Compound butters are REALLY easy to make, and store well in the freezer. They're useful to have around when you want to impress people - looks like you worked really hard, when you didn't.

Soften a stick (1/4 lb.) of butter. (Real butter.)

Gather up some chive flowers (the purple puffball things) and some thyme flowers (or thyme leaves) and wash and dry them. Pull all the little purple blossomy things off the chive flowers, and pull the thyme flowers/leaves off the stems. You should have about a tablespoon or two of each of the chive flowers and the thyme flowers/leaves.

Mix well into the butter. Salt and pepper to taste.

Take a small piece of plastic wrap. Put the butter mixture towards one end and sort of form into a rough cylinder. Roll the plastic wrap over it and use that to make a nicer cylinder, about 1" in diameter. Roll up the rest of the way, twist the ends, and either put in the fridge to harden up again if you're going to use it soonish, or in the freezer if you're not.

When you're ready to use it, unwrap one end, slice off a coin or two, and drop onto a steak hot off the grill. The butter melts and blends with the steak juices to make a plate sauce, the flowers are on top, and it's all really good.

You're not limited to just chive flowers and thyme flowers when making butters like this - you can experiment with garlic and sage and chopped chives and basil and whatever herbs and spices you have around. Smoked paprika makes an interesting one, especially over chicken. Or curry powder.

Or do something like cinnamon butter and then drop it on French toast.

You can also do less than a full stick of butter, but I find it's just so handy to have these things in the freezer for nights when I just don't know what to cook. Grill or broil something, slice off a coin or two and drop it on, and you have this elegant meal that you really didn't do any work for.