Sunshine Sauce
published Jan 23, 2025
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
This lemon-butter sauce is the best thing to happen to dinner.
Serves4 to 6MakesMakes 1/2 cupPrep5 minutesCook10 minutes
Cook Mode+
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Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
If you’re looking for a way to make weeknight dinners more exciting without too much effort, consider adding a sauce. I’ve been making this “sunshine sauce” on repeat all winter long. Sunshine sauce is a citrus-y take on the classic French butter sauce beurre monté. This recipe takes just 15 minutes and needs only 4 ingredients — ingredients that I always have on hand. Sunshine sauce is incredibly easy to make: Just whisk pats of cold butter into warm lemon juice until the sauce is rich and creamy, and finish with garlic and parsley. Here’s how to make it.
Why You’ll Love It
- **There’s just 4 ingredients. **With just lemon, butter, parsley, and garlic (plus kosher salt and pepper, which we consider freebies), you can make a restaurant-quality sauce that is full of flavor.
- **It’s so versatile. **There’s no shortage of ways to serve this buttery lemon sauce. You can use it as a dipping sauce for meats and seafood, drizzled over vegetables, or tossed with pasta or potatoes.
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
Key Ingredients in Sunshine Sauce
- **Lemon: **Fresh lemon is the star of the sauce. Use a Microplane to finely grate the zest and a citrus juicer to squeeze out the tart juice.
- **Unsalted butter: **This sauce is built on butter. With so few ingredients, use the best butter you can. Go for European-style butters like Kerrygold, which often have a higher butterfat content and richer color.
- **Garlic: **One minced garlic clove lends subtle flavor to the sauce, but garlic lovers may want to add an extra clove.
- **Parsley: **Stir chopped fresh parsley in just before serving to infuse the butter sauce with fresh flavor without wilting the herbs.
What to Serve with Sunshine Sauce
This lemon-butter sauce is the best thing to happen to dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon
finely grated lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon
plus 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon
water
- 8 tablespoons
(1 stick) cold unsalted butter, preferably European-style such as Kerrygold, cut into 8 pieces
- 1 tablespoon
coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves (from about 3 sprigs)
- 1 clove
garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon
kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 1/4 teaspoon
freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
Bring 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 tablespoon water to a simmer in a small skillet or saucepan over medium-low heat. Reduce the heat to low. Whisk in 1 stick cold unsalted butter a tablespoon at a time, whisking until each piece is almost melted before adding the next. Do not let the butter boil, or it will separate. 1.
Whisk in 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest, 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh parsley leaves, 1 minced garlic clove, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Taste and season with more kosher salt or black pepper as needed. Serve warm.
Recipe Notes
**Storage: **This butter sauce is best made right before serving, but you can refrigerate leftover butter in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in a small saucepan over low heat until completely melted and warm; do not let it boil. Remove from the heat. Drizzle in cool water 1 teaspoon at a time while whisking vigorously, until the sauce is creamy and emulsified again.
The butter sauce can also be used cold: Toss with hot pasta, boiled potatoes, or cooked green beans for an instant flavor boost.
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