Herb Butter Toast (Printable)

Crusty bread slices topped with aromatic compound herb butter and finished with flaky salt.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Bread

01 - 4 slices crusty artisan bread (sourdough or baguette)

→ Compound Herb Butter

02 - 7 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
03 - 2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
04 - 1 tbsp fresh chives, finely chopped
05 - 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
06 - 1 garlic clove, minced
07 - 1/2 tsp lemon zest
08 - 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
09 - 1/4 tsp fine sea salt

→ Finishing

10 - Flaky sea salt, to taste

# Directions:

01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F or set a broiler to high.
02 - In a small bowl, mix the softened butter with parsley, chives, thyme, garlic, lemon zest, black pepper, and fine sea salt until fully combined.
03 - Lightly toast the bread slices in the oven or under the broiler for 2–3 minutes, just until crisp and lightly golden.
04 - Spread a generous layer of compound herb butter onto each warm toast.
05 - Return the toasts to the oven or broiler for 1–2 minutes, just until the butter melts and the edges of the bread are golden.
06 - Remove from the oven, sprinkle with flaky sea salt, and serve immediately.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The herb butter can be made ahead and kept in the fridge, ready whenever you need to transform plain bread into something spectacular in minutes.
  • The combination of fresh herbs with that hint of lemon zest creates this perfect balance that makes everyone think you spent hours in the kitchen, when it barely took 15 minutes.
02 -
  • Room temperature butter is absolutely crucial, as cold butter wont blend properly with the herbs and warm butter will lose its texture.
  • That second trip to the oven should be brief, just enough to melt the butter without making the herbs bitter, which I discovered after leaving a batch in too long.
03 -
  • If your butter is too cold to work with and you need these toasts right away, grate it on the large holes of a box grater, which will warm it up enough to mix with the herbs without having to wait.
  • When using a baguette, slice it on a diagonal to maximize the surface area for that glorious herb butter and create a more elegant presentation.
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