The simple techniques needed for softening butter in a pinch.

Nothing worse than finding out that your new recipe for baking calls for soft butter and your butter stick is hard as a rock. But don't worry, we have a few quick and easy tricks to help soften the butter and start baking.
Then again, a butter crock (like this one from Butter Bell) works great when you just need a tablespoon or two of butter. Learn why it's the secret weapon for smooth, spreadable butter from Taste of Home's Test Kitchen.

How long will it take for butter to soften?

Left at room temperature on the countertop, it takes at least 45 minutes for a butter stick to soften. If you're the type that's planning for the future, that's not a big deal. But if you're in a baking bind, try one of the methods below to include these other butter hacks that you didn't know you needed.

How to Soften Butter Fast

You’ll need:

Butter (as demanded by the recipe)

Method 1: Quite quick

The easiest way is our first method: simply cut the butter into cubes. The smaller the pieces, the faster they reach the temperature in the room.

Cut the butter stick in half so you have side by side two long rectangles. Stack and slice them together again. This yields four stripes of butter. Keep them stacked and slice to your cuts perpendicularly. The butter and the cubes will fall
In about 15 minutes, cubes will soften pretty quickly. (It's a good time to measure and prepare the remaining ingredients.) Besides softening your butter in more than half of the time, there are 25 brighter kitchen shortcuts here.

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