I wanted to put together a few words on the use of butter in baking: why it’s better than margarine, how it can actually be good for you, what kinds to use, how to store it, and how to bake with it. It seems that a few words have turned into many, and despite a temptation to edit it down, I’ve been indulgent and left it all on the page for you to absorb because, hey, it’s butter, one of the cornerstone ingredients of baking.

butter. enough said.

Butter Tastes Good

As if I needed to tell you that. Yes, butter is divine and always tastes better than any margarine. Let’s get one thing clear: I will never (ever) use margarine in any of the recipes on this blog.

Why Hate On Margarine?

Butter is a simple, relatively unprocessed food, and margarine is industrially made. A “damaged vegetable oil” according to Arizona-based nutritional consultant Lawrence Wilson. Besides tasting awful, Wilson says that margarine is completely void of nutrients, and often contains poor quality, refined, artificially saturated vegetable oil as well as harmful trans fats and residues of toxic metals such as nickel and cadmium.

Yes, I know, butter is high in saturated fats which may increase the risk of heart disease; and for this reason, it should be consumed in moderation… so, don’t eat an entire batch of shortbread cookies in one sitting. Or spread it an inch-thick on your bread. Or gulp down bowls of buttercream frosting (tempting as it may be).

But if you’re going to eat a treat, you’d might as well make it the best-tasting, most natural and velvety textured goody it can be. Right?

The (Nutritional) Upside of Butter

A natural food and one of the best sources of important fat-soluble vitamins, butter is essentially milk fat made from whole milk through a churning process. And although it is a high-fat (at least 80 percent milkfat by weight and more than two-thirds saturated fats), high-cholesterol food, butter is also high in vitamin A and added vitamin D. One advantage to butter’s high-fat content — other than it’s ultra delicious sweet flavor — is butter’s relatively high concentration of a fat called butyric acid. Butyric acid is a short-chain fat which acts as the dominant fuel for most of the cells of our large intestines, and helps keep our digestive systems working tickety-boo. Although saturated fats are generally considered unhealthy, butter is much more readily handled by our bodies than other longer-chained fats such as palm oil.

What About Dairy Allergies?

With respect to allergies and sensitivities, Wilson advises that although many people are sensitive to cow’s milk dairy products, often butter is well-tolerated since it is almost a pure fat and does not contain many of the allergen proteins or sugars found in other milk products (casein or lactose, respectively).

Butter’s toothsomeness is only part of the reason we love baking and cooking with it; its chemical composition makes it more resilient and therefore suitable to its many uses in culinary arts.

bake with butter for its unbeatable flavor and natural goodness.

Types of Butter

Unless otherwise specified, the recipes on this site use unsalted butter. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t have any on hand and use salted butter, but it may produce a saltier end product with a slightly different texture.

Unsalted Butter

Sticks of unsalted butter do not contain any preservatives and therefore have a shorter shelf life than salted butter. Using unsalted butter allows you to precisely control the flavor of your baked goods, and produces wonderfully textured confections, moist cakes, creamy treats and flaky pastries.

Salted Butter

The addition of salt to butter accentuates the flavor and lends it a longer shelf life, making sticks of salted butter ideal for general cooking and use as “table butter” on bread, rolls, etc.

Cultured Butter

Cultured butter is a rich butter made from cultured cream, and is available it both sticks and tubs. Quite popular in Europe, cultured butter is also gaining popularity in North America.

Whipped Butter

Whipped butter as been whipped with air or nitrogen to make a light and easily spreadable butter; this form of butter comes in tubs.

Investing in Organic Butter

Whenever possible, I choose organic – or at least pesticide-free, herbicide-free, hormone- and antibiotic-free foods. Toxic chemicals (including pesticides, herbicides, growth hormone and antibiotics to name a few) tend to concentrate and accumulate in the fats of foods, and when we consume foods which contain these chemicals, they may have negative and disruptive effects within our bodies. Since butter is mainly milk fat, I invest in organic butter (and other dairy products) in an attempt to keep the food that I make clean of concerning and dangerous chemicals and residues from feeds and other sources.

Storing Butter

Refrigerator

Unopened butter may be stored in the coldest part of the fridge (not the door where the fridge manufacturers tell you to put it). And sticks or blocks of butter that have been opened should always be stored in a separate compartment or sealed container or bag to prevent the transfer of food odors (and flavors) to the butter. Refrigerated butter (opened or unopened) should be used within one month.

Freezer

All types of butter may be stored in an air-tight container or bag or wrapped tightly in heavy foil in the freezer for long term storage. Unsalted butter is sometimes found in the freezer section of the store (due to its lack of preservatives).

Counter

Don’t store butter used in baking or cooking at room temperature. For ease of spreading as a condiment, butter may be safely stored in a covered dish at room temperature for a couple of days, however the flavor and color of the butter may change.

Tips for Baking with Butter

• Use stick butter to ensure precise measurement in recipes:

• • 2 sticks = 1 cup – 1/2 pound
  • 1 stick= 1/2 cup = 1/4 pound
  • 1/2 stick = 1/4 cup = 4 tbsp

• Recipes will specify whether or not butter should be softened prior to mixing, or used in a melted, chilled or frozen state.

• Do not soften butter in the microwave as this causes melting inside the stick of butter which affects how it mixes with the sugar and flour in recipes, and ultimately affects the texture of the dough and finished baked good.
• For softened butter as called for in a recipe, remove it from the fridge and let stand for a half hour at room temperature.
  • Need it quicker? Cut the butter into chunks to allow it to warm up (and therefore soften) more quickly.
  • Really in a pinch for softened butter, pronto? Place a cold stick of butter between two sheets of waxed paper and bash it with a rolling pin to soften it up. Or you can always use your heavy-duty standing mixer (with the paddle attachment in place) and soften the butter by beating it around the mixing bowl for a couple minutes on its own.

• Take a few seconds and maximize the flavor of butter by melting it before use on pancakes and waffles.
• Enjoy!

Sources:

Haas, Elson M. (2006).  Staying Healthy with Nutrition: The Complete Guide to Diet and Nutritional Medicine (pp. 349-343). Toronto: Celestial Arts.

Weeks, Carly. Butter v. Margarine – Which is Better? in The Globe and Mail. Retrieved December 18, 2010, from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/butter-v-margarine—which-is-better/article1511588/page1/

Wilson, Lawrence. Butter Versus Margarine in Lawrence Wilson MD, FICB The Center for Development. Retrieved December 18, 2010, from http://www.drlwilson.com/Articles/butter.htm

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