When making butter curls and pats, it’s important to start off with a cool, firm stick of butter that has been at room temperature for only a few minutes. It needs to be cold enough to hold its shape, but if it is too cold, the curls will break or fall apart while peeling. Experiment with different types of curlers, and you can even use small, heated cookie cutters to shape your pats of butter.

1. 1
   Start with a stick of butter that has been at room temperature a few minutes but is still cool and firm.
2. 2
   Heat the butter curler in very hot water, and then pull it firmly over the stick of butter to form the curls. Reheat the butter curler as needed.
3. 3
   To make nice looking pats of butter, simply pre-cut a firm stick of butter with a hot knife.