"Come Butter Come"

Yesterday was art day for my kiddos, that being said, we did art! We made homemade butter! It was so much fun. First, I read to them a story about Johnny Appleseed. Unfortunately, it was a LOong story of all the various things he did in his life time. To me, I found it very interesting, however, the look of my children's glazed-over eyes signaled to me that they weren't enjoying it as much mother was. After the story was finished I decided to make butter, with hopes of demonstrating to them how one can experience joy in being resourceful. Like Johnny Appleseed, who wore a coffee sack as clothing and a pan-with-a-handle for a hat, we also used the materials we had at home to make butter. This is the recipe and trust me, it's GOOD!

Materials Needed:
*Whipping cream or heavy cream (not ultra-pasteurized)
*Salt
*Wide mouth quart jar with a tight fitting lid...(any jar with a tight fitting
lid will work)
*Colander

Instructions:
Allow the cream to sit at room temperature for a few hours. Fill your jar half full with cream and screw the lid on tightly. Holding the jar by both ends, shake it vigorously for about 15 or 20 minutes. Extra shakers could be a big help here (i.e. family members) could be a big help here! After a while the cream will begin to separate and the butter will come. When you are finished, the butter in the jar should be about the mass of a baseball (remember to not go past 20 minutes).

Pour off the liquid (this is the buttermilk which you can save-my children loved drinking it), and rinse the butter curd in a colander under cold water to remove any milk. You should rinse until the water runs clear. After this, I highly recommend that you add a pinch or two of salt for flavor. Mold your butter or pack it in a small cup and refrigerate. You now have homemade butter to enjoy, and everyone gave their arms a workout in the process.

In past generations, the job of turning the butter fell to the children. As they worked, they would often invent rhymes to make the process more enjoyable. The rhyme which follows is actually a very old churning rhyme which children long ago chanted.

Come butter come.

Come butter come.

Peter standing at the gate,

waiting for a butter cake.

Come butter come.