CULTURED BUTTER

Cultured Butter….

I think of homemade butter as cultured anyway…you know what I mean…elegant, delicious, a little high brow…but ‘Cultured’ butter (as in fermented butter)…is completely different. Slightly sour, creamy, delicately flavoured…yes, cultured indeed! I had this question at my first Cooking with Tenina Advanced Thermomix class, and went away on discovery…with thanks from a couple of foodies, Barbara over at Winosandfoodies who tweeted me her version, and Jenny Reed who asked the question in the first place sent me a copy of a recipe from an old cookbook of hers…well this is a hybrid of the two…Thermomix style. Cue the French cafe music, bring on the baguettes, and you have a little piece of Europe on your table…

NEED:

600ml cream

75g pot set plain yoghurt

OR

75g creme fraiche

DO:

Place cream into Thermomix bowl and warm for 5 min/37°C/speed 2.

Add yoghurt or creme fraiche and stir through for 15 sec/speed 2.

Pour into warmed, sterilised glass jar or Thermos flask and keep at temperature for 12 hours. The glass jar must go into a yoghurt maker or similar to stay warm…this can be up to 24 hours or even longer, within reason…a week is too long.

Chill cream until totally cold…colder the better.

Return cream to the Thermomix bowl and insert the Butterfly. Whip until separation occurs. This took a long time for me, and I think it is something to do with the heating of the cream previously. Drain off the buttermilk after you have separation and voila, you have Cultured Buttermilk as well…(cultured butter, ergo; cultured buttermilk from the butter!!)

Wash the butter by removing the Butterfly and pouring into the Thermomix bowl, plenty of icy cold water. Close the lid and wash for 20 sec/speed 5, occasionally hitting the Reverse function so that you get a washing machine action! (Cool, yes??)

Remove liquid from butter by squeezing, add flavorings of choice (salt, sugar, honey, cinnamon, chilli, garlic, truffle, need I go on?) and pot the butter into small bowls or dishes. Freeze until use, or not, depending on how fast you will eat this new treat. I have to say, I would probably not use this in cooking as it is a bit of a fiddle, but for beautiful home made, grainy, sourdough bread, or the aforementioned baguettes…I’m there baby!