Cranberry Honey Compound Butter

Ingredients

¼ cup fresh cranberries
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup butter, unsalted
2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 Tablespoon water
2 Tablespoons juice from a fresh orange, optional

Directions

To Make Compound Butter:
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, add the cranberries, water, honey, and brown sugar into a small saucepan over medium heat.

When the liquids start to boil, use a hand held masher to start crushing the cranberries so the juice is released.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to mix the ingredients together for another 1-2 minutes.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and place the mixture in a medium-size bowl to allow the content to cool, about 7-10 minutes.

Once cooled, add the room temperature butter to the bowl of cranberry mixture. Using a handheld mixer on low speed, combine the ingredients until well combined.

Using a spatula, remove the cranberry butter and place it onto a large piece of parchment paper.

Starting from one edge of the parchment paper, carefully roll the cranberry mixture, tucking the paper under the mixture as best you can and form into a log shape.

Using both hands, twist the ends on the parchment paper on both sides so it looks like a large tootsie roll.

Place the compound butter in the refrigerator for a couple of hours to set.

Once chilled, slice and serve alongside your favorite meats, breads, or vegetables.

To Make Whipped Butter:
Follow steps 1-4 as as outlined for making the compound butter.

Once the cranberry mixture has completely cooled, add the softened butter to a bowl.

Using a handheld mixture, whip the mixture on low speed for 1 minute and then increase the speed to high for an additional 2-3 minutes until the butter is whipped and creamy.

From there, add the whipped cranberry butter onto bread, pancakes, or fresh grilled asparagus.