# Self Sufficiency/Living off the Land or Off the Grid > Gardening >  Butter...

## LeaveThisLifeGuy

I made it today.  that may not be big bacon for most of you, but ask just about anyone my age how to make butter, and they'll look at you stupid-like.  not sure how i'd do it without the electric mixer or store bought cream, but one step at a time!   :Smile:

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## RobertRogers

Yeah. I grew up on a small farm where we made butter by hand with a churn and sold it.  Those times are just about in history now, at least in the USA

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## Rick

Actually, it is big bacon. Every skill learned is important. Good for you!!

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## DOGMAN

I remember my Great grandmother had a butter churn at her house- I never saw her use it. Your right though...I know a lot of folks in my age group (including me) have no clue how to make butter.  Cheese on the other hand- I've made that

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## Ken

I haven't made butter in years.  Sometimes, I'd add a little maple syrup during the process.  Great on homemade cornbread. :Smile:

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## LeaveThisLifeGuy

> I remember my Great grandmother had a butter churn at her house- I never saw her use it. Your right though...I know a lot of folks in my age group (including me) have no clue how to make butter.  Cheese on the other hand- I've made that


cheese is next on the list.  just gotta figure out what to do with buttermilk, then it's off to acquire fresh milk to do the whole process-cheese, butter, buttermilk.  then i'll know what to do with a cow and its milk!  :Smile:

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## Rick

Frankly, as hard as I try, I can't handle the taste of buttermilk. My dad used to drink it like water. I can cook with it but I sure can't drink it.

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## Ken

Love buttermilk.  Get the craving every few months.  Great before a shot of eggnog.  Honest.

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## nell67

Churned alot of butter when I was growing up,skimmed the cream off the top of the fresh milk,and let it "sour" on the counter a few days,then poured it into the churn and in no time it was butter,sold tons of that stuff,but I never could get the taste for "fresh" butter,or butter milk  :EEK!:

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## crashdive123

> Cheese on the other hand- I've made that


Haven't made any.  Does cutting it count?

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## Rick

So that's where all those bubbles come from on a sub. I see those shows on Discovery and the History Channel all the time and the bubbles are just everywhere. Most of the time the guys look really unhappy. It's probably the smell. Thanks for filling us in!!

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## crashdive123

Nothing like recirculating the air over, and over, and over, and over again.

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## Rick

Yea, but now you guys have those nu clear air gismos that makes everything all better.

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## crashdive123

Activated charcoal (another thread) and electro-static percipitaters.  Same stuff available only bigger.  After a good night of beans your "signature" might make the rounds.

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## RBB

When I was a kid we had a big old wooden barrel churn - must have been about five gallons.  I saw one just like it, recently, in one of those 1905 Sears catalogs they've reprinted.  I don't know what's become of the one we had on the farm, but that's just as well.  It sure was hard to turn towards the end of the churn.  We would salt it lightly, and the butter was pale - hardly any color at all - and not greasy like the butter you buy in the store.  Nothing quite like it.

For about ten years, when my kids were young, we would buy whole milk from a local farmer and skim the cream for butter.  We did it for a while in a gallon bottle churn, and the kids loved it, but they soon learned it was a lot easier to churn in a blender.  State regs got so tight farmers didn't dare sell unpasturized milk - and that was the end of that.

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## Rick

LeaveThisLifeGuy - How about posting you recipe for others?

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## Ken

> LeaveThisLifeGuy - How about posting you recipe for others?


The guy's a Super Moderator and STILL ignores Quality Control Requirements.  Poor example for us mere mortals ....   :Mad: 

LTLG - How about sending a large sample to Quality Control BEFORE posting your recipe for others?

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## LeaveThisLifeGuy

> LeaveThisLifeGuy - How about posting you recipe for others?


ummm... not really a recipe per se, pulled it off the first post when googled.

1. buy 2 cups heavy whipping cream or double cream
2. let sit for 12 hours at room temperature
3. mix in electric mixer on medium for 20 minutes
4. drain with cheese cloth
5. put in a container :Big Grin: 

lady is european, and therefore can't stand salted butter-so no salt :Wink:

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## Tony uk

Butter, Its best use, In Mashed Potatos, Food of the Gods i Tells Ya !!

Ive made jam twice now, Both attemps where notthing special, One time was strawberry, The next mixed fruit. But ve never thought of making butter, Most of what we buy up here is margarine so i dont eat butter that often either.

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## Rick

I have to tell you that whole 12 hours at room temperature sort of bothers me. Is heavy cream okay out that long?

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## Ken

> I have to tell you that whole 12 hours at room temperature sort of bothers me. Is heavy cream okay out that long?


Ever have coffee in a diner?

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## Rick

Yeah, and I've watched the cream ball up when it's pour into the coffee, too.

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## Rick

Here is some info on types of cream.

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Sauce...efinitions.htm

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## crashdive123

Could not find a definitive answer on leaving the cream at room temperature for 12 hours.  Ultra pasturized will last longer than pasturized.  I would think that if the goal is to use the cream at room temperature, once it achieves that....yes/no?

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## Rick

Okay, Mother Earth News says the cream has to sit for 12 hours "(or until the cream is about 75°F and smells slightly sour). This is called ripening-or developing the acid content of-the cream. (Only ripened cream will produce butter with a good "butter flavor".)"

Learned something again today. Thanks LTLG!!

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## Rick

You could easily make butter in an off the grid environment if you had access to whole milk or just the heavy cream. No electricity needed. No churn needed. Just you and one jar or can. Here's the how to: 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...d-without.aspx

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## Sam Reeves

> Yeah. I grew up on a small farm where we made butter by hand with a churn and sold it.  Those times are just about in history now, at least in the USA


I can remember my grandmother doing that except she had an electric motor for her churn. She would make cakes about 3 inches in diameter and wrap them in wax paper. She also sold eggs and unpasteurized milk.

I'd like to learn to make cheese.

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## Rick

Here is some information on cheese making: 

4 cheese recipes in the first one: 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...e-Recipes.aspx

Sweet Cheese recipe: 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...et-Cheese.aspx

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## Rick

Here's a set of instructions for beginners to make hard cheese. This is a looong process. This is the print page so you don't have to go through all the pages to see it. You will get a print box that opens when you click on the link. Just cancel the print and you can read the whole thing on one page.  

http://www.motherearthnews.com/print....aspx?id=70290

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## Sam Reeves

> Here's a set of instructions for beginners to make hard cheese. This is a looong process. This is the print page so you don't have to go through all the pages to see it. You will get a print box that opens when you click on the link. Just cancel the print and you can read the whole thing on one page.  
> 
> http://www.motherearthnews.com/print....aspx?id=70290


Thanks, Rick. Now I'll have to deal with the Lawyer/Survivalist/Quality Control guy.

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## crashdive123

> Thanks, Rick. Now I'll have to deal with the Lawyer/Survivalist/Quality Control guy.


Umm-thats Quality Control GUYS.

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## Rick

He was deported. Didn't you read my brief?

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## crashdive123

But he DID leave a forwarding address.  Standards are standards.

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## Sam Reeves

> He was deported. Didn't you read my brief?


Deported? Dang.

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## Sam Reeves

> Umm-thats Quality Control GUYS.


Well, since you are just across the Florida line hopefully the shipping will be cheaper.

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## crashdive123

> Well, since you are just across the Florida line hopefully the shipping will be cheaper.


If we're talking BBQ, jerky, somked meat.....heck Sam - I'll drive up to you to pick it up and I'll send Ken his half to spare you the shipping expense.  Its only - what - 6 or 8 hour drive?

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## Ken

> He was deported. Didn't you read my brief?


Nobody can.  From what we hear, there are way too many stains on your briefs to even make out what kind of brand you wear. (Thanks, Mrs. Rick, for the info.) :Smile:

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## Sam Reeves

> If we're talking BBQ, jerky, somked meat.....heck Sam - I'll drive up to you to pick it up and I'll send Ken his half to spare you the shipping expense.  Its only - what - 6 or 8 hour drive?


Something like that. 

You may become famished on the trip back and have to consume Ken's portion in order survive to road home.

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## Ken

> But he DID leave a forwarding address.  Standards are standards.


Crash, any other local foods you wanna' try?  Like the local chow mein (only get it in S.E. Mass and Rhode Island)  or the chorico (Portuguese Sausage, hot or mild - incredible) or how about coffee syrup (makes coffee flavored milk, shakes, etc.).

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## crashdive123

> Crash, any other local foods you wanna' try?  Like the local chow mein (only get it in S.E. Mass and Rhode Island)  or the chorico (Portuguese Sausage, hot or mild - incredible) or how about coffee syrup (makes coffee flavored milk, shakes, etc.).


I'm good for now.

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## Ken

> I'm good for now.


     LetMeKnow, Crash!

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## buttercup

> Okay, Mother Earth News says the cream has to sit for 12 hours "(or until the cream is about 75°F and smells slightly sour). This is called ripening-or developing the acid content of-the cream. (Only ripened cream will produce butter with a good "butter flavor".)"
> 
> Learned something again today. Thanks LTLG!!



I have made butter for years and never left mine out on the counter to sour and my butter has wonderful 'butter flavor'. I have a Dazey hand-crank churn with a glass jar that came from my husband's side of the family and love it. What I made in the past was from cow's milk. When I began getting the goat milk recently (which I love) everyone said you can't get enough cream from that milk to churn..........yes, you can. At least the goat milk I get from my source is rich in cream.

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## Rick

Well, I made butter this morning. I finally track down some heavy cream that wasn't Ultra-Pasturized. I didn't let it sit out and sour. I assume this process is meant to extend the life of the butter by taking as much liquid out as possible. I used a pint of cream for my first time so I didn't end up with a tremendous amount of butter. About double the pint and it turned out fine. It's butter and it tastes fine.

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## Alpine_Sapper

> cheese is next on the list.  just gotta figure out what to do with buttermilk, then it's off to acquire fresh milk to do the whole process-cheese, butter, buttermilk.  then i'll know what to do with a cow and its milk!


Yogurt cheese is extremely easy to make and versatile as well.  :Wink:

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## TrappinGal

i have churned many ,many pounds of butter by hand, in a stoneware churn.

thres nothing like the taste if fresh churned butter.

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## Dennis K.

> Butter, Its best use, In Mashed Potatos, Food of the Gods i Tells Ya !!


Potatoes are nothing more than an excuse to eat massive quantities of Butter!

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## trax

Butter is a food? or can be used on food? Dang! Next thing you'll be telling me is whipped cream can too......naahhhh..

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## Dennis K.

> Here is some information on cheese making: 
> 
> 4 cheese recipes in the first one: 
> 
> http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...e-Recipes.aspx
> 
> Sweet Cheese recipe: 
> 
> http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...et-Cheese.aspx


Rick - 
here's another site you might find interesting for cheese making.  Fascinating website, too:

http://schmidling.com/making.htm

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## Rick

Thanks, Dennis. I actually saw that web site but there was a posting on it that excluded me. 

"From the end of Pasteurization till eating, nothing should be allowed to contact the cheese that has not been properly sanitized."

I don't think I have been so I skipped it. Besides, that sounds awfully painful.

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## Dennis K.

> ... Besides, that sounds awfully painful.


It's not easy, bein' cheesey...

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## buttercup

> Churned alot of butter when I was growing up,skimmed the cream off the top of the fresh milk,and let it "sour" on the counter a few days,then poured it into the churn and in no time it was butter,sold tons of that stuff,but I never could get the taste for "fresh" butter,or butter milk


I have an old churn that came down through the family and churned every Saturday when we had the dairy farm. Lately, not as often but still use the churn. I skimmed the cream all week off the fresh milk brought in from the barn but I always kept mine in the refrigerator; I prefer sweet churned butter instead of the sour and never left mine out to sour.

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## nell67

> I have an old churn that came down through the family and churned every Saturday when we had the dairy farm. Lately, not as often but still use the churn. I skimmed the cream all week off the fresh milk brought in from the barn but I always kept mine in the refrigerator; I prefer sweet churned butter instead of the sour and never left mine out to sour.


I only remember trying it once,and I did not like the taste at all,I churned ALOT of it,never would eat it.

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## TrappinGal

> I have an old churn that came down through the family and churned every Saturday when we had the dairy farm. Lately, not as often but still use the churn. I skimmed the cream all week off the fresh milk brought in from the barn but I always kept mine in the refrigerator; I prefer sweet churned butter instead of the sour and never left mine out to sour.


i prefer sweet butter also and never allowed the cream to sour. it was kept in a jar in the fridge until there was enough to churn.

i dont know, but it kinda seems like if ya let it sour it would taste bad to me.i dont care for buttermilk either.

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