Butter And Buttermilk Recipes

BUTTER AND BUTTERMILK

Steps:

• Stir together the cream and buttermilk in a bowl and let stand at room temperature to ripen until the mixture becomes thick and sour-smelling (16 to 24 hours). Cover tightly and refrigerate for several hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.
• Place in refrigerator a food processor fitted with the steel blade, 2 metal mixing bowls and a wire-mesh strainer in the refrigerator. Have ready 2 to 3 cups of ice water. (Cold is your friend here, warmth the enemy.) Set up the food processor and add half the cream (or all of it, if you have a machine with at least 11-cup capacity). Leave the rest in the refrigerator. Begin processing and watch closely as the cream thickens and whips. (It will take longer with homogenized and/or ultrapasteurized cream.) Soon after this stage, within a few minutes or even seconds, the cream will start to look less white. As soon as you see it breaking into something slightly granular, stop the machine and take a look. Cautiously proceed until the cream is quite definitely separated into cloudy whitish buttermilk and clumps of ivory or yellow butter.
• Set the strainer over a chilled bowl and dump in the contents of the processor, scraping out any clinging butter particles with a rubber spatula. Put the strainer and bowl in the refrigerator while you repeat the processing with the rest of the cream. Add the second batch of butter to what you have in the strainer. Measure the strained buttermilk, pour it into a storage container and chill in the refrigerator.
• Turn out the butter into another bowl and add roughly as much ice water -- straining out the ice -- as you have buttermilk. Work the butter into a mass with a strong wooden spoon or spatula. Drain off as much liquid as you can and go on working the butter. You will see it becoming smoother and waxier under the spoon, as the butterfat comes together in a continuous mass. When no more liquid seems to be coming out, pat it dry with paper towels, pack it into a small container and promptly refrigerate it, tightly covered.

HOMEMADE BUTTERMILK

Steps:

• Pour milk into a bowl; add lemon juice and stir to combine. Let sit for 5 minutes. Use immediately.

HOMEMADE BUTTER AND BUTTERMILK

Steps:

• Transfer cream to bowl of 5-quart electric stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment. Tightly cover top of bowl and mixer with plastic wrap. Beat cream at moderately high speed until it holds soft peaks, 10 to 12 minutes. Increase speed to high and beat until mixture separates into thick, pale-yellow butter and thin, liquid buttermilk, about 5 minutes more.
• Strain mixture through colander into large bowl. Using hands, vigorously knead butter in colander, squeezing out remaining buttermilk, until dense and creamy, about 5 minutes.
• Transfer butter to large bowl, reserving buttermilk. Using hands, knead salt into butter. Roll into logs and wrap in plastic wrap or transfer to airtight container and refrigerate. (Butter will keep up to 1 week refrigerated or 1 month frozen.)
• Strain buttermilk through fine-mesh sieve, then cover and refrigerate up to 1 week.

HOMEMADE BUTTERMILK

Steps:

• Place the vinegar in a glass-measuring cup, and add enough milk to make 1 cup total liquid. Stir to combine and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes (The mixture will begin to curdle).
• Use as needed in a recipe, or cover and refrigerate until needed.

BROWN BUTTER BUTTERMILK DONUTS

Steps:

• For the donuts: In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Let it cook on low heat, swirling occasionally while it crackles and hisses, until the crackling stops and the milk solids in the butter smell toasty and nutty and have turned golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the stove and let cool to room temperature.
• Combine the cake flour, almond flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a bowl, whisk together and set aside.
• In a mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the melted butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest. Add the almond extract, whole egg and egg yolk and beat until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the dry ingredients and buttermilk and mix just until a soft dough forms. Remove onto a piece of plastic wrap, flatten out to a disc, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or overnight if you want to make the night before and finish in the morning).
• Unwrap the dough onto a liberally floured surface and pat out with your hands (or you can use a rolling pin) to 3/4 inch thick. Using a 3- to 4-inch glass or round cutter, punch out as many dough circles as you can and place on a baking sheet. Reroll until all the dough is cut. Using a small bottle cap or a round pastry tip, cut a hole in the center of each donut (you can use these pieces to test the oil or to have as snacks). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. It is important that the dough is cold when frying (chilled dough is easier to handle and results in a nicer crust with well-defined cracks).
• Heat 2 inches of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot to 350 degrees F.
• For the glaze: Right before frying the donuts, combine the powdered sugar, buttermilk, almond extract, salt and lemon juice in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth.
• When the oil is hot, carefully drop the donuts in the oil (2 to 3 at a time; do not crowd the pot). They will sink to the bottom but pop up after 15 to 20 seconds (don't disturb them during this time). Fry, flipping frequently, until deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the oil onto a rack.
• While still warm but cool enough to handle, drop each donut into the glaze, flip to coat the entire thing, then let set on the rack. These are the best right away, but they actually keep pretty well for a day or two because they are very moist.

HOMEMADE BUTTERMILK

Steps:

• Mix the milk and lemon juice in a jug. Leave at room temperature for 5-10 mins until the milk has thickened slightly. It won't thicken as much as traditional buttermilk, but it's a great substitute when making scones, soda bread or pancakes. Don't worry if the mixture looks curdled or has small white lumps in it, it will be fine once cooked.