One of our culinary heroes, Nigella Lawson, sliced opinions this week with her meticulous, double-buttered toast. As a big fan of both butter and The Domestic Goddess, I have to say I’m 100% #TeamDoubleButter.

This Ultimate Butter-Soaked Toast recipe deserves good sourdough, dipped in melted butter and toasted until beautifully golden brown under the grill. Then, in true Nigella style, you’ll butter it a second (and final) time before eating.

Gousto’s Ultimate Butter Soaked Toast recipe

Step 1: Preheat the grill to high

Step 2: Heat a pot over a medium heat with 60g [120g] salted butter and cook for 1-2 min or until melted

Tip: For the most decadent toast out there, use 30g butter… per slice!

Step 3: Slice 2 thick slices of bread

Tip: A slice of sourdough would work great here.

Step 4: Dip both sides of the sliced bread in the melted butter until fully absorbed.

Step 5: Add the butter-soaked bread to a baking tray (or use your grill tray!) and put under the grill for 2 min on each side or golden brown.

Tip: For the real butter lovers, spread the butter-soaked bread with extra salted butter.

Enjoy!

All this butter got me thinking about other dishes that deserve to be double-buttered. So, here goes: eight of my favourite dishes that are better when buttered… twice.

Risotto

Butter is essential if you want a creamy risotto. Before adding stock, you’ll use it to coat and lightly toast your rice. Then, after your rice is fully cooked, add another generous knob of butter before serving for extra richness.

Naan Bread

Here’s how to take naan to the next level. Warm the bread in the oven, then slather on garlic butter until it soaks in. Serve with a classic butter chicken for double-buttery bliss.

Malt Loaf

Nigella’s two-staged buttering approach works brilliantly with malt loaf. Generously butter a slice and place it under the grill for around 2 minutes or until the butter fully melts and absorbs into the bread. While that’s cooking, grab yourself a cuppa and get ready for stage two. Spread another layer of butter – or better yet, a dollop of buttercream –  just before you eat it.

We like to think Nigella would be proud.

Crepes

For a classic crepe, whisk melted butter with flour, eggs, and water to create the batter. Don’t stop there though, butter can make a perfect topping too. After about 15-20 seconds of frying in the pan, spread 1 teaspoon of unsalted butter on the crepe (whilst still in the pan). Then sprinkle the buttered crepe with ¼ teaspoon with granulated sugar and fold in half. Finish it off with a little lemon juice squeezed on top, and another sprinkle of sugar to taste.

Chicken

Butter perfectly complements chicken, infusing your bird with flavour and moisture. Try mixing garlic, fresh rosemary and thyme into softened butter, push underneath the skin of the chicken and roast until golden and cooked through. Once done, pour all of the juices from the bird into a pan with an extra knob of butter, 1 tbsp flour and a good squeeze of lemon and then whisk until thickened. Now that’s a double-buttered chicken fit for your next roast.

Leeks

Creamed leeks are a delicious side, especially with a juicy steak. To get perfect creamed leeks, sauté them in 2 tbsp butter until wilted, then add chicken stock to the pan. Once the stock has boiled down by half, add cream, season and cook down until your creamed leeks are thick and rich.

To double up on buttery goodness, cook your steak in butter too. Simply melt butter in a pan and get it nice and hot, then drop in a thick steak. Baste (spoon the hot butter over) the steak on both sides, turning frequently, to get a perfect crust and a tender middle.

Spaghetti

While olive oil reigns supreme in Southern Italy, in the North they loooove butter. For a speedy spaghetti, sizzle some garlic and fresh chilli with a generous knob of butter, then stir in some cooked spaghetti. Serve in bowls then quickly bring the empty pan back to the heat with more butter, even more garlic and breadcrumbs, then fry until toasty and golden.

Perfect speedy garlic bread flavour, with none of the faff.

Croissants

There may be (quite a bit) of butter in the pastry already, but that won’t stop us from recommending a second buttering. Preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas mark 4) and heat the croissant up for 5 minutes. Take it out of the oven, slice it in half and spread a generous helping of lightly salted butter that will melt into the doughy middle… bon appétit!

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