The Besties and I have taken to doing experiential birthday celebrations. Remember when we made Hoshigaki for Pia's Half-Century at the Thomas Farm?! And, before that, we went to a lemon workshop for Jenn's 49th where we made preserved lemons and went home armed with lemons and recipes to make limoncello. So, I was really excited when they told me we would be going to an artisan bread and butter workshop at the Little Red Barn Mini Farm in Aptos.
Chef Nikki demonstrated two quick breads, then we made homemade butter. All you need is heavy whipping cream, a lidded jar, and some patience along with the desire for a quick arm workout. I love these ladies so much. Aren't they fun!?
Ingredients
heavy whipping cream
lidded jar
salt, herbs, honey - optional
Also needed: wax paper
Procedure
Fill your jar halfway with heavy whipping cream. Shake, shake, and shake it some more. It will probably take five or six minutes. After the first few minutes, whipped cream will form. Keep shaking until you hear that a lump has formed inside. Shake more until the liquids separate from the butter completely.
Pour off the buttermilk and reserve it for another purpose. Think pancakes!
Place the butter ball in a bowl and pour cold water over the top. Gently press the butter together into a ball, then. turn it out onto a piece of waxed paper.
At this point, you can add in salt, honey, or herbs to create flavored butters or serve as is. For this batch, I stirred in some pink salt and dried savory.
Place the butter in a clean jar and refrigerate until ready to use. I can't wait to use this on a butter board such as this one...
