Soften Butter Quickly

When a recipe calls for softened butter, the best thing to do is let it sit out at room temperature for an hour to an hour and a half.

But things happen to cause you to forget (or last minute recipe decisions) to take the butter out of the fridge ahead of time.

There is a quick way to soften up your butter without the microwave. Microwaves are not the best method, they tend to melt part of the butter or completely if you are not careful. Setting the power percentage lower does help a little bit though.

Here is an alternative solution.

Take the designated amount of butter out of the fridge and unwrap it but leave it on the wrapper.

Take a knife and cut it into little cubes. Doing so allows the heat from the air to warm it faster.

Then place it in a mixer bowl (a stand mixer is the best choice for this), and use the paddle attachement and beat the ever loving crap out of it.

Set it on a medium high setting to really beat it to a smooth texture. Continue to beat for at least a minute after it becomes smooth. Longer if it's still lumpy.

And now your butter is softened and will mix easily with the rest of your ingriedents and should be clump free.

It's very simple and easy to do, really takes no time at all.

One Eyed Jacks

One of my husband's favorite breakfast foods is a combination of a slice of bread and a fried egg.
I don't really have to ask him what to make for breakfast anymore. I know that he will eat it.
In fact, he gave me the recipe, he originally had them when he went camping in Boy Scouts.

It's a quick and light breakfast.

One Eyed Jacks

one or more slices of bread

one or more eggs

1. Cut a hole in the center of a piece of bread. Try to not cut the edges. This acts as a barrier so the egg doesn't run all over the pan. Do not throw away the bread disks, you can use those as toast on the side.
   
2. Preheat a large skillet on medium heat. Lightly spray the pan before you place the bread in the hot pan. You can also place the disks in the pan to toast them.
3. Next crack the egg over the hole in the bread. Cook on one side for one minute, then carefully flip over with a large spatula. You can cook the eggs to your liking. These are cooked to be over easy.
   

Then transfer the one eyed jacks to a plate and you are done!

I usually cook for sausage patties or bacon to eat along with it.

I used my trusty biscuit cutter to make the holes. I bought it at a restaurant wholesale store.