[April 06, 2008]

Butter and Bread

Poole's Diner in downtown Raleigh offered a usually free starter for $3.00. But their baguette and homemade butter was well worth it and inspired me this weekend to make my own butter at home. Simpler than one might think my butter contains two ingredients: cream and salt. Beat one quart of cream in a large mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Doing this by hand I employed a trick learned on one of the cooking shows I've watched over the years--use two whisks in one hand at the same time. Twice as many tines make the work twice as fast. After the stiff peaks keep beating until liquid forms at the bottom of the bowl and fat globule collect around the sides. Continue until the butter fat is a little smaller than a pea. Transfer the butter fats to cheesecloth and compress to drain the liquid back into the bowl. This liquid is butter milk and can be used as such in pancake or biscuit recipes. Once drained tranfer the butter to a clean bowl and stir in 1/2 teaspoon of quality sea salt. Tear off 12 inches of plactic wrap and bundle the butter tightly. Refrigerate overnight.

Posted by Kirk