Last night I was thinking. Usually my husband says that is scary. I know. I think a lot. And sometimes too much. However, I was thinking about how life is so complicated, and it's because we have made it that way. Don't get me wrong, I am grateful for technology, and I would not want to live without it. Modern day electronics and appliances are my friend. However, with all the disasters happening around the world, I got to thinking about going back to the basics. I was thinking about what I would do with all my food in the freezers if the power went out for days. Or weeks. Or months. {That's another story.} Anyway, I had some fresh, whole cream from the local dairy in my refrigerator, and I decided that I was going to make some homemade butter so the cream didn't go bad.
Even though I used my Kitchen-Aid Mixer, at least I know what the different stages look like. So if I had to go back to the old fashioned way, I wouldn't feel hopeless with some of the everyday basics we take for granted. And if there really was no power, how many of us own a butter churn? I don't! But you could use a glass mason jar and it would work perfectly.
On with the tutorial! It only takes MINUTES!
STEP 1
Pour measured amount of whole cream into mixer. You will want the wisk attachment for this project!
{Obviously this will be the very best from fresh cream from a dairy farm, but if you wanted to try it and didn't have access to that, you could use whole whipping cream from the grocery store.}
STEP 2
Begin mixing on low speed. When we make butter we are agitating the fat in cream so much that we force the fat globules to separate from liquid and clump together to form butter.
STEP 3
As the cream thickens, turn the mixer up to medium speed. You will probably start to recognize this stage of the cream: Fluffy and smooth whipped cream! But don't get distracted-we want butter, so keep mixing!
STEP 4
This is some pretty crazy looking whipped cream. You can start to see the fat globules clump together and looks like curdled cream. Not much longer!
STEP 5
Here you can real see things changing. The liquid almost instantly separates from the solid, creating buttermilk! You might have to slow your mixer down to keep it from splashing out.
STEP 6
At this point you can either drain your buttermilk off of your clumps, or keep mixing for another minute until the clumps start forming what we recognize as butter. I didn't drain mine until the next step-but that was only because it was a small amount and it was literally seconds between these steps.
STEP 7
I drained my buttermilk here and got 3/4 cup! If your butter isn't silky smooth after draining the buttermilk, return it to the mixer until it is!
STEP 8
Your butter will stick to the wisk and you will have to scrape it out with a spatula. The next step is important if you want to keep your butter fresh. You will want to rinse your glob of butter in cold water until it runs clear. So squeeze it and pat it around in your hands under the kitchen sink. It sounds crazy, but the fat in the butter actually repels the water, so it doesn't absorb it. This step actually keeps your butter from getting a sour milk smell. If you wrap it up it will last at least a week in the fridge.
It didn't last that long in our house-only a day! {Don't judge!}
Enjoy your sweet cream butter! You can add a hint of salt if you prefer the salted taste, but if you use fresh cream, it tastes wonderful on a piece of bread all by it's N.A.T.U.R.A.L. self!
Stay tuned for my favorite corn bread recipe I'm going to share with you-it's a great way to use your freshly made buttermilk, and also the butter!
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