If you have ever tried to melt butter in the microwave, raise your hand. If you have done this week, please raise your hand. Both hands are up in the air. Many baking recipes call for room-temperature butter. However, few people keep a stock of perfectly softened butter at all times. The microwave is not the best tool for the job.
While a social media caught up session last week, I found a reel from @maxiskitchen, which stopped me mid-scroll. Maxine Sharf is a video host and uses the microwave to soften butter. But instead of trying to figure out the mystery combination of power and time, she approaches it differently.
Maxine instructs viewers to heat water in the microwave for 3-4 minutes until it becomes steamy and hot. Then, she replaces the water container with a cold, sliced butter plate and closes the door quickly. The butter will soften to room temperature after about 10 minutes.
Many Instagram commenters also liked this trick. It seems that I am not the only one who is eager to test it. This trick has been liked more than 2,800 times and received many comments. One commenter pointed out that it is “so useful” for bakers who don’t plan. Do I have the right to make homemade sweet treats whenever and wherever I like? This is my favourite kitchen hack.
Two things to remember if you are going to use this hack. You must ensure that your water is stored in a heatproof container. Maxi heats her water in large glasses with handles. It is important that your container can withstand high temperatures and be microwave-safe.
Second, you must be quick when replacing the water with butter. This trick uses the steam accumulated from the water to soften the butter without melting. You’ll lose all the heat if you leave the door open for too long.
This is the hack to use to make butter soften faster. If this fails, you can always use one of these seven butter softening methods.
The holiday baking season is rapidly approaching, and many cookie recipes call for softened butter or room temperature butter to create a light, fluffy crumb.
According to some sources, you can do this in one hour in a warm kitchen. Ina Garten likes to leave her sticks outside overnight. Some people give tips on microwaving it, but I find the risk of melting too high.
I often forget to add butter. When it takes me to put together the ingredients for cookies, I can make perfectly softened butter. This is about 10 minutes. Here’s how:
Add as much butter to a bowl as you like. The water will not cool as quickly if it is more than one pound, and it will take longer for the butter to soften. The sticks are wrapped tight enough to prevent water from seeping in. They will float. Allow them to dry for 10 minutes before turning them over.
You’ll end up with butter that is ready to be put into a bowl and transformed into something special. Bonus: This trick works with cold cream cheese in foil wrappers and cold eggs. Happy baking!
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