Basil Caper Butter Recipes

LEMON CAPER BUTTER SAUCE

Steps:

• Crush capers in a small bowl with the back of a spoon.
• Melt 1/2 teaspoon butter in a skillet over medium-high heat until the butter foams and is golden; saute capers until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add lemon juice, bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring frequently, until liquid is reduced by one-third, 1 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
• Stir cold butter and savory into lemon mixture, stirring constantly until butter is completely melted and sauce is shiny and thick, about 1 minute.

GRILLED AMBERJACK WITH TOMATO BASIL CAPER SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add garlic; cook and stir until softened, 2 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, salt, and pepper; cook and stir over medium heat until heated through, about 5 minutes. Stir in spinach, basil, and capers. Cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and sauce is thick and chunky, 10 to 20 minutes.
• Preheat grill for medium heat.
• Rub remaining 1 tablespoon oil over amberjack fillets. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top. Grill fillets until opaque and flaky, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Serve fillets topped with sauce.

COURGETTE, BROWN BUTTER AND BASIL GNOCCHI

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a wide frying pan over a medium-high heat and fry the courgette until golden and soft. Meanwhile, cook the gnocchi in a pan of boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes or until they start to float to the surface. Drain, reserving about 150ml of the cooking water.
• While the gnocchi is cooking, add the garlic, capers and chilli flakes (if using) to the courgettes and sizzle for 1 minute until starting to crisp. Add the lemon juice and stir, scraping any bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the butter and sizzle for 30 seconds until it smells nutty. Toss in the cooked gnocchi and enough of the reserved cooking water to create a glossy sauce that coats the gnocchi. Stir in most of the basil and leave to wilt for a few seconds, then divide between warmed bowls. Serve topped with the remaining basil and a fine grating of cheese.

GRILLED SWORDFISH WITH BASIL-CAPER BUTTER

Steps:

• Light a grill. In a small bowl, blend the butter with the basil, capers and 1 teaspoon of the lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper, and refrigerate. In a large, shallow dish, mix the olive oil with the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Season the swordfish with salt and pepper and turn the fish in the olive oil mixture. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Grill the swordfish steaks over a hot fire until nicely charred on the outside and just cooked within, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the steaks to plates, top each with a dollop of basil-caper butter and serve right away, with the Arugula and Endive Salad with Pine Nuts and Parmesan. MAKE AHEAD The basil-caper butter can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.

MUSTARD BUTTER WITH BASIL AND CAPERS

Steps:

• Mince capers and garlic and mash with salt. In a bowl stir together garlic-caper paste with remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. Chill mustard butter 10 minutes. Using wax paper as an aid, shape mustard butter into a 6-inch log and wrap. Chill butter until firm, at least 1 hour, and up to 3 days. Butter may be frozen, wrapped well in plastic wrap, 1 month.
• Slice mustard butter as needed.

BASIL-CAPER BUTTER

Steps:

• Mix it all and let it sit a bit to mellow.
• If you're making it ahead, roll it up in plastic wrap so you end up with a nice log of compound butter.
• This freezes beautifully.