Butter molds come in two types: decorative and utilitarian. Antique molds can be found in wood or ceramics with fancy carvings. They were used to identify makers before commercial packaging. Today, decorative molds are used to create single-sized butter loaves. Soften butter, spread it evenly in the mold, freeze for several minutes, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Butter molds come in two basic types. They can be imaginative and decorative and used to make little shapes out of butter. Alternatively, they are the molds that shape the freshly prepared butter into squares, rectangles or cubes, to then be packaged. When most people made their own butter, having the more utilitarian kind in the house was highly desirable for putting butter into a convenient shape. The former is more likely to be used to impress guests and add to food presentation.
Smart shoppers can find many antique butter molds available. Typical sizes range from quart to one-pound molds (113.4 to 453.6 grams), roughly the way butter is sold in stores today. The molds were often made of wood and freshly made butter was placed into them to take shape. Other molds can be made from different materials such as ceramics and the shapes can range from rectangular to round. Some molds had fancy carvings that pressed into the butter and created extra detail.
One reason pressed butter might have extra details like a special design was to identify the makers of the butter. Not all people had cows and could buy their butter from various dairies. The designs essentially functioned like a label, long before commercial packaging and printed labels were common. However, butter molds with carved stamps have also been used in the home, marrying practicality and design.
Today, it’s much easier to find butter molds of the decorative type, usually used to create single sized butter loaves. These could be metal, plastic, wood or even silicon and typically feature several wells so that multiple shapes can be made at once. Some people use small candy molds to make fancy butter chips. Various shapes can include elements such as shells, leaves, stars and flowers.
Cooks may want to create shaped pats of butter but don’t know how to do it. It’s actually quite a simple process. It’s important to allow the butter to soften first, otherwise it’s difficult to spread it into the butter molds.
One the butter is soft, it can be spread evenly in the butter molds. Some people use powdered sugar so the butter pops out of the molds more easily. This can affect the taste of the butter and many cooks find it unnecessary.
It’s important to put the butter in the freezer for several minutes, but don’t forget it and end up with frozen butter. Aim to get the butter firm but not frozen before piecing. Mold-free pats of butter should therefore be refrigerated until ready to serve.
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