Name: Chili-Lime Butter
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon chili powder; 1 garlic clove , minced; 1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest; 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin; 8 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened

Why This Recipe Works

Flavored butters jazz up a variety of vegetable recipes. Instead of laying sticks of butter on the counter to soften, we stood the sticks on their ends—more surface area was exposed to the room-temperature air, so the butter softened faster. Just a small amount of garlic was enough to flavor our chili powder–infused butter.

Before You Begin

Keep leftover garlic cloves away from light and store them in something that allows some airflow—we recommend a garlic keeper or even just a plain paper bag.