Wine Butter

If a=awesome and b=awesome, then a+b= really really awesome. At least that was my reasoning with the wine butter that is patiently waiting to be consumed in my fridge.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite blogs, How Sweet It Is. Though she used the butter with bleu cheese biscuits (YUM), I plan on using this butter as a compliment to christmas dinner, spread on toast, cooked with veggies, maybe even with eggs one day! This is definitely a special version of butter that packs a crazy punch of flavor and is perfect for special occasions.

Wine Butter

Ingredients

• 1 bottle pinot noir or your favorite red varietal
• 2 sticks salted butter, softened
• fresh ground black pepper

Instructions

• In a heavy bottomed sauce pan over medium heat, reduce entire bottle of wine to less than 1/2 cup
• This will take about 30 minutes
• Let wine reduction cool to room temp
• Whip softened butter with a fork, drizzle in cooled wine mixture
• This is where it gets tricky. I had to nuke my butter for 10 seconds to get it liquified before the wine would mix. Then place in fridge, set a timer, and whip the mixture every five minutes until you're happy. You're basically emulsifying oil and vinegar here, so have some patience. It works best to use my microwave method then let it set back up in the fridge. Not all of the wine will absorb in to the butter, but that gives the finished product a nice marbled look, so don't worry!
• Season with pepper
• Line a mold with plastic wrap - I used the lid of a butter tray, but you could mold the butter into anything you'd like
• Press in butter and fridge for several hours before unwrapping to serve

full bottle

going...

going ....

going...

gone!

Wine Butter would make a nice take along for any dinner parties or a homemade gift to any foodie friends.

Last night I enjoyed this wine butter mixed with panko and parmesan, stuffed into crimini mushrooms. Shout out to the cutie who put that magical meal together! 

Eat responsibly!