Clarified Butter and Browned Butter

Several recipes in this book call for beurre noisette, or clarified butter that has browned to the color of noisettes (French for “hazelnuts”). Beurre noisette offers a richer, more delicious flavor than melted or clarified butter. Clarified or browned butter will keep covered for months in the refrigerator, or just about indefinitely if frozen. It is the milk solids that can cause butter to become rancid relatively quickly. I always make extra clarified butter to have on hand. (The solids are excellent for adding flavor to bread dough.) Clarified or browned butter will be only 75 percent the volume or weight of whole butter. For example, if you need 3 tablespoons of clarified or browned butter, start with 4 tablespoons of butter. If using a cheesecloth-lined strainer, start with about 1 tablespoon more than that as the cheesecloth absorbs some of the butter.