I had recently seen some friends making butter, and I thought, "what a cool way to take all the convenience out of food our grandparent's generation worked so hard for! I can be a pioneer woman!"
I immediately commenced pioneering by plugging in my Kitchen Aid. Okay... maybe I cheat a little. I found a really good You Tube video by a guy I have dubbed Super Helpful Dude, so I can't take credit for it entirely.
Everything's better with butta', Sug!
Ingredients:
2 C cream (try to get it as pure as possible - check the ingredients)
1/4 t salt
Directions
1. Start by chilling your bowl - I use a Kitchen Aid stand mixer because you have to beat it really fast and it would be a long time to hold egg beaters (And a REALLY long time to do it by hand), and it splashes, so it's nice to be able to drape a towel over it!
2. Prepare 1-2 C. ice water in a container that makes it easy to pour out the water, and not the ice. I used a travel coffee mug, and it worked great.
3. Pour cold cream into the bowl and turn the mixer on high using a balloon whisk. As you watch it mix, it will turn into something very familiar looking: whipped cream! I know it's super tempting to stop here and start topping, but don't! Mix until it separates into butter and buttermilk (so THAT'S where it comes from!), about 5-10 minutes (maybe less if you get pure cream).
4. Turn mixer off and use a rubber spatula to squish all the butter together and drain off the buttermilk (you can retain this to use in baking or cooking). I agree with Super Helpful Dude here, and switched to the paddle mixer. SUCH a good tip!
5. Pour some of the iced water (but not the ice) into the bowl with the butter, and return it to the mixer. Mix the butter and water for a minute (on a lower speed so it doesn't splash - and OH, does it splash!), squish the butter aside, and drain the water into the sink. Repeat this 2 or 3 times, until the water is draining relatively clear. Super Helpful Dude explains that this helps ensure all the buttermilk is out of the butter, making it last longer. I'm inclined to believe him since I technically have no idea what I'm doing.
6. Add the salt, if you want, and mix, this time without water. You can turn it back up higher to make sure it gets good and mixed in. I forgot to pay attention to how much butter and buttermilk the recipe yields. Sorry about that.
Ta-da! You're the proud new owner of smug, homemade butter. You can take pictures and show off on Facebook all you want! The best part: it really is better! It's super smooth, and even when it's relatively cold it cuts and spreads nicely. It melts better and the flavor is unbeatable!
And the second thing? Sugar! Although coconut is a close third. I know you've been wondering this whole time.
