Jennifer Garner's Hack for Quickly Softening Butter Is a Real Game Changer

Actress Jennifer Garner may be most known for her unforgettable performances in 13 Going on 30, Daredevil, and Alias, but we like to think of her as one of our favorite home chefs.

That's right, Garner is an avid home cook who enjoys narrating her recipes as if she's on her own cooking show just as much as we do. Celebrities — they really are just like us!

Jennifer has hosted what's she's aptly named the "Pretend Cooking Show" on her Instagram since December 2017. In each episode, she showcases a new homemade recipe, plus her goofy and adorable personality that we all know and love. Her cooking show has become so popular over the years, that Jennifer has even been asked to host a real cooking show, according to an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

During her cooking videos, Jennifer shows off the true struggles of at-home baking and cooking — like in her December 2018 video where she made a major baking mistake: She forgot to soften her butter.

In the video, Jennifer is attempting an early-morning baking session to treat her kids to chocolate chip bread before sending them to school. She says she typically likes to prep her ingredients ahead of early morning baking, but during this particular bake, she didn't take her ingredients out.

"We have a chocolate cake conundrum," she says as she realizes she needs 13 tablespoons of butter, but only softened eight tablespoons.

Let's face it, we've all been there, but instead of frantically trying to soften her butter in the microwave, or simply postponing her bake until later, Jennifer shares her genius tip. She grabs her cheese grater and grates the remaining cold, hard butter just like a block of cheese.

Using a cheese grater won't necessarily soften the butter completely, but it will make it easier to beat with your mixer, and it's a super quick fix when you're in a pinch. Plus, you won't be at risk of over softening your butter, which can happen if you use the microwave.

Next time you need to quickly soften your butter for a recipe, try Jennifer's trick or one of these other four easy ways.

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