I like to use real butter. I do not like to try to spread it straight from the fridge. The cold butter always wins, the bread loses. My solution: I keep it out on the counter. Call me a rebel.
I first got this idea from my sister. Of course, I was slightly horrified when she told me about it. Butter spoils, right?
Well, in my experience (and hers), no. My stick of butter has never spoiled. Naturally, I do keep the unopened sticks in the fridge, but the one currently in use is in a covered butter dish on the counter. 
In the summer it can sometimes get extremely soft, almost to the point of melting. I usually only put out half a stick at a time, and if the weather is very hot, I may pop it in the fridge over night.
So, there you have it. I may be a rebel. I may take risks. But I always have soft, spreadable butter.
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15 comments:
I leave mine on the counter, too. It will, eventually, go rancid, but it has to be out for a pretty long time for that to happen, and ours rarely lasts nearly that long.
We do the same thing! I learned this trick from my aunt when I was house-sitting for her once. I was thrilled to be able to butter my bread w/o having to wait for it to soften! The little things that amaze me :) I too thought it *must* spoil, but we've never had any issues.
I'm with you! I was using a butter dish on the couter for a while and then on a recent goodwill run I found one of those little upside-down butter crock thingies that you fill with water to keep the butter from coming into contact with the air. Honestly I thought the regular butter dish was just fine, but the crock is pretty cute.
We have been keeping ours out for years and have never had a problem. I'm so glad to see there are some other rebels out there :)
I'm a butter rebel, too. We should form a sisterhood!
My family has always done that as well. We have never had a problem with it going bad. The little crock is just a marketing gimmick created to get your money. ;-)
I was raised in a butter-on-the-counter family, and that's how we still do it. I have never once seen butter spoil (because who ca resist delicious buttered bread?).
Oh dear, now I can't be in the Club, as I keep my butter in the fridge, once a germaphoeb always a germaphoeb; torn bread be darn.
Mee too! Unless I forget to get a new stick out, then it goes in the microwave for a couple seconds at a time...and I usually end up making a mess lol!
We always keep our butter on the counter in a little dish too. My grandmoms did this, so did my mom, and so did my husbands family. Been doing this for years and never had a problem! :)
I keep mine out too. Like you, I put it in the fridge over night when it's hot so it doesn't completely melt. It never lasts long enough to go bad on our counter since I use it for baking/cooking a lot as well as spreading on bread.
My mother kept hers out too. I usually keep mine in the fridge- but that is because we don't use much butter for spreading. It think it is a-okay.
Mine stays out most of the time.
We keep ours out too. That's how I grew up. Who wants hard butter? Sheesh, not me!!
I tried using the traditional butter dish but even with just half a stick I ended with a mess. So I resorted to one of those 'free' plastic tubs that grated parmesan cheese comes in. Didn't find that aesthetically pleasing enough. I found a small clear glass canister (meant to hold about 1/2 pint)that has the rubber ring and locking lid and use that now.
As noted earlier, the butter will occasionally go rancid or even grow a little mold if left for long periods. I get around that by periodically washing out the container (about once a week, I wait until empty).
In summer months, like you, I pop in fridge but during the day when no one is home, then take it out again about 1 1/2 hours before supper, so it's all soft again.
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