The first time I made butter it wasn’t deliberate but a lovely delicious kitchen disaster. Overwhipped cream is in fact actual butter and incredibly easy to make. At the time I was whipping almost 2 litres of cream at work and left the mixer on high-speed, as you do, forgetfully. Straightaway it flashed through my mind to do a runner and high tail it home feigning sickness, but a lightbulb flickered in my brain (occasionally happens) and I remembered some old cookery programme somewhere in the far recesses of time about how to deal with these sorts of incidents.
I had made butter!
And some buttermilk to boot too!
Wasn’t I the clever Bridie!
Although I only had 5 seconds to savour smugness before the Boss Man seen it so I hid it in the dark depths of the fridge. Custard was made instead and the cover – up story entailed crows pecking holes in the plastic cartons of cream left by the Milkman at the door at 5AM and because of health & safety, and it smelling a bit off and……etcetera……etcetera. I’d just about sold the story but a look of doubt did sweep across his eyes for a second regarding oversized overfed crows the size of small dogs pecking through plastic.
‘But sure look at the size of those flying lads out there, don’t they look like they’re down the gym pumping iron and popping steroids?! ‘
Luckily he was too busy and stressed to have time to think and listen to my incessant nattering about monster crows - as I had hoped.
[Insert naff sayings here: Butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. He was butter in her hands]
I did have to confess the next day though when I produced homemade butter and made a few scones with the resulting buttermilk. After a brief scolding and a ‘not bad I spose’ comment, I was off the hook.
So now I continue to make butter at home for special occasions, and for me there is a great sense of achievement and nostalgia about carrying on this ancient and dying craft even without using the butter churn as our Grandmothers and ancestors once did.
The lovely Imen over at I Married an Irish Farmer has easy step by step instructions with great photographs if you would like to try your hand at butter making for St Patrick’s Day. It’s creamy, preservative free and fresh tasting to have with your colcannon or champ mashed potatoes. Basic butter can be made using pasteurised or unpasteurised double cream which can be found in most supermarkets if you can’t source raw milk/cream as Imen has used.
Homemade Butter also makes a very impressive gift for someone made by your own fair dairy hands!
You can find the simple recipe and instructions here..
Enjoy!
Sheelagh
Oh my gosh, I think I see butter making (well attempt at) in my near future! ~Ruth
Love the post title and also love the bay leaves pressed into your homemade butter! Yum…..
It’s a great quote isn’t it! Those bay leaves were just about the last few that weren’t broken in the jar too
Lol, I seem to have an endless supply of this them year from our tree! Now I know what to do with them, ha ha!!!
sounds good. I wonder if a handmixer would work (electric). My Aunt used to churn butter in an old fashioned wooden butter churn when I was little…and I didn’t realise that you could make it with normal cream! (ok, engaging brain at this point!!!)
Lovely blog too.
Hi Fiona, I’ve often used my electric handmixer when I’m too lazy to drag out the big one! It really is worth making and very easy. Best of luck with it and thank you. Sheelagh x.
Who’s afraid of a little butter anyway? I went to a cooking class once where they had the thickest cream, it whipped up so quickly and beautifully, it would have turned to butter quite easily!
Really enjoying your blog so I have awarded you the Awesome Content Award. You can read about the award in my latest post.
Thanks Bridget! I’m also enjoying your lovely blog too. Glad to have found it. Sheelagh x.
I would absolutely love to try this but the only cream I can get my hands on in this wasteland is the standard stuff from the grocery store. I dream of one day being able to get raw milk from a farm and go at it.
In the meantime, I’ll live vicariously through you. Oh and I love that your first response to the crisis was to run away, that is totally my instinct when it comes to trouble as well
Pasteurised or unpasteurised double cream is fine to make butter with, but I am with you on the raw milk dream. The whole raw milk debate rages on here and we the consumers should have the right to purchase and use raw milk or cream as we wish. I used pasteurised cream in my ‘disaster’, so if you can get some give it a go!
Btw – I won’t charge you royalties for my quote on your future book sleeve. I’m very good & thoughtful that way
Smart idea my friend
Looks divine!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Latest: Giant Reese’s Stuffed Peanut Butter Stuffed Peanut Butter M&M Cookie For One
Thank you! Another genius post title you have
Simply love this post, especially the title!
Thanks but can’t take credit for that quote though!
Love it. I particularly like the spoofing the boss bit. I will have to look out for that kind of activity in my place from now on…..
Best,
Conor
Thanks Conor, I daresay your crew would never dream of it! Sheelagh.