Butter Candles with Koppert Cress

The butter can be use as a spread or to cook with or frozen into special do-it-yourself mold to make some candles. The idea of the candle didn’t come from me; I just added some dried powder to the mix. It was presented and serves with some slice of bread in a restaurant in Kiev. The butter is melting slowly during the meal and guest simply dip the bread in the melted part and enjoy, a great and unusual way to serve butter with your bread. 

Although I only used for the recipe some powder made with Yka Leaves, Sakura Cress, Tahoon Cress, Scarlet Cress and Sea Fennel, the main element to remember when making dry compounds is to choose a selection of cresses and specialties with not much water content when fresh, so for example Rock Chives will absolutely work but Salty Fingers won’t.

The cresses that would work well for the confections of the candles:

• Adji Cress 
• Affilla Cress
• Atsina Cress
• Chilli Cress
• Melissa Cress
• Rock Chives
• Scarlett Cress
• Shiso Purple
• Tahoon Cress
• Zorri Cress

Specialties:

• Kaffir Lime Leaves
• Cardamom Leaves
• Sechuan Buttons
• Yka Leaves
• Zallotti Blossom

Ingredients to make 10 to 15 candles depending on the size of the mould (2 to 3 candles of each flavour):

• 1 box Sakura Cress
• 1 box Scarlet Cress 
• 1 box Tahoon Cress
• 2 punnets Sea Fennel
• 3 punnets Yka Leaves
• 750g unsalted butter

• Dry all cresses, Sea Fennel and Yka Leaves separately in a dehydrator machine for at least 4 hours.
• Once completely dried, blitz them very finely in order to get different powders.
• Melt the butter gently on the stove and collect the clarified part.
• Divide the clarify butter into 5 bowls and pour in each bowl a different powder.
• Mix well with a whisk, pour the different butter candle mix in each mould.
• Let set, then freeze for at least 4 hours.
• Remove from the mould and use straight away, the candle being frozen; it will take a decent time to melt the butter.
• Serve with crostini or rustic bread, and collect the melted butter with the bread and enjoy.

Mould:

• To make the mould, collect your material from the DIY shop. I have used some curtain poll, elastic band, pegs, string and rubber  (unused hear plugs works best!) to hold the string down the mould.