Happy August everyone! How has your summer been? We have been super busy checking off our 2014 Summer Bucket List (post coming soon!) and having a blast! Now life has been settling down a bit, and summer vacation is coming to an end for us, I have been on such a “homemaker” kick recently. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it has been so hot out, and we’ve been staying inside trying to beat the heat. I don’t know about you, but I feel so accomplished when I am able to make something “homemade”. For me, it sort of feels like a special gift that I get to bless my family with! A few weeks ago I successfully made a delicious loaf of Honey Oat Bread, which my sweet hubby devoured. Before my homemade bread dissipated before my very eyes, I had been craving a rich & creamy butter to spread on a slice, with an accompaniment of strawberry jam. YUM! Thinking about that bread, and craving butter to spread all over it reminded me of a “Colonial Day” day I had participated in when I was in Elementary School, making my own butter in a little jar. (We also dipped our own candles, and the girls got to wear special bonnets all day long.) It was such a sweet and fun memory! With that in mind, I searched all over for an easy recipe to make my own butter, and I came across a few recipes that utilized the blender. (Wait, you can make butter in the blender?! Really! No Way!!!!) All of the sites said pretty much the same simple things, so I decided to throw caution to the wind and try out making my own butter. If it was a disaster, so be it. At least I had fun! It ended up being a monumental success (in my humble opinion!). It is just SO tasty, and SO easy, I just HAD to share!
So, this is how I did it!
What you’ll need:
- 1 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream (room temp.)
- 1/4 tsp table salt (optional)
- 1 cup very cold water (for rinsing)
- a blender
- mesh strainer or something to strain the butter
Delicious Homemade (Blender) Butter
*Before we begin, please note that this recipe is for one stick of butter (appx. 1/2 Cup or 8 Tbsp)
Instructions:
- Measure out 1 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream and pour into blender.
- Add 1/4 tsp salt (if desired).
- Put lid on blender, and blend on med-high (mine took about about 10 minutes) until butter begins to separate from the butter milk. (I had to stop my blender a few times and push the soft “whipped cream” down with a spoon. It did eventually separate, it just took a little longer.) Be patient, it WILL happen.
- Once the butter finally separates from the butter milk (it looks a bit curdled), let it sit for a few minutes to allow the butter to rise to the top.
Pour out your “Buttermilk” into a separate bowl or jar and save for another baking project (I made these Buttermilk Cupcakes– absolutely delicious!).
- Next, pour 1/3 of your cold water over your butter, and pulse in the blender for a few seconds to rinse. Drain water out and repeat a few more times. (Rinsing is thought to help preserve the butter so it will last a bit longer in the refrigerator.)
- Finally, take a spoon and scoop your butter from the blender into a strainer to drain the excess “rinse water” out of your butter.
- Ta Da! Your butter is now ready for you to enjoy, or scoop into a butter container or make into a “log” and refrigerate!
I ended up making 2 “logs” of butter from the one pint of heavy whipping cream I purchased. I added the store bought stick of butter in to the picture because I wanted to show that they are essentially the same amount of butter (my sticks are just a bit flatter and longer).
I hope that you have a chance to try this incredibly easy “recipe”! I promise you won’t be sorry you did! If you do make it, let me know how yours turned out! I’m thinking some infused/flavored butters are on dock for the very near future!
Until next time…