Been out of touch for a while, total kitchen replacement which included
psychotic baking levels over the summer so we'd have good homemade bread
for breakfast for 2 ... well, three ... well going on FOUR months. Finally
got the new Wolf double ovens in as we were eating the last loaf in the
freezer. YIKES! More on the ovens (including self-heating pizza stone) as
I get to know them. But I digress ...
I bake and cook a lot, from simple scrambled eggs to pretty fancy cakes
(Rose Levy B's Cake Bible is my main squeeze there!). And, see above, lots
of bread. In most cases I just use salted butter and move on ... if there
is any "heft" to the essential flavor of the recipe, you'll never notice
the difference.
HOWEVER:
When it comes to buttercream, truffles, delicate cakes & cookies -- sweet
butter is absolutely the thing.
When it comes to what to spread ON TOP OF a fine slice of homemade bread --
sweet butter is absolutely the thing.
I save the investment (and somewhat shorter shelf-life) in sweet butter for
those times it will absolutely, directly hit the tongue; otherwise, I'd say
that unless you're counting every salt molecule (and some of have to do
that) I'd use the regular salted and keep moving.