Recipe: Cider Sage Compound Butter

Compound butter is just a fancy name for flavored butter, which is one of the easiest and most straightforward ways to add flavor to pretty much anything. Even something as simple as roasted veggies, biscuits, or (sadly, this happens all too often) under-seasoned turkey or chicken is totally transformed with one swipe of compound butter. It’s truly like a magic wand that brings delicious flavor to anything it touches.

sage compound butter

And the best part is that making it couldn’t be easier! Essentially, whatever ingredients you want to use are mixed into softened butter, which is then refrigerated to firm back up again. That’s it! You can make it sweet, spicy, savory or any combination thereof. One cozy combo we’ve been digging is sage, cider, shallot and maple; the apple character of the cider is the perfect pair for the earthy, herbal quality of the sage, balanced in equal measures by the allium sharpness of the shallot and the round sweetness of the maple. Try it on biscuits, rolls, steak, chicken, pork and more!

Cider Sage Compound Butter

Ready in: 15 minutes

Serves: 10-12

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
  • 1 medium shallot, minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
  • 3 ounces hard cider
  • 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
  • Kosher salt

Method

  1. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallot and sage and cook until tender, 3-5 minutes. Stir in hard cider and cook until reduced, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
  2. Transfer contents of skillet to mixing bowl with remaining butter and maple syrup. Add salt to taste and whisk together until combined and creamy. Transfer to serving bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
  3. Serve at room temperature.
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