Honest bread is very well- it’s the butter that makes the temptation.
-Douglas Jerrold
The winds are gusting and the temperature is plummeting. The snows have ceased (for the moment) but icy bits still pelt the windows as they swirl past. A snowstorm is brewing and we’ve been warned to prepare. I have been making preparations since the first forecast of winter’s retaliation against the latest spring-like weather. I’m ready.
If we’re going to be stuck inside it may as well smell of comfort food roasting slowly in the oven. Yes, my emergency preparations for the family are always food related! With ample warning I had time for an organic turkey to thaw and I’ve harvested enough sage, thyme, rosemary and parsley for bread stuffing. (You really must grow fresh herbs indoors!) Then it was on to making butter for spreading on home baked bread… honey butter with lavender and Kalamata olive butter with feta and basil.
If you’ve never made home butter, you’re missing something special. Yes, really. With the use of modern appliances (mine is a Kitchen-Aid Pro 600) you can have fresh “churned” butter ready to custom blend any way you’d like..in 10 minutes! The only ingredient you need is heavy cream but you may add whatever else you’d like.
For a petite log of butter use 2 c. of chilled cream. Pour the cream into a mixer bowl and beat on high with a whisk attachment. After two minutes it will look like this:
Keep mixing on high speed. After about 10 minutes the curds (butter) and whey (buttermilk) will be almost completely separated. Turn off the mixer. (I’ve moved the butter to one side to show the separation, it will not form a solid clump.)
The next step is to press out the liquid (I used a spatula) by pressing the butter against the side of the bowl. When it starts to come together, rise it with cold water and knead it by hand. Continue to rinse and knead until the liquid draining off is clear. That’s it! Add your desired herbs and salt etc. and shape as you please. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate.
Home made unsalted butter.
Honey butter with lavender.
Butter with Kalamata olives, feta and basil.
Mnn, I can almost smell that turkey cooking
What a great idea to make your own butter and decorate it so prettily. My heavy duty Kitchen Aid mixer is ten years old. The plastic gear, inside the mechanism that makes the beaters go round, has broken 3 times. I use the mixer for making whole wheat bread as well as beating up refrigerated butter for cakes and cookies. I don’t know if I want to add making butter to my repertoire, I don’t know if my mixer is up to additional tasks:) besides I get organic great tasting organic butter from a dairy a few miles south of here.
How lucky you are to have an organic dairy so close! I’m still searching for a local organic dairy source. Then I can buy fresh cream for butter…mmmmmm!
You are amazing! I cannot believe how you whip up these fabulous, organic meals and the presentation makes me want to jump in my screen or on a plane to your house!
Jan you are the best! Thanks so much for your kind words…they are really encouraging!
Beautiful! And it sounds like fun, too. I make homemade bread every Monday. I’d love to doll up the breads with special butter. Thanks for sharing.
I bake bread every Tuesday, LOL! My family prefers oatmeal honey-wheat bread to any other. I’m so glad you like them, do give it a try… it’s fun!