Ask Marilyn

I always keep dairy products in the fridge, but my in-laws keep their butter on the kitchen counter so it stays spreadable. Is this safe? They’ve never had a problem. —Kate Kunkle, Erie, Pa. Keeping butter at room temperature is perfectly safe. Storing it in a butter keeper (made for this purpose) will keep it fresher longer, and salted butter lasts the longest of all. But leave out only what you plan to consume within a week or so to avoid the risk of it going rancid. (In my own kitchen, we use so much butter that this could never happen!) Still, if your kitchen is in heavy use and usually quite warm, you should probably just keep your butter in the fridge.