This is recipe roundup Episode 64. Today we are talking about homemade butter. I know many of our listeners might have made butter at some point in their lives, so this episode is more to remind you how delicious it is! 

Butter is absolutely delicious to begin with. The current popularity of grass-fed cattle makes  it easy to find high quality butter in the grocery store these days. I will never pass up the chance to get a good deal on Amish Roll Butter or an imported butter like Kerrygold.  However, in my opinion there is something about making your own butter that brings an extra level of specialness to the food. 

Butter is the isolated fat of dairy. Cream but be agitated to the point that the fat molecules begin to stick together and separate from the buttermilk. Traditionally, this might be achieved through a butter churn. No worries if you do not have one! We can make butter at home either with an electric mixer or a simple mason jar and lots of shaking. 

I find that the flavor of the homemade butter is a little more fresh than its purchased counterpart. Making your own butter also gives you an excellent amount of power over flavoring your butter! Mixing in fruit, herbs, spices, or honey can really bring it to the next level. I recommend using homemade butter for instances when the flavor of the butter is key like on bread, muffins, or simple foods. When it comes to baking or adding it to casseroles or other complex meals – save some trouble and just buy it! 

If you decide to use an electric mixer, simply mix heavy whipping cream on high in a bowl – with a pinch of salt if you prefer! You will pass through the whipped cream stage and keep going as the cream becomes thicker and thicker. Eventually, the butter will separate. Drain off the buttermilk as completely as possible, and then flavor your butter to preference! 

I recently made some herb butter using the jar method. I placed a pint of heavy whipping cream in a jar with a pinch of salt, and began shaking…and shaking…and shaking. I definitely recommend this method if you have a group of friends or kids to help out with the shaking. Again, eventually the butter will separate out and the buttermilk can be drained off. 

After that, I mixed in 2 cloves of grated garlic, a tablespoon of chopped fresh basil, a dash of cayenne pepper, and black pepper and salt to taste! The result was about ⅔ of a cup of delicious butter. I used it on steak and baked sweet potatoes to great results. 

Homemade butter will last 3-4 days at room temperature as long as you get as much of the buttermilk off of it as possible, and 7-10 days in the refrigerator. I hope to enjoy making this simple ingredient the old fashioned way!