Chocolate Chip Compound Butter
Add a dash of chocolate to all your favorite baked goods with this 5-ingredient chocolate chip compound butter. Perfect for breakfast, desserts, or snacks!
This post contains affiliate links. Read the disclosure policy.
Table of Contents
- About Chocolate Chip Compound Butter
- What is compound butter?
- What’s in chocolate compound butter?
- What tools do you need to make compound butter?
- How much does this recipe yield?
- What can you serve with chocolate butter?
- How long is compound butter good for?
- Can you freeze compound butter?
- Notes & tips for chocolate butter
- Other tasty spreads and sauces
- How to make chocolate butter
- Recipe Details
About Chocolate Chip Compound Butter
Ever wish that food you loved – like, say, tasty waffles or a freshly baked bread – had a dash of chocolate on top?
With chocolate butter, you can totally make this happen! And better yet, it’s so easy to make this chocolate-infused compound butter that you can always have some on hand to add just the right amount of chocolate to all your favorite baked goods.
What is compound butter?
To keep it short and sweet, compound butter is butter that’s been mixed or infused with other flavors. In most cases, compound butter is used as an easy way to enhance the flavors of other dishes, just like any other sauce or spice – only this way, you get butter as an added bonus, too.
What’s in chocolate compound butter?
To whip up a batch of delicious homemade butter infused with chocolate, you will need:
- Heavy whipping cream – The base that makes up the homemade butter. It will be whipped so that the solid fats separate.
- Salt – Acts as a preservative and helps enhance the other flavors (even the sweet ones!)
- Sugar – Because this is a sweetened butter spread, you’ll need a bit of sugar.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – To give this butter its chocolate flavor.
- Mini semi-sweet chocolate chips – Technically optional, but the chocolate chips give this butter some fun texture and small bursts of chocolate flavor.
What tools do you need to make compound butter?
- Stand mixer or a hand mixer – This recipe creates butter by whipping heavy cream until the solid fats and cream separate, and this is much easier to do with a mixer of some kind. I remember making butter when I was younger by putting heavy cream and a marble in a plastic jar, but that required shaking the jar for 30 minutes – and it was exhausting. You can still use the shaking method, of course, but be prepared for an upper-body workout.
- Mesh strainer – For removing excess liquid and rinsing the butter.
- Lint-free cloth or a cheesecloth – For squeezing out any extra moisture from the butter.
- Storage container, parchment paper, or wax paper – Depending on how you’d like to store the butter, you can either put it in a sealed container or roll the butter into a log and wrap it with parchment paper or wax paper.
How much does this recipe yield?
If making the butter from scratch, this recipe will yield the following:
- One cup homemade butter (the solid fats from the heavy whipping cream) which will be flavored to create the lemon parsley compound butter.
- A bonus one cup of buttermilk (the cream that separates) that can be used for other baking, cooking, or dressing recipes.
What can you serve with chocolate butter?
- Served as a spread for sweet bread or pastries. Chocolate pairs well with most sweet flavors – especially fruit – and this butter would be a perfect accent to any warm confection.
- Served as a topping for baked fruit (apples, strawberries, bananas, etc).
- Melted on top of pancakes, waffles, french toast, oatmeal, or cream of wheat.
How long is compound butter good for?
Once prepared and stored, compound butter should remain good for one to two weeks, depending on the herbs.
Can you freeze compound butter?
Yes, you totally can!
Once stored in a sealed container or freezer bag, compound butter can be frozen for up to four months.
Notes & tips for chocolate butter
- For this recipe, I highly recommend using a stand mixer or a hand mixer. This recipe would be nearly impossible to make by hand with a whisk.
- You can skip adding the chocolate chips (or use a different flavor of chip) to change up the consistency or flavor of this butter.
Other tasty spreads and sauces
How to make chocolate butter
This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. If you’re looking for the full recipe measurements and instructions, scroll down to Recipe Details.
Step 1 – Using a stand mixer (or hand mixer + large bowl), whip the heavy whipping cream until the solid fats separate from the cream. Be patient with this; it may take a while.
Step 2 – Pour the contents of the mixer through a mesh strainer, getting out all of the excess cream (the cream is buttermilk – feel free to save it for other recipes!) Once done, keep the butter in the strainer and run cold water over it.
Step 3 – Place the butter on a piece of lint-free cloth or cheesecloth, then wrap it up tight. Squeeze the wrapped butter to get out any remaining moisture.
Step 4 – Return the butter to a clean mixer bowl, then add salt. Blend the salt into the butter, then do a taste test. Make any adjustments you feel are necessary.
Step 5 – Add the following ingredients to the mixer: sugar and cocoa powder. Blend them into the butter until incorporated. And like with the salt, do a quick taste test and adjust any of the ingredients as desired.
Step 6 – Turn off the mixer and use a spatula to fold in the mini chocolate chips.
Step 7 – For best results, store the butter in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours so that the flavors can marinate together.
Step 8 – Serve and enjoy!
Chocolate Chip Compound Butter
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream *
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer (or hand mixer + large bowl), mix heavy whipping cream on medium-high speed for 10-20 minutes or until solid fats have separated from cream. Butter will have a lumpy texture; this is okay.2 cups heavy whipping cream *
- Turn off mixer. Pour contents through a strainer, reserving the cream (which is buttermilk) if desired. While still in the strainer, pour cold water over butter and rise well.
- Lay out a lint-free cloth or cheesecloth and place rinsed butter in the center. Gather the four corners of the towel and twist tightly, wringing out any remaining liquids.
- Clean the bowl of your mixer, then remove butter from cloth and place it back in the bowl. Add salt, then mix on medium-low speed until incorporated. Do a taste test; mix in more salt if desired.1/4 teaspoon salt *
- Add sugar and cocoa powder to bowl. Mix on medium-low until combined. Do another taste test and make any adjustments to your liking.1 tablespoon granulated sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- Turn off mixer and add semi-sweet chocolate chips. Use a spatula to gently fold them into the butter.3 tablespoons mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Transfer butter to a sealed container or roll into a log and wrap with parchment or wax paper.
- Refrigerate butter for at least 12 hours so flavors can set in.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
I do my best to provide nutrition information, but please keep in mind that I’m not a certified nutritionist. Any nutritional information discussed or disclosed in this post should only be seen as my best amateur estimates of the correct values.
