Fresh Garden Chive & Lemon Butter (From Scratch)

This chive and lemon butter is made completely from scratch, starting with fresh cream and finished with bright herbs and citrus.

The first signs of the approaching warmth in the garden are when the chives start to pop out of the soil, perfect for butter. Fresh herb butter is one of those things that feels small, but changes everything.

Butter made from scratch, finished with fresh chives and lemon. It’s soft, bright, elevated, and still so simple to make anytime. If you’ve never made butter before, it’s easier than you think. Once you do, it’s hard to go back.

What Is Chive and Lemon Butter?

Chive and lemon butter is a simple compound butter made by mixing fresh herbs and citrus into butter. It’s commonly used to finish vegetables, meats, and bread, adding both richness and brightness.

Ingredients You'll Need

For the butter:

• 2 cups (480 ml) heavy cream (cold)

For the chive & lemon butter:

• 2–3 tablespoon fresh chives, finely chopped
• Zest of ½ lemon
• 1–2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• ¼ tsp, fine sea salt

How to Make Chive and Lemon Butter from Scratch

Add the cold cream to a stand mixer and whip on medium-high.

It will go from: cream → whipped cream → stiff peaks → then it breaks.

When it breaks, you’ll see two things:

• butter (the solids)
• buttermilk (the liquid gold)

That’s exactly what you want. Be patient, I like to stop the mixer and scrape down the sides a couple of times. Also, I recommend covering your mixer with a kitchen towel to avoid the splatter when it starts to separate.

Strain off the buttermilk and save it. You can use it to make my incredible Buttermilk Pancakes! Just omit the vinegar.

Then rinse the butter under cold water, gently pressing it to remove any leftover liquid. This step is very important; it keeps the butter fresh longer and gives it a cleaner taste. Once the water runs mostly clear, your butter is ready. Add a pinch of salt and mix.

Fresh Chive & Lemon Butter

Add the butter to a bowl and mix in:

• chopped chives
• lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon of fine sea salt

Taste and adjust from there. More zest will keep it fresh and fragrant. More juice will make it sharper; add slowly.

Once you’ve made butter from scratch once, the process becomes second nature.

Shaping

Spoon the butter onto parchment and roll it into a log. Chill until firm, then slice or leave it soft and spreadable; it’s just as good.

How I Use It

• on warm sourdough, no doubt the best
• over-roasted potatoes
• with eggs
• finished on chicken or steak

Notes

• Start with cold cream
• Make sure your chives are dry
• Use zest for brightness, juice for balance
• Don’t skip rinsing the butter

Storage

Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or wrapped tightly in a ziplock freezer for longer storage.

It’s simple, but it changes how you use butter. Once you start, it becomes something you come back to.