…because making butter at home takes less than 10 minutes with a Kitchen Aid stand mixer and tastes 10 times better! I can’t believe how easy it was, and it tastes amazing.
I used heavy cream from the Iwig Dairy that’s a few miles from my parents’ house (note: yes, I do know they make their own butter, too, but I wanted to see if I could do it). I whipped the cream as if making whipped cream, but I went past the point of stiff peaks and in just a couple minutes it separated. It happened fast; the solids suddenly appeared and stuck to the whisk attachment and the remaining liquid sloshed all over the bowl (glad I had the splash guard on!). I drained off the liquid, as seen in the picture, and switched to the paddle attachment so I could rinse the butter without it getting stuck in the wires of the whisk. After a few rinses with ice water to work the remaining buttermilk out, the butter was ready to use!
Rather than put the butter into a mold or container and into the refrigerator, we put it into a butter pot and left it on the countertop. This ceramic pot has been used for hundreds of years in lieu of refrigeration. It creates a water seal to keep the oxygen away from the butter (oxygen is what makes butter go bad). Since we made unsalted butter we put a little salt into the water in the pot to keep mold from growing. Now the butter stays fresh and spreadable!
If you’re feeling adventurous, here are a couple sites I used as a guide: Instructables and Free Range Living: Making Butter.
