It’s no secret that I enjoy butter. I mean, you only have to look at me to understand that I’m not going to skimp – whether it’s on toast, in a recipe, whatever.
It wasn’t always the way. I grew up (showing my age now) on outline spread as it was what my mum dieted with, which subsisted alongside her cooking for us kids and my dad with lard, oil, margarine or suet for dumplings. But weirdly, rarely actual butter.
My experiences of the proper golden stuff were limited to times we stayed in B&Bs for family weddings, or, when I went to high school, when they had chicken soup on the menu (the others were awful) and I could get a bowl, and a fresh baked roll with the essential little pat of rock hard butter for under £1. Of course the butter was so solidly cold that it had to be squished inside the roll, and remained a solid block until the hot soup got to work. It’s still one of my favourite comfort foods – a tin of chicken soup, crusty bread and proper butter.
It still took me ages to step away from the margarine when I moved out. And I’ll admit we still lean on the spreadable butters when it comes to toast as my kitchen has a tendency to be cold. Great for pastry, dreadful for ensuring your butter isn’t going to destroy the slice of bread you’re trying to spread it on. But otherwise, there is always butter to be found in my fridge. Preferably something locally produced, or at least British to keep those food miles low. But proper proper butter.
Given this almost obsession (I do also love a good olive oil, rapeseed oil etc etc) you’d forgive me to allowing my mind to wander immediately on receiving an email from Sublime Butter. Once I’d finished questioning myself on how exactly they’d passed me by, (they’re in specialist delicatessens, online and via Ocado), my brain saw their range of flavours and leapt into cooking mode. The chimichurri butter oozing onto a hotly seared steak, or slathered on to thick slices of white bloomer before it was filled with roast chicken and salad. The garlic and herb elevating your home made garlic bread, or the garlic, rosemary and mint over Jersey Royals at the peak of their season. Hot sourdough slathered with the lemon dill and caper butter, before being topped with scrambled eggs and smoked salmon.
When the box arrived from Sublime Butter (thank you Tillie!), days before Christmas, I all but leapt into action (I didn’t actually leap as that would have enraged the neighbour downstairs who we try not to piss off).
The first butter to sample was the pink Himalayan salt. Straight into a quick dense bechamel for a chicken parmo as requested by the husband. For the uninitiated, a chicken parmo is a Tyneside delicacy that I have a fondness for, and I shall be revisiting soon with the help of the leftovers from the Christmas cheeseboard. You take a chicken breast and flatten it a little (not quite as deeply as you would a schnitzel), breadcrumb it, and fry it. So far so standard. Then you take a big tablespoon of bechamel sauce, and cover the breaded chicken, before adding cheese of choice (in this case a standard grated cheddar). The result is comfort food. Crisp breadcrumbs, tender chicken breast, creamy cheesy sauciness atop.
The husband declared it a success. What next?
By now it was Christmas Day and eggs benedict beckoned, again made with the pink Himalayan salt butter. Before the main event, when I roasted the carrots in garlic and herb butter.
So far, so impressed. The pink Himalayan salt butter had all the creamy softness you’d expect, minerality from the salt, and the quality of the butter was obvious in the texture of the bechamel and the colour of the Hollandaise sauce. The carrots roasted in the garlic & herb butter had the nuttiness you’d expect where the butter had browned, but the garlic and herbs gave them a freshness that cut through. The garlic was present, but not overpowering, meaning that the sweetness of the carrots still came through.
What next? I all but rubbed by hands together. Time for a decadent working from home breakfast. Freshly made bread, smoked salmon and the lemon, caper and dill butter.
So far, it’s my favourite. I adore dill, and can see this oozing over a soft omelette, basting a fresh piece of fish, or roasting vine ripened tomatoes. The dill hasn’t been left sitting in the back, it’s very much the star of the show, and I am a big fan.
Overall, yes I still have three butters to play with, and I cannot wait, but for now, I love these, and will be keeping them in my fridge (or ready sliced in the freezer to just add willy nilly when the urge takes me). I’m definitely going to grab myself some of the bearnaise butter (because that sounds heavenly) and tuck it under the breast of a chicken before roasting. And some of the red chilli butter because that on some roasted Mediterranean veggies, or some fresh prawns would be delightful.
If you fancy expanding your butter selection, you can find Sublime Butter online and order direct, order from Ocado, or find them in local delicatessens across the country.
This post features a product gifted for review. As ever this doesn’t guarantee a positive review, only my personal experiences with the product.