinkyada gluten-free brown rice pasta and it is good. As in, truly al dente delicious. I highly recommend. I picked it up at Linden Hill Co-op, I believe.

The crepes in the photo are gluten-free and grain-free. I’ve been substituting cashew butter for GF all-purpose flour with a fantastic result! Combine 1/2 c. milk, 2 eggs, 1/4 c. cashew butter, and a pinch of salt in a blender. Whir until smooth. Cook as thin pancakes, a few tablespoons of batter at a time, in a small nonstick pan. Eat right away, or cool to room temperature, wrap in plastic, and store in the refrigerator.