Buttery Goodness!

So, is making butter just a cool project for kindergartners?  Is there any benefit to your nutrition or does it taste any different?  This is one product that is used in many recipes that I wanted to find out if I could make it myself.  So here's is my experience:

 

I started with a quart of heavy whipping cream, $3.49 at Sams and my Kitchenaid mixer.

I first brought the cream to room temp, not sure that was necessary but several items I read recommended it. I started with the wire whip and ran the mixer at a 4.  I tried turning it up higher but it splattered even with the guard.  Once the fat started to separate from the milk, which was at about 5 minutes, I drained the liquid through a stainer into a bowl.  I changed the blade to the flat beater.

This is when I had to stayed close to the process or it made a mess.  I set the mixer at 2 and the butter began to form. Once it starts separating the process happens quickly and will splatter the milk all over.  As more liquid seperated, I continued to pour it out into the strainer. After about three times, I added about two cups of ice water and continued the process. At this point you are trying to "wash" the buttermilk off the butter.  This will keep it from getting rancid quickly.  You want to continue the process, pouring the water liquid into the sink, NOT the strainer you were using earlier.  Continue until the liquid is as clear as you can get it.  It only took me about three pours. 



I scooped the butter into 8oz Ball freezer jam jars.  I kept one out and froze the other.  I poured that buttermilk, which is actually closer to skim milk, into a quart jar put it in the fridge. 

So is it worth it? It was really cool to start with one ingredient and end with two.  My son loved the milk!  I would definitely recommend your own butter if you are baking fresh bread or you want to add herbs or spices and plan to use it as a spread, not sure it is necessary otherwise.  I thought the homemade butter tasted smoother and less like lard. I do keep a stash in the freezer now, and that has been nice.  You definitely are not saving money.  I am going to ask at Sams what they do with the cream they don't sell and see if there is a way to buy it at a discount the day it expires. I did take a picture of the mess it created.  It wasn't too bad and I did use the guard, although it didn't help much. I did a total of 3 quarts, resulting in 3 cups of butter. If you are looking at cost, you will not save money. It took a total of one hour from start to finish. It was a very simple process.

Some things to consider about store bought butter:

Like I have said in the past, I am far from granola.  I love my friends who are and enjoy the knowledge they share with me.  Butter is one of those things I never really thought about.  But, it is an animal by product.  Whatever the animal is eating, is contributing to the quality of the cream being used to make the butter. But, that also means that if you choose to churn your own butter, you have to be conscious of the cream you are choosing to use. Nothing like making it even more complicated. 

 

Here's to a healthier family! Cheers!



Home Fried Tortilla Chips

This week has really gotten away from me, but what a great week!  So here's what I have today: home fried tortilla chips! Might be the easiest thing I do, and saves our grocery bill the most amount of money. That fact that I said fried has already told you that this one isn't about making it healthier, instead they are tastier and SO MUCH cheaper!
So here's how to begin.  I like to use a 12 quart pot.  Mine happens to be the orange Rachael Ray pot and I love it.  But at this point I only use it for frying, and actually keep my oil in it until it needs to be changed.  I like the 12 quart pot because it reduces the splashing and clean up.  I pour about three inches or so into the pan. Heat the oil to 380 degrees, this is really important.  At first I would flick water into the grease and judge the temp by the pop.  But, my fried favorites have improved since I invested in a thermometer.  Cut your flour tortillas into quarters. My family prefers yellow corn, but white is good too.  I also stick to Mission brand, only because I have not mastered the home tortilla yet.  Moved away from my Mexican friends before I thought to have them teach me! When we were living in Texas I would buy homemade tortillas at the grocery store.  And yes, the tortilla matters! When you use the first brand you don't like, you will believe me. I do about 10 tortillas at a time, which is 40 pieces. 

Once your oil is hot, drop in the tortillas. I prefer using an Asian spatula, which is a small wire scoop to move them around and separate them in the oil. Put on the lid and let them fry for five to eight minutes. Check on them and move them around with the scoop to be sure they are all in the oil.

Make a pile of paper towel to put the chips on when you pull them out.  I use a wire rack with a cookie sheet and paper towel, but the paper towel on a cookie sheets works just fine.  Using the spatula, pull out a chip and check to see if it cracks on the paper towel. You have to push on it with the spatula.  I did use large tongs before I bought the spatula.  I was too cheap and had to wait for a good deal at Kohl's.  Fry them until they are done enough for you.  You will start to figure out what that means after you fry a few times.  I like them done a bit more than the family does, so a vary my batches. 

Once they are cooked to your liking, scoop them onto the paper towel. If you are doing more, place the next batch in while the first cools.  The first batch can be dusted with salt, or your favorite seasoning.  I mix salt, garlic, pepper, cumin and paprika, I my secret seasoning, LOL.  I then put them into a paper grocery sack or a large Tupperware container lined with fresh paper towel. Once you have moved the first batch, repeat with the following batches. 





After my oil has cooled, I store it in the coolest room in the house with the lid on.  I strain the oil between most batches and never use the oil for anything else.  If you boil something battered it will dirty it up.  I also like doing most batter fried items in a different pan anyway.  But we eat chips that often in our house.  I am assuming there might be less preservatives, but not actually sure.  We eat the chips for about three weeks before they are really considered stale. But you do have to keep them in a sealed container.  During football season we go through a large batch each weekend, so leftovers are not an issue. 

You can also fry flour tortillas the same way. Then instead of a salt seasoning, you would dust them with a cinnamon sugar mix.  I like cinnamon and powdered sugar.  Add a little honey or chocolate dip and they are a great dessert!

Home fried tortilla chips will not make your family any healthier, but it will help your pocket book!

Here's to a healthier family! Cheers!



The Burk Beachside Garden

My husband would laugh if he actually read this, but I am probably one of the most stubborn people I know.  And when someone tells me something can't be done, that actually fuels me to successfully complete the task at hand.  I have always wanted a garden. I have tried over the years.  Learned a lot of "what not to do's".

So moving back to Florida, I set my heart on a garden.  I knew I had to have raised beds and bring in soil.  We live beachside, which to my northern friends means that we live on the barrier island that runs down the east side of the state.  Yes, Florida has a barrier island, who knew?  So, our soil is extremely salty and sandy.  While at Lowes buying my lumber, I was chattin it up with the cashier about my plans. An old man pipes in "No one will EVER be successful with a vegetable garden beachside".  Really?  It's on old man!  So then my two 4X6 bed idea grew a bit and the dump truck came and dumped 8 yards of dirt in our driveway.

My husband simply shook his head and laughed. Now, please understand I did not actually plan that big of a pile of dirt.  After filling my two beds, the pile sat for probably 2 months.  I couldn't even give the stuff away.  So it was time to expand the garden and move the dirt.  Although my husband is extremely helpful in many areas, he leaves me alone with my "projects".  To sum it up, after a lot of sweat, this is where my garden is at:

These are the back beds, growing okra and various types of squash and pumpkin. I have already had to pull one round of squash because they got infested with worms.  I them moved on from my attempt at organic gardening and Sevin'ed them. No more bug problems, just have to sure to wash veggies well. 

These are the four front beds.  The first is corn.  It is doing pretty well.  I do need to make a fence around it because I noticed an animal has gotten to a few of the tops. The next bed is tomatoes, which are close to done for this round, and squash.  I am in the process of rotating out my summer plants and planting new seedlings.  The third bed is my eggplant and peppers.  The next picture shows you a better shot.  Now the back bed isn't worth showing close up.  Everything I have planted in that bed has died.  Not sure if it has anything to do with it, but our yellow lab passed away last spring and we buried him under the bed. My husband insists that he has at least three if not four feet of dirt onto of him.  I don't know because that was his "project".  Needless to say, everything in the bad has always died.  So I am now using it to cultivate better soil, mixing in my compost. 

I am so excited over my eggplant! I planted them because I heard they do really well in Florida.  So I figured it might give me a little success, and they have.  I have my herbs in restaurant pickle buckets, and yes my basil has gone to seed.  I need to replant.

I am by no means an expert.  I ask people a lot of questions and try new things all the time.  I have found it very helpful to have a good friend working on the same goals.  She turned a third of her backyard into a garden and is doing great.  But she also has 7 chickens, LOL. Check her out at http://thewhitesbackyardfarm.blogspot.com.  I have been able to add fresh peppers and tomatoes to our meals, but nearly as many as I would like.  This is definitely a work in progress.  Hope you enjoyed the pics!  Feel free to comment what has worked for you. I'm always up for new tricks to try.   Here's to a healthier family! Cheers!