I favor the soft herbs — tarragon, basil, chervil, chives. On the other end of the spectrum – rosemary, sage, and oregano – the flavors tend to overpower. Too often, cooks have a heavy hand with the hard herbs, and ruin an otherwise good dish.
But back to the soft herbs… They can be mixed with lettuces for a salad or blended together for my cherished dreamy green goddess. Or, mixed with soft butter to make a compound butter.
Compound butter is versatile. I rub a few tablespoons under the skin of chicken breasts before roasting
Or finish a tomato sauce with the butter for salmon.
Or toss steamed asparagus in it.
Herb Butter
1 tbs. fresh tarragon
1 tbs. fresh chives or scallions
1 tbs. fresh parsley or chervil
1 tbs. fresh basil
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
1 stick butter
salt and pepper to taste
1. Chop herbs and spices. Mix with butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
I'm submitting this recipe to the Weekend Herb Blogging #188, hosted this week by the ever-charming Graziana of Erbe in Cucina – Cooking with Herbs. This event was originally started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen, and is now organized by Haalo of Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once. For more information, see the rules, hosting schedule, and weekly recaps for WHB.