When were butter pats used?

When were butter pats used?

In the United States and many parts of Europe butter pat plates were primarily used in the 1800s and into the early 1900s in the homes of affluent citizens who had elaborate dinnerware sets for formal dining. Each dinner guest was given his or her own butter pat plate on which to put a pat (or lump) of butter.

What is a butter pat dish?

Also known as butter chips, butter pats, butter pads and butters, the generally three-inch diameter plates are often mistaken for mere decorative items or for pieces from children’s toy sets.

Why are old butter dishes round?

Antique butter dishes, unlike today’s version, are round and meant for a mound of butter. Today’s are long and fit the standard stick version of spread. When butter dishes were becoming popular of course, butter was made by farmers and was a real treat.

How big is a butter pat dish?

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What are butter pats called?

These are called Scotch hands or butter pats depending on where you come from. Butter pats are wooden paddles that have a grooved side and a smooth side. They were used to squeeze the buttermilk out of blocks of butter and to distribute salt through the butter.

What is a wooden butter bowl used for?

Until the 19th century working the butter with your hands was the norm. The wooden bowl (left) was used by Yorkshire butter-makers to hold the butter while they “clashed” it – prepared it by hand.

Where does the butter pat dish go?

With a dinner service, one would expect a matching set of butter pats (or “butter chips” or simply “butters”), and each guest would find a pat positioned on the upper left of each place setting. One or two pats of butter would be placed on it, sometimes delicately molded flowers or another attractive shape.

Where do you keep your butter dish?

Factors leading to spoiled butter are exposure to air and light, so keep it in a covered butter dish or butter crock that will protect it from both air and light, and help to keep it at a steady temperature to stay cool enough to hold its shape.

What does a butter dish look like?

A butter dish is defined as “a usually round or rectangular dish often with a drainer and a cover for holding butter at table”. Before refrigerators existed, a covered dish made of crystal, silver, or china housed the butter.

What is a butter spade?

1A wooden spatula used to work butter; a small shovel used to remove butter from a churn or container. 2A wooden paddle used (as one of a pair) to shape butter; a butter pat.

Where did pat of butter originate?

Why Is It Called a “Pat”? Restaurants used to press butter into wooden molds to press it into unique shapes, like flowers, before serving on a plate with bread. The cook would “pat” the butter into the mold, and the name stuck.