Blackberry Butter
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COMPOUND BUTTER WILL BE YOUR NEW FAVORITE CONDIMENT
I know the name sounds fancy, but if you’ve ever made my cinnamon honey butter, you’ve made compound butter. Compound butter is just a sophisticated term for butter that has been combined with sweet or savory components to make it more flavorful.
You’ll often see compound butter with herbs and/or spices in it, destined for a hunk of herbed bread (or even to jazz up plain bread!), but this blackberry version is sweetened ever so slightly with sugar to complement the natural juices and sweetness from macerated blackberries.
The truth of the matter is you could really use any berry, but this blackberry version is one I’m particularly excited about because while I love blackberry flavor, I do not love the seeds. Raspberry seeds are a little more manageable for me, and strawberry and blueberry seeds even more so, but blackberry seeds are big. In something like butter where there aren’t many other textures going on, removing them creates a smooth, creamy butter you’ll be dying to spread onto any and all the things from toast at breakfast to cornbread at dinner.
In our house, this butter did not last long at all. And something tells me that if you’re a condiment fan, the same will be true in your house.
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED
This is hardly an ingredient list. It’s like an ingredient sticky note!
FRESH BLACKBERRIES: fresh is the way to go here, though frozen and thawed will work just as well! Thanks to Bushel and Berry®, I always have fresh blackberries available to me when they’re in season. I particularly like this blackberry plant, Baby Cakes®, because it stays small enough to grow in a patio container and doesn’t have any pesky thorns!
BUTTER: I prefer this compound butter with unsalted butter, so if you prefer salted butter, you can use that in this recipe. See notes in the recipe about adjusting the salt if you use unsalted butter and would prefer a saltier taste. You can also use any nondairy butter you like!
POWDERED SUGAR: I lean into powdered sugar here as opposed to granulated sugar as it dissolves more quickly and easily. You can make a swap in a pinch, but you may have to beat the butter longer to get the sugar to dissolve completely and it may leave behind a grainy texture.
HOW TO MAKE BLACKBERRY BUTTER
Again, such a short and sweet set of instructions. The hardest part is macerating and straining the blackberries, but the flip side is it’s arguably the most fun part, too.
Mash the berries: this can get a little messy, so be prepared! I used a potato masher and then a fork to get the smaller pieces of blackberry smashed a bit better. Keep smashing until all of the sacks of juice have burst and you have a deep purple mixture of juice, seeds, and flesh.
Strain the juice from the seeds and flesh: you’ll want to work with just the juice for the rest of the recipe. You can discard the seeds and flesh, but if you know you prefer a little texture in your compound butter, feel free to add some back in once the butter has come together.
Blend everything: add the butter and powdered sugar to the blackberry juice and beat with a mixer. It will look like things aren’t going to come together, but I assure you they will! Keep blending until everything has been incorporated and you have a dark pink/purpley mixture.
Serve: the butter is ready to use right away, but you will want to keep it in the refrigerator for longer term storage. You can use it cold or allow it to come to room temperature before using it, but be sure it goes back into the refrigerator as the fresh berry juice will spoil before the butter will.
CAN I USE NONDAIRY BUTTER?
You can absolutely use a nondairy butter substitute! While I have not tested it myself, it should work just as well as regular butter. Since nondairy butters utilize oils, you might have some more separating during the blending step. Keep blending and everything should work itself together eventually.
MORE BLACKBERRY RECIPES
Homemade Blackberry Butter Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 small to medium fresh blackberries
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter1 softened to room temperature
- 3 Tablespoons (23g) powdered sugar
Instructions
- Add the blackberries to a medium size bowl. Use a fork or a potato masher to smash the berries until they have separated into seeds, flesh, and juice.12 small to medium fresh blackberries
- Use a fine mesh sieve to strain the seeds and flesh from the juice. You should have about ¼ cup of liquid once everything has been pushed through. Discard2 the seeds and flesh.
- Add the softened butter and powdered sugar to the strained blackberry juice and use a handheld mixer to beat everything together until it is smooth and fluffy. You can also use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, if you prefer.½ cup (113g) unsalted butter1, 3 Tablespoons (23g) powdered sugar
- The butter is ready to use immediately but should be kept in the refrigerator for long term storage. You can keep it in a serving dish or roll it into a log wrapped in plastic wrap for a more "presentable" aesthetic, or keep it in a lidded container in the refrigerator. Chilled butter can be kept in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks or in the freezer up to 6 months.
Notes
- Unsalted butter: I like this compound butter without salt, so if you prefer salted butter, you can use that in this recipe. If you use unsalted butter, taste it, and would prefer a saltier taste, you can add ¼ teaspoon to the butter and re-beat the mixture until it is fully incorporated. You can also use any nondairy butter you like!
- Discard: if you would like the seeds and flesh in your butter, that is at your discretion. Some people like the authentic texture, but my preference is to leave them out for a smooth butter.
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.