Melted or “drawn” butter, at top, compared to clarified butter (photo by Emily Chang | THE NIBBLE).

Clarified butter has had the milk solids removed, so that it is clear in its liquid state. You may have had it without knowing it:

In a proper service, the melted butter served with lobster is clarified butter—clear, with no cloudy milk proteins. In the case of lobster, clarified butter is served for aesthetic reasons.

Some restaurants don’t spend the time and money on clarified butter and serve “drawn butter”—melted butter—instead. See the comparison in photo #1.

It is never used in baking, since the milk solids in regular butter provide a richer flavor to baked goods, and the oven heating dynamic is different so there’s no scorching.

Clarified butter is shelf stable. You can make it or buy a purchase and keep it in the pantry until its needed.
 
GHEE, AN ALTERNATIVE

Or, you can buy a jar of ghee (photo #2), a similar product from India that has become much more available in the U.S. There are even “gourmet” brands that sell original ghee plus ghee flavored with green chili, pink Himalayan sea salt and vanilla bean.

The difference between ghee and clarified butter is that, after the solids are removed, the liquid portion is simmered, which makes it aromatic and nutty-tasting.

We may not be able to post until the move is complete. We’ll try our best.

If you check in and there’s nothing new, wait another day for the virtual moving van to deliver our blog to its new home.

In the interim, TheNibble.com website isn’t going anywhere—check it out!

If you’re looking for a particular type of food or recipe, start in our Main Nibbles section.

Bear with us while we move. Photo by
Garann Rose Means | SXC.

How cool is Avocado Jell-O? Photo
courtesy Avocados From Mexico.

We like them so much, we eat a half at breakfast or lunch, straight from the skin. Sometimes we’ll sprinkle on some balsamic vinegar. But just like any fruit, avocados are delicious as is.

But limiting our intake to guacamole and salads, we weren’t taking full advantage of the fruit.

So we browsed through the recipe section of AvocadosFromMexico.com and discovered scores of recipe ideas—from Avocado Jell-O to Avocado Caprese Salad.

As good as a regular Caprese salad may be—slices of tomato and mozzarella plus fresh basil—it’s even better with slices of avocado added to the recipe.

Tonight, we’re making the Layered Guacamole Dip with roasted garlic hummus, sour cream and chopped cherry tomatoes. Maybe we’ll try the Avocado Margarita with it.

Expand your repertoire of avocado dishes. Check out the appetizers, beverages, breakfast recipes, desserts, dips, mains, salads, sandwiches and wraps and soups.

• Find more recipes on the Avocados From Mexico website.
• Check out our selection of avocado recipes, which includes the health benefits of avocado and shopping tips.

Welcome to Otis And Betty’s. It’s a bit of a “warning welcome,” since once you start eating these multi-textured and -flavored snacks, it isn’t easy to stop.

O&B’s are all-natural, Chex-style mixes, made from different flavors of Chex, honey-roasted almonds and pecans, pretzels, honey-rosasted sesame sticks, honey and spices. Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, cayenne and other spices add layers of flavor.

Five varieties include Original; Cin-ful, redolent of cinnamon; Get Rich, drizzled with white and milk chocolate; Meet Jack, with a bit of Bourbon flavor; and Smokin’, with barbecue seasoning.

We recommend sticking to the 2-ounce bag, or else the 7.5-ounce bag may become a “single serving.” The smaller size makes a tasty party favor.

• Read the full review.

We love to snack on Otis & Betty’s mixes.
Photo by Emily Chang | THE NIBBLE.

• Discover more of our favorite snacks in our Gourmet Snacks section.

Ramps, or wild leeks. Photo courtesy
Cherokee-nc.com.

Ramps are wild leeks—also known as spring onion and ramson. In French, they are called ail des bois, garlic of the woods, because of the combined garlic-onion flavor.

They grow wild and are found in clusters. The entire plant is edible, from the broad, smooth, green leaves to the scallion-like bulb.

Since ramps grow wild, they can easily end up in a yard—where they are typically pulled out and thrown away, not only for their unwelcome leaves but for their strong garlic aroma. If you notice a plant by this description, check further—it could go into the kitchen instead of the composter.

While many people refer to the vegetable as “wild leek,” the name “ramp” is popular in the East. It comes from England. One version of the name source attributes a folk name, “ramsen,” the plural form of hramsa, an Old English word for wild garlic. Early English settlers of Appalachia—a prime ramp region—used the term, which later was shortened to “ramp.”