Butter...

                    
I wish you could see the drool...well I guess not really, I mean its there, I just don't want you to see it.  I just love good butter, I really, really do!  The baby eats it like Brie, or at least like we eat Brie. He must take after his Nana who I remember just eating slices off the stick of butter. However, I will say that sounds gross when I realize I do not think we once had fresh butter in our house growing up, I think I would be lucky to remember when it wasn’t margarine! YUCK! But that is a whole other topic I do not even want to get into right now. (Sorry Mom!)

     We are finally getting Raw Milk (yeah!) on a regular basis and finally getting into the habit of harvesting that sacred cream and shaking it silly into delicious homemade butter. Ever done it? Are you a pro? Have tips?

      
    Here’s what we’ve been doing: We use 1/4 c. measuring cup to skim the cream off the top.  Once we have the cream safely in our mason jar- to a’shakin’ we will go!  And shake, shake, shake (we take turns), you’ll see it start to change right before your very eyes...it even turns yellow- anyone know the science behind that? The whole shaking process for us is taking about an hour or so.  Addsalt or not to your liking and WAH-LAH!!  Delicious, fresh, raw, homemade butter! It can’t be beat, unless you have a local farmer do it for you and put it in one of those really cool molds with the shapes on top! Gotta Love Your Local Farmers!! 

       I seem to make it sound so easy, as it is, but it does take time. We shake for about an hour or so and last time Aneah took it for a ride on the four wheeler, that finished it off quickly! I have also heard you can use your blender but that was a fail for us. 

    Oh, and don't forget the buttermilk! The milk that is left, that doesn't ever turn to butter no matter how much you shake... pour that off the butter, that is buttermilk- seems so simple doesn't it? And so delicious and useful! My mother in law insists drinking it cold is amazing and so sweet, haven't tried that yet... well actually I did, but it was with the batch that I added the salt to before I skimmed off the buttermilk, not so sweet! So I do recommend adding salt after you skim off the buttermilk!! Lots of exclamation points, all this butter talk must excite me!! 

     So knowing I am not a butter expert, now that we have been doing it this way for a while and it is becoming habit, I am looking forward to researching and learning more. I do hope for a butter mold one day, some of them are so pretty and the dynamics of the different styles intrigue me with their patters and usage designs. My mother in law also told me I needed a paddle. Not for the children (although sometimes I wonder...;-)) but a butter paddle. I have seen these too, but again need to gain some more knowledge on why/how these tools will aid in our process. I have an interest as well in the old style mason jar lid butter churn and also the image of the tall wooden ones with plungers like things are concrete in my brain- Little House on the Prairie like...that will be for when we have our own milking animal! Hmmm...for now we are shaking and four wheelin' and have a couple local junquers keeping an eye out as well and for now our completed butter rests in a glass dish...  I'll keep you posted as we transform our butter making skills into something more and further my knowledge. Please share your experience or ideas at will!