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The Cooks Innovations Butter Mill grinds butter to make it easy to spread. The butter gadget can be loaded up and kept at the ready in the fridge.

Brian is the author of two culinary based books published via his imprint Storkburger Press. A lifelong Californian, he has been consistently exposed to some of the best food in the world. With a deep appreciation for the kitchen, he is always on the lookout for that perfect appliance that combines style and grace with the ever-popular ability to save time.

Chances are there was recently some amount of butter that found its way to your dining room table. Feasts of all shapes and sizes occur this time of year, and sometimes it seems as if practically every one involves butter. It may be simply butter spread on a dinner roll, or perhaps the cooking was done with butter (and then more butter). Either way, from gravy to buttered bread, the familiar yellow stick may be ubiquitous, but that doesn't mean it's easy to use.

Many bread products have found their doom at the hands of cold, hard-to-spread butter. Not surprisingly, butter gadgets abound for help finding a peaceful solution to the scourge of torn bread. These gadgets run from water-sealed butter crocks to knives designed to warm butter as it spreads. The Cooks Innovations Butter Mill ($19.95) takes a different approach, instead taking its design cue from a simple cheese grater.

The butter mill stores in the fridge just like a butter tray, but adds utility. To use, the device is first loaded up with a stick of butter and when the base is twisted, a course grind of butter emerges from the top. The grated butter can then be spread as desired. In effect, the mill does the hard part of the job for you -- but you don't have to give away the secret at your next dinner party.