We live near a farm that sells fresh, raw, unprocessed milk and we’ve been buying our milk there for several years. I used to skim the cream from the milk the day we brought it home and set it aside in the refrigerator for making butter, or whipping for desserts, or using in other cooking and baking, but then the family discovered the goodness of these jars of cream and it seemed to disappear before I had a chance to make anything. But this week, somehow, there was cream that hadn’t been used in morning coffee and it was just begging to be made into butter and buttermilk.
It’s been a while since I made homemade butter but it’s a simple and satisfying process. I use my KitchenAid mixer to whip the cream until the solids start to separate from the liquids.
After the solids begin to separate, it’s time to drain off the buttermilk. I use a small wire strainer lined with a cotton cloth (cheesecloth is a great option) and pour the contents of the bowl into the strainer to separate the solids from the liquid. Hold onto that buttermilk though! It’s great for using in so many recipes (buttermilk pancakes, anyone?)
Once the buttermilk is poured off, it’s time to rinse the butter under cold water until the water runs clear.
Then you press the butter with a spoon, spatula or butter paddles to remove all the water. Press, drain, flip. Press, drain, flip.
Once all the water is removed you can salt the butter (or not), season the butter with herbs (or not), or use it as is. I prefer my butter to be salted unless I’m using it for baking.
Children enjoy making butter, too. Instead of using a mixer, pour cream into a jar, screw the lid onto the jar, and give it to a child to shake, shake, shake. It might take a little longer to get the butter to begin to form (ten to twenty minutes of shaking).
Raw cream butter might be high in fat, but it’s a very healthy fat and it’s also rich in vitamin A (along with other vitamins, enzymes, and nutrients).