Make savory basil butter from your window herb plants

It happens every year in our area of the country, the summer days lose their warmth, the leaves fall from the trees, and we settle into a world of brown before the beauty of winter blankets our lives for about five months. At the end of each summer we make a decision of which plants will whither in the cold and which ones we will bring in to the warmth of the house for the winter. Hands down all the herbs make the cut. Not only will we be able to replant them in the great outdoors next summer, but we can use them over the winter months to add a bit of freshness to our diet.

My favorite herb is basil. I love the leaves on pizza and in spaghetti sauce. Another item I have recently learned to make is basil butter. This is great on just about anything. It adds a bit of flair to a sandwich and makes an omelet shine with flavor. The process is relatively simple. You will need:

1. Basil leaves, preferably fresh.
2. Several cloves of garlic.
3. A garlic press.
4. A grater or a sharp knife.
5. A hand mixer.
6. A generous amount of butter.
7. A mold of some sort.

Start by picking and washing your basil leaves. The amount depends on your taste buds. I happen to adore basil so I keep picking until the plant is almost bare. After you have picked, washed and dried your leaves you need to:

1. Remove butter from refrigerator to soften. I do about two sticks at a time.
2. Cut your leaves into small bits or use a grater to get the leaves even smaller.
3. Use your garlic press to process 2 or 3 garlic cloves, again this is about personal taste. If you like more, press more.
4. Mix butter in a bowl with hand mixer.
5. Once mixed, add the basil and garlic.
6. If you find the mixture suits your palette, stop mixing and scoop the mixture into a mold of your choosing. If you don't have a mold, you can also scoop the basil butter into Glad wrap and roll it into several small logs.

Once done, refrigerate the better and use. The butter keeps about the same as regular butter. Enjoy!