Some final things to keep in mind before we get to the recipe:
Double, triple, or quadruple the recipe to save time and effort– Buttah freezes well.
When sautéing with Buttah use medium heat, or the non-dairy milk solids will burn.
Use one of the recommended nondairy milks, soy preferred. Other nondairy milks may lack sufficient protein for curdling. Regarding your choice of soy milk, keep in mind that the sugar(s) (simple carbohydrates) in “Original” varieties of soy milk is hardly abundant, and basically replaces the sugar naturally present in cow’s milk. For instance, the amount of sugar(s) in 1 cup of Westsoy Plus Plain unsweetened soy milk is 6 grams. The amount of sugars in 1 cup of dairy milk is 12.35 grams! So please use “original” and not “unsweetened” in this recipe.
Fair trade organic cocoa butter is preferable and available, though more expensive than non-deodorized cocoa butter.
See Cooking Tips & Important Info for important notes on the cost of the recipe, details about its ingredients; types of molds and where to buy; comparison chart of solid fats; and information on oil palm cultivation and the threat to orangutans.
For a low-fat alternative, see my recipe for “Corn Butter” on my blog. It has an update to make it a little richer with the addition of your favorite vegan buttery spread, which I hope will be Buttah!
I’m not advocating using this spread for everything. I try to bake and cook with liquid oils as much as possible (and in as small quantities as possible) and save Buttah for spreading or using only where a buttery flavor is very important, or to use in place of shortening. Here’s a chart listing the amounts of oil to use in cooking and baking instead of butter (you use less oil than butter). But I have used Buttah successfully in cake icing, biscuits, scones, and pie crust. See comparison nutritional chart of fats & spreads at the end of this article.
Equipment:
Stick blender. Instead of using a blender, I recommend that you use an immersion/stick blender in a tall, cylindrical container—clean-up is easier and your butter emulsifies better for some reason. I have a cheap little immersion blender and it works just fine.
Tall container (for mixing your butter.) Most stick blenders come with such a container, or you can use a metal milkshake cup or deep Pyrex measuring pitcher.
6 medium-sized silicone cupcake liners (or silicone molds of comparable size in whatever form you desire.) For this feature’s main and final photos, Christina used these molds, which she ordered from Amazon.com. Christina also reported good results with these, which appear in this feature’s next-to-last photograph.
A digital kitchen scale that shows ounces and grams.
Instructions:
In the container in which you are going to mix the Buttah mixture with your immersion/stick blender, whisk together the soy milk, lemon juice and salt. Add the oil and lecithin, but don’t stir. Set this aside. (To measure out the lecithin, oil the teaspoon measure and then use a small silicone spatula to scoop it out of the spoon.) Have ready 6 medium-sized silicone cupcake liners (or whichever silicone molds you are using) placed in a 6-cup cupcake pan, or in a shallow baking pan. (See Cooking Tipsfor other molds.) To melt the cocoa butter, place it in a small heat-proof dish and either:
Melt it in a microwave oven (I timed the melting of the cocoa butter in my microwave and it took 3 1/2 minutes at high power in a 1200 watt oven); OR
Place the dish in the top of a double boiler and melt over simmering water.
Pour the melted cocoa butter into the container with the rest of the ingredients and add the guar or xanthan gum and optional turmeric. With your immersion/stick blender, blend for a couple of minutes, or until smooth, creamy and thickened. When it is thick and creamy, STOP! It is emulsified.
Immediately distribute the mixture evenly into the 6 silicone molds you are using. Place the molds in the freezer for about 1 hour. Do not omit this step because you want the mixture to solidify before the fats and liquids can separate. If for some reason you blended too long and the emulsified mixture “broke” (became liquid-y, as shown in the photo below), it’s okay—you can save it: stir each mold or container of Buttah mixture briefly with a mini-whisk before placing in the freezer. Then whisk it again every 10 minutes or so for about 30 minutes, putting it back into the freezer each time—or until it starts to firm up and look creamier.
After 1 hour, the Buttah should be solid and can be released from the liners or container, wrapped or placed in a covered butter dish, and refrigerated. It will keep refrigerated for about 3 weeks, or you can keep it well-wrapped and frozen for several months. Refrigerated, it will stay solid at room temperature after freezing and thawing for some time, so it’s safe to put it on the dinner table, but it’s best kept refrigerated most of the time after thawing.
Note: Food grade organic cocoa butter, lecithin, and oils are often available online from organic soap and cosmetic suppliers. Some online suppliers are listed here. Nutrition Facts (calculated using High-Heat Canola Oil and Living Cookbook software): Serving size: 1 tablespoon Calories 84; Total Fat 9.5g; Saturated Fat 1.9g; Monounsaturated Fat 5.9g; Polyunsaturated Fat 1.13g; Trans Fatty Acids 0g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 54mg; 3.7mg potassium; 0.2g carbohydrates; 0.1g fiber; 0.1g sugar; 0.1g net carbs; 0.1g protein; My Points 2.5 (See Bryanna’s page for nutrition facts using alternative oils.)
http://vegan.com/recipes/bryanna-clark-grogan/bryannas-vegan-butter/