Fun stuff and recipes...

Okay for now it is only two recipes, but they are good ones!

HOW TO MAKE BUTTER FROM RAW MILK:

1.) Using 3 or 4 day old cream works better than new cream so keep that in mind. In other words, you get a better yield, more butter. Separate the raw cream from the raw milk either through a sun tea jar or any other see-through container with a wide mouth at the top. I use the sun tea jar because I can just drain the skim milk out at the bottom through the spicket.

2.) Chill the cream well, if you haven't already. It must be cold, otherwise it will take too long.

3.) Blend the cream in a blender and wait for that magic moment when you see it turn from wonderful whipped cream into a chunky, curdy, butter consistency. Check by turning off the blender. You will see the curds float to the top when it is ready. Three cups of cream and blender on high speed should take about 2 or 3 minutes. It should be a golden yellow color.

4.) Line a colander with a good quality cheesecloth, called "butter muslin." Place the colander in a bowl to catch the liquid and strain the blender contents through. Don't discard the strained out liquid. It is buttermilk and it is excellent for making the ice cream recipe below. Buttermilk can be frozen and keeps well. The muslin can be obtained through www.cheesemaking.com, the New England Cheese Making Supply Company. There is a wealth of information at that site for making cheese as well.

5.) After straining, take the butter out of the cloth and drop the clump of butter into a bowl of ice water and squish out 3 or 4 times, not too much, to remove any excess buttermilk. If you don't the butter will go sour more quickly.

6.) Roll out the butter in logs, wrap in wax paper and freeze small portions. That way, you can use each portion quickly and minimize spoilage.

Buttermilk Ice Cream

You will not believe how good this ice cream is!

Ingredients:

1 C. sugar

1 C. water

2 C. raw buttermilk

1 C. raw heavy cream

Juice of 1 lemon

1 Tbl. corn syrup

Zest of 1 lemon

1. In small saucepan, combine the sugar and water; and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until chilled.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, lemon juice, corn syrup and cream. Slowly add the chilled syrup, whisk to combine. Stir in lemon zest. Freeze in ice cream maker according to mfgís instructions.