Butter

An interesting post and beautiful photography on the art of making fresh butter.

From David Lebovitz...

No matter where it’s made, butter not only takes quite some skill to produce, but historically has been women’s work. Centuries ago, women were in charge of making the butter as it was believed that the mystical powers that turned liquid cream into firm butter were best dealt with by womenfolk.

The word daege (the root of the word ‘dairy’) in Irish means “woman servant” and producing and selling butter was one of the few ways that women could work independently and make money in twentieth century Ireland. And even today, many creameries and cheese shops are owned and run by women. Not just in Ireland, but around the world, in disparate places like Cowgirl Creamery just outside of San Francisco to Marie Quattrehomme in Paris.

I made it once. It wasn't difficult using a stand mixer but I'm sure a hand crank is a completely different experience. You have to keep beating and beating the cream well past the point when you think it should have seized, for me that was about 20-25 minutes. In a blink of an eye it separates and you have butter solids and buttermilk. The key to a longer shelf life is to wash the solids well under cold running water to remove as much of the buttermilk as possible.