On Making Your Own Butter

I think all of us bloggers, at one time or another, re-assess our blogs - what was the original intention, and where am I going with my blog? My original intention was to keep family and friends "in the know" after I moved from Ohio to Kansas.

Now that it has been over a year since my move to OzLand, OzVille, or Kansas, whatever you want to call it, I need a new purpose for my blog. Since I have always had oodles of admiration for those who choose to homestead, and since my husband and I live on 26 acres, this is the direction I will take with my blog. No, no, not full-blown homesteading advice (I am sadly uninformed when it comes to homesteading and how to fend for myself!), BUT I will try to give everyone more country advice, more country content, and more country snapshots. And I will endeavor to be more self-sufficient, if that's even possible for this bumbling midlife gal.

So without further ado, I'll show you how to make your own butter. There are various methods - do you want sweet cream butter, or cultured butter? Personally, I am trying the sweet cream method first, because it is easy-peasy! Anyone can do this. And I have the guarantees from other bloggers, MaryJane's Farm, and Mother Earth News magazine!

Once you start using homemade butter,
you won't look back.

~Mother Earth News

The easiest way to make your own butter can be found here at the Cold Antler Farm blog (scroll down to her August 9 post), or here at Proud to Be the Keeper of Our Home. Both blogs have instructions that vary slightly.

On a side note, check out the rest of the Cold Antler Farm blog -
she's a very inspiring 20-something, homesteading, writing gal
who lives in Vermont, with her very own book too!

Tammy at Flat Creek Farm made her own butter - she inspired me to do all this research. (The link to her blog will take you straight to her adventures in butter-making.) In her butter-making post, Tammy also has a link to Farmgirl Susan's Almost Too Easy Whole Wheat Beer Bread - I'm going to be trying that recipe once the hubby is home from Washington ~ if I make it before he gets home, yours truly will eat it ALL ~ and we all know that a whole loaf of bread is not good for our midlife bulge. Let me know if any of you beat me to it and try it.

If you want even more detail on butter making, please go to the article that was in the June/July issue of Mother Earth News, Homemade Butter - The Best You'll Ever Have. I just re-read this article in my back issue, and it's chock-full of fantastic information. It will explain the difference between sweet cream butter (what we're making here) and cultured butter, which you also have the ability to make. I'd like to try making a cultured butter someday.

And here's your country photo today.... my heavy cream just waiting to be shaken up into a delectable, home-made, sweet cream butter. I will update y'all once I have shaken this jar until my arm falls off - I am sure it will be worth the yummy butter I will have.


Update

Here's my first batch of butter, 10: p.m. Thursday, October 7th.
I added the barest amount of salt to the butter, just grains really.
And it made between 1/2 and 3/4 cup of buttermilk,
which I will use to make buttermilk pancakes.


It absolutely tastes better than store-bought butter. Fresh!

22 comments:

  1. Oh no..this was funny reading the part about re-assessing. I think this is a cool idea and thanks for the links. I think I whipped cream once till it was nearly butter..ha. I enjoy the real stuff as well and making it yourself would be best. Thanks for the links and another neat post. I did another recipe (you can leave out the passion..if you can't get it.. but I insist on the lime). I had fun too. Have a great day- Aloha-

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  2. You did your homework, Sista! :) Great links, of course I would not speak of my own. That would be bragging. But thank you ever so much. I'm glad you enjoyed. You are much more ambitious than me. I was a lazy girl and used the mixer. On one of our recent trips to our local Amish, a lady was shaking cream to butter in a big jar. There is just nothing like the taste of homemade butter, and yes.. my shrinking jeans are proof of that. Happy Shaking, but do be warned! Oh and I highly recommend the WW Beer Bread - so easy (right up my alley and a good way to use cheapo, bad beer). -Tammy

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  3. Awww, homemade butter is the best! I have an old butter churner that I love. It's a lot of work, but every second turning that handle is worth it! I think all bloggers regularly need to take a moment and re-access the purpose of our blogs. I stray from time to time myself. And I redefine the purpose from time to time as well. It's all good. I'm looking forward to seeing what you post about in the future! I'm sure I'll enjoy it as much as what you've posted about in the past.

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  4. Cant wait to see all the "new" posts!

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  5. Girl....you've got too much time on your hands. Ha! jk. I think it's a great new direction you're taking your blog. Can't wait to learn more.

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  6. When I was in first grade, our class got to make butter. I don't remember all the steps of course, but I remember we had them on crackers and it was really good.

    I would love to try making my own butter. I may not live in the country, but I'm a country girl at heart.

    Great post and I'm sure you have inspired quite a few peeps to try making their own butter.

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  7. No freaking way?1 How cool is that to know you lived just a 10 minute drive from where I am now!
    Such a small world.It amazes me.
    I'm liking the blog by the way. You have done a fantastic job. I am very impressed with your photography skills. Wish I had known you when ya lived in these parts. Sure could have used someone with your style to do some custom pics for me.LOL.
    I am putting you in my where I hop section so I can come back for more about your life in Oz.
    Now I am off to browse at more of your pics!

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  8. I'm looking forward to anything you have to share whether it's country related or not, and making butter sounds like a cool project to do with my grandsons!

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  9. Thanks for the interesting post. I've never tried to make butter before but you've inspired me.

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  10. I have so wanted to do this..now I have no excuse! I really want to know what fresher than fresh butter tastes like! Thanks for inspiring me!
    Be well! ~Andrea~

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  11. What a great idea, I am looking forward to whatever direction you choose to go. It is all interesting.

    Jen

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  12. There's nothing better than homemade butter - I've never tried making it, but my grandmother always made it and it was heaven, and I'm thinking maybe I should give it a go. We don't like store boughten butter anymore since we started buying organic butter so we're spoiled. What a great post. I wish you luck in your blog's new direction.

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  13. will have to try that sometime...thanks for sharing...

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  14. I like the direction you are taking. Haven't made butter Thinking about cheese have made soap and remember I rototilled my whole back yard. |Love ya and have a great day

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  15. Over the years I have done lots of back-to-nature stuff with keeping bees, raising goats, chickens & ducks. I've always had a veggie garden and have canned, dried & froze all kinds of produce but I have NEVER attempted to make butter! This is very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

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  16. Looks wonderful! In terms of your blog mission, don't forget that you're giving us Brits a taste of life in Kansas and I for one love it

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  17. Sounds like fun, too. I remember making it with my kids - shaking away.

    I, too, look at my blog and try to remember the reason for its existence. I'm all over the place, but so is my life. Perhaps I need to change my handle to that - All Over the Place

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  18. I'll take a muffin, toasted, with some of that fresh butter, please. You're my hero!

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  19. Mmmmmmmmm! My kids would like to do this. They could do all the shaking, and most of the eating, too. lol!


    ~Lisa

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  20. Yummy! I used my grandmothers old churn to let my grandkids churn real butter at my Camp Grandma last summer. Mmmmmmm! It brought back many fond memories. In Kids Church I put cream in a baby food jar and let them shake as I told the Bible story then we shared the butter on fresh bread. What fun!

    Have a wonderful day and enjoy fresh creamy homemade butter!!!

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  21. I love your posts and especially this one on how to make butter. I remember my mom used to make butter. I shall return often to your blog. It is so interesting to me.

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  22. Great post! I have always wanted to try making homemade butter. It might be a little more difficult with goat's milk because the cream doesn't separate as easily as with cow's milk, but worth a try in the spring when the does freshen again. Now I am sorry I dried our dairy goat off for the winter!

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