Compound Butters can be stored, well wrapped, in the freezer for two or three weeks.

　　

Ingredients

makes 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup)

　　8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened slightly

　　1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

　　10 chives, minced

　　1 shallot, minced

　　Salt and freshly ground black pepper

　　1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar

　　

Step 1

Cream the butter with a fork, integrating all the ingredients, using about 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Taste and add more of any ingredient you deem necessary

　　

Variation

Step 2

Compound butters can be made with any seasoning you like: mustard, garlic, ginger, chiles, vinegar, or citrus juice and zest, just to name a few. In good weather, you can easily experiment with adding the fresh herb of your choice chervil is especially nice, as are dill and parsley.

　　From Mark Bittman's Quick and Easy Recipes From the New York Times by Mark Bittman Copyright (c) 2007 by Mark Bittman Published by Broadway Books.Mark Bittman is the author of the blockbuster Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.