Make Your Own Butter (Without a Cow)
When I was a girl, my mother was a saint. I was one of those children who talked contantly (Never saw that one coming, huh) and was always right up on her with questions and endless conversation. I can’t ever remember a time, even now, when I haven’t been trying to figure the world out, finding some new angle almost daily to view it through and gain a better understanding of the whys and what-fors of any given situation.
I was one to question, examine, and then declare my findings. Again, much how I do now. But folks, I can tell ya, My poor mama needed a break from time to time and she always came up with wonderful ways to keep me busy while giving me something else to figure out.
Most of these actiities have become habit for me now, ways I busy myself in the odd need to be doing multiple tasks in order to focus. My friend, Jyl is night and day different from me in this respect. She actually focuses on one thing at a time, just like my husband. Mama is like that, too, so I’m really surrounded by people who stand in place doing one appointed task while I buzz around them talking away with the speed of my thoughts. I imagine it leaves us both a little tired.
Recently I was on the phone with Jyl talking over some things I have coming up with Southern Plate and while talking to her, I walked into the kitchen and got all of the fixin’s out to make a little butter. I poured my cream into a mason jar, screwed the lid on good and began shaking away. ~swish swish swish~
After a few minutes of talking while I swished in the background Jyl asked, “What are you doing?”
“I’m making butter.” I declared, as I continued swishing while I walked around the house talking on the phone.
Did you know I can’t stand still or sit while I talk on the phone? Doing only one thing at a time is very difficult for me and always has been. Of course it’s ADHD but it is certainly not a disorder, it’s a gift, a talent, and a blessing. The only reason it is called a “disorder” is because other folks beat us to the punch in declaring themselves normal and us abnormal. If we wouldn’t have been so busy up and leaving Europe and creating an entirely new country based on an entirely new governmental concept, we could have gotten to declare the rest of the world “OTATD” or “O-Tats” for short, One Thing At A Time Disorder. ~grins and giggles~ But that is a post for another day so back to what I was saying about butter..
Jyl sounded incredulous “You’re doing what?”
“I’m making butter, I’m going to spread it on some saltines.”
“Are you talking about actually churning butter?”
“Yeah, but in a mason jar. Haven’t you ever made butter?”
This is when it occured to me that Jyl, being the quiet person that she is, most likely never annoyed her mother like I did and therefore was never given the fascinating task of making butter in a mason jar. Since I can’t see her ever being able to annoy people to the extent that I do, I guess it is up to me to take the initiative and show her how it’s done so this post was born.
Tomorrow begins National Dairy Month and this is a great post to help us kick that off so yesterday, me and the kids made butter. This is a GREAT activity to do with kids, or to let them do on their own to buy you a few minutes of quiet in the kitchen while you cook. Even adults enjoy the “neatness” factor of making your own butter with just some whipping cream and a mason jar!
All you’ll need is: Heavy Whipping Cream and a jar or two.
I usually use the larger jars but these little eight ounce ones are easier for little hands to hold and do just fine.
Fill your jar 1/2 to 3/4 full, but no more than that. Your cream needs space to shake around a bit.
Put the lid on well and then start shaking!
This will take anywhere from ten to thirty minutes, but your butter will most likely be ready in twenty minutes or so. It all depends on how much you shake it. Little hands will take frequent breaks 
Now let me tell you what is gonna happen here so you don’t think you’re shaking your arms off for nothing:
First, the liquid is going to completely coat the jar as you shake and you’ll hear it just a shaking back and forth
Then, the liquid is going to get really thick, still coating the jar, but as you shake you won’t really hear it shaking anymore and you’ll begin to doubt me. Hang in there, I promise there will be butter soon enough, just keep shaking on faith . You can open the lid if you want and see that your cream is just really, really thick. Then…
After about fifteen or twenty minutes, you’ll notice the sides are no longer coated and it pulls away from the sides a bit.
You’re almost done!
A few minutes later you’ll feel solids shaking around in there and the liquid and solids will separate completely. Now your butter is ready.
When you open it up you’ll see this.
Pour that out into a strainer or colander so the liquid can drain out the bottom.
This is Brady and Katy’s jar both emptied.
Now adding a little salt is optional but I like to.
This is just a little kosher salt that I’m going to stir in.
You will need to add this to taste so start small.
Stir in salt, if adding it.
Spoon butter into small ramekin, cover, and refrigerate.
It will harden as it gets cold.
Enjoy!
Doesn’t this look good? I love it on Saltines!
Making Butter At Home (Fun activity for all ages!)
- Whipping Cream
- Mason Jar
- Salt (optional)
Fill jar 1/2 to 3/4 full with cream. Place lid on tightly. Shake for ten to thirty minutes, or until you hear solids shaking around and can see through the glass that the solids have separated from liquid (read up in post for more details of what the shaking stages will be like). Pour into colander to separate liquid from butter. Place butter in a ramekin or bowl and stir in salt, if desired. Refrigerate until hardened. Enjoy!
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Did your Mama have creative ways to keep you busy as a child?
My Mama Reed used to have her grandkids shuck corn and snap beans on the front porch. They loved feeling needed!
I’d love to hear what your parentsand grandparents did in the comments section below!
We had a WONDERFUL time this past weekend when we got our own private tour of a working dairy farm in Alabama.
Stay tuned to my next post for details and photos!
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What you DO speaks loudly, I can’t hear what you say.
~A quote Nick Saban used in his book, How Good Do You Want To Be?
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Posted by Christy Jordan
on May 31 2011. Filed under Sauces/Other, Southern Plate Kids.
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Oh, Christy, thank you for the reminder of making butter and the tips on how to do it. As I child, I churned it in the churn. I wish I still had the churn. Sigh. I am going to see two grandchildren who are old enough to do this so it is on my agenda to make butter with them.
))
When I was a girl, some of my favorite times were snapping beans and shelling peas on the porch with family.
When my children were young and we lived in the city, every Memorial Day, early in the morning, we would go out for breakfast (a rare treat in those days) and on to the farm in the country for crates of yellow corn and white corn. The three girls and their dad would shuck and silk it and I would wash it and prepare it for the freezer. Great fun then and great memories now.
Christy, I think we will at least need a cow to make the cream for us, lol! : ) I’ve done this a few times growing up, although we used a bigger jar. My mom has also made butter using the mixer. It’s funny you posted this, because every time we’ve had heavy cream recently, I’ve wanted to turn it into butter!
Once you make butter what do you do wtih the whipping cream? I am sure there is some use for it.
I drink it
This is much better than the chore my family doled out; swatting flies for two cents each.
I remember doing this as a kid but I got to use a table churn. It was a large glass jug that had a screw on cap with a hand cranked mixer attached. It was tiring work but worth it at the end. Left over whipping cream has many uses:) Homemade fettucine alfredo, over oatmeal at breakfast, whipped up to use with fresh berries. I understand the whey is very nutritious and surely can be used in cooking. As for the fly swatting, got that duty, too, but never got paid to kill flies.
My mom has one of those churns too!
My mum-in-law also has one of those–I’ve been *seriously* tempted to ask her to borrow it (so I can clean it up and do some nice unsalted butter)
How did Mama keep us busy as kid—well, mowing the yard, pulling weeds, hoeing vegetables, toting water to water stuff, picking peas, butterbeans, tomatoes or whatever needed picking, shelling said peas/beans, shucking and de-silking corn, feeding chickens, hanging out and taking in laundry, drawing water from the well, washing dishes, making beds, going to get watermelons out of the field and cutting them under the old shade tree, making homemade ice cream in the evening as a treat, sending me to the country store about 1/4 mile from the house on an errand, picking berries, watching the younger kids, making playhouses and mudpies, playing cowboys and Indians, helping pick cotton then jumping in it after it had been weighted, the list goes on…:)
Oh Kristy, you’ve made my day! After we met you at the Alabama Book Festival, we walked around looking at the old buildings. I commented to my sisters-in-law that I’d like to make butter. Frankly, they looked at me kind of funny:) My husband told me I couldn’t because I couldn’t get fresh milk. I have the churn, and my son has cows, but they’re not tame enough for me to milk:) My grandaughter will be visting this weekend. I think we’re gonna make some butter! Won’t my husand be surprised:))))
What a great idea!! I’m trying this out! Thanks
This is a neat way to do this. Mom used to show us how to make butter using a mixer. Brings back memories….I miss her.
Denise
Thanks for bringing back some of my favorite memories of making butter in a baby food jar as a 7 year old!
I helped my grandmother churn butter when I was a child, and wanted to make fresh butter a few weeks ago. THANK YOU for giving me the tools to do just that!! I didn’t get her churn and dasher (doubtless my uncles tossed them out as trash), but I do have her butter dishes and the ones HER mother gave to me! Thank you again…
I made the butter the same day it was posted! It is awesome and I will never be without it in my fridge! I didn’t add salt as we are not much for using salt and on toast….YUM, it is to die for! My Grandmother used to churn for both buttermilk and butter, but after a very few minutes, I had the same butter! THANK YOU THANK YOU. Thsi is by far the best food/cooking site I belong to. I love to cook and try new recipes and seem to be trying one on here often and so far, they just keep getting better and better!!
Thanks for this recipe – I think I’ll have my girl scout troop make some butter – maybe we could make some homemade bread too! Great idea!
Let me know how they like it Toni!!
This is so neat! I will definitely have to try it out
Can you create different variations, as well? like adding honey for honey butter? or garlic for a garlic butter spread on breadsticks? YUMMY! 
Thanks, Christy!
You sure can Stephanie, have fun experimenting!
this will be really neat for the kids to make at our family reunion and take home. Thanks for the idea
What a neat idea! I will be adding this to my children’s summer list of things to do.
me and my daughters made this today after a day at the water park they are so proud or themselves going to put it on crackers for supper to go with a grilled chicken salad thanks
I’ve not known how to do this before reading your post!! I had some left over heavy cream from the other day, so I made some last night. It was wonderful!
My parents and 2 sisters still live in Huntsville and we are planning to visit over the 4th weekend. I plan to show my young niece how to make real butter….nephews too if I can catch them. Thanks so much for your great recipes and ideas. I’ve made quite a few things from your site in the past few weeks. Love the Southern cooking. I was born in MA, and my parents are from the North, so I did not grow up with such wonderful southern cooking….even though I’ve been in the South for many years! You are AWESOME.
I just made this about 20mins ago using my mixer (it did all the work hehe) turned out awesome…much thanks, I probably will never buy premade again. I added my own salt perfectly…cannot wait to make scampi
how do you make it in a mixer? Although, I’m thinking that doing this while I work out to Jillian Michaels might be a help……???????
I did this every year I taught with my first graders. We made butter as part of the Friendship Soup we shared with the Kindergartners and parents at Thanksgiving. The kids loved it and it was such fun to share it with everyone else.
I made your homemade butter and it really works! I was so excited! Next time I think I will add honey to the butter for honey butter.
Isn’t it fun?! I am glad you enjoyed making your own fresh butter, let me know how your honey butter turns out!
I’m going to do this with my kids tomorrow! I know they’ll love it. My dad always made homemade, hand-churned ice cream in the summer. (He said electric machines couldn’t match the quality of hand-churned.) While he cranked the handle, we 3 kids would take turns sitting on top of the ice cream maker. Dad made that seem like the most important job in the ice cream making process, and we all wanted to help. I’m sure he just needed the extra weight on the machine to get better leverage, but we were too young to know that. It kept us busy for the entire time he made ice cream. Great memories!
What great memories!! Thank you for sharing!!
LOVE this recipe. I don’t buy butter in the store anymore. I buy a big container of cream and with a portion of the butter mix I make a great garlic and herb butter. It is awesome on top of potatoes or vegetables . Thanks Christy!
I can remember going to the farms around us and buying what we called whole fresh milk. Mom would put it in the fridge to get cold and the cream would rise to the top. Poured the cream off the top into another gallon jug. When we had enough cream, about 1/2 gallon or more, us 5 kids would take turns placing it between our knees as we sat on the floor watching I Love Lucy. We would rock our knees side to side as our way of shaking it. Mom would drain it and rinse it with cold water and of course Daddy ended up with his favorite drink. Buttermilk. Haven’t had this in years and can’t wait to get the whipping cream and do it your way. Thanks Christy!!!!
Thanks for sharing this–never got to experience this on a farm, but (of all things) in an AP classroom in elementary school where there was a strong emphasis that year on learning how pioneers did all sorts of things (we also ended up making a quilt and lye soap that year)…
Now I can share this with other folks
I’ve made this with my students (K-2nd grade) every year! It was especially fitting for our study of how states of matter (solid/liquid/gas) can be changed. One tip I read when researching the science behind how the butter-making process works… leave your cream out overnight before using it. (I did this with a sealed, not yet opened container. I wouldn’t do it with one already opened.)
The science of it is really interesting… I don’t know if I’m able to post links here but I’ll try! http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/2008/06/29/kramp-3/
Enjoy!
Love the site BTW… I’d never had corn relish before but now I’m hooked!
Thanks so much! Have never seen your site – but I just came back from the grocery store and was so mad that a pound of butter was 4.35!! I googled “How to make butter without a cow” and your site came up
) I hope I can find whipping cream on sale. I cannot wait to do this with my homeschooled son. I know this is an older post but I wanted you to know you made my day. We will all have to learn to do some things the old way if grocery prices keep climbing! Many blessings to you and yours -
Welcome to SouthernPlate Sharon!!! I am so happy that you found me and I can’t wait to get to know you better. Enjoy the homemade butter and blessings to you!!!
I just made some butter … so coool!! Was about to throw away some leftover whipping cream and you came into my head and said, don’t throw that cream away, make butter. LOL It was good on toast with blackberry preserves.
[...] I make my own butter in a very non-traditional way, so I’m going to tell you to click *here* to access a traditional recipe. All you need is heavy whipping cream, a jar, and [...]
When I saw this post, I was thrilled. It gave me an idea of how to have my fiancee’s daughter help with dinner as she is always asking if she can. I have made this before, as an adult, a friend showed me how to make it and I LOVED it.
As for staying busy as a child, my grandma used to make green beans from raw ones at the store. She would buy them and bring them home and I loved snapping them into the pieces she would cook. That kept me busy busy. I also was allowed to peel potatos and remove the corn husks. In this day and age with both of us working, it is almost impossible to have “normal” home cooked meals, although I think we manage pretty well. This is just a reminder of how the kiddos can help in the kitchen and spend time with them.
Just saw the Paula Deen show and loved the cake recipe!!!!
Oh I LIKE this …. If my niece and nephew were going to be with us for Thanksgiving (its their dad’s turn) I’d be making them do this one for sure. I bet gram and gramps would enjoy seeing them do this
Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I’m supposed to make dessert (calling for butter) for a meeting tonight but I’m studying abroad and didn’t have access to butter – but happened to have cream
Ms.Jordan;
Love your southern hospitality!
This is one of the most entertaining & informative websites I have ever seen!
I love your take on ADHD and I also like the idea behind this butter recipe…short sweet & to the point; just plain simple. That’s how I like things in my life. just a shame I wasn’t born south of the Mason/Dixon line.
[...] I make my own butter in a very non-traditional way, so I’m going to tell you to click *here* to access a traditional recipe. All you need is heavy whipping cream, a jar, and [...]
Can you add a little bit of oil to make it more spreadable?
i would start by just adding milk before it hardens. That should help
I am a former teacher. I always made this at our Thanksgiving feast. My students loved doing this. You need to do making ice-cream in a baggy.
When I taught Mission Friends we found a way to make butter once a year. The kids loved it! Made it in VBS also. Then the Mama’s called “You made butter! How do you do that?” Sent home recipes. Thanks Christy great memories.
This reminds me of the time my daughter was in the 3-year-old class at church. They did this activity. One of her friends explained it this way, “we shaked it and shaked it and then there was butter.” Then they ate the butter they made on saltines and this was their snack. Keeps preschoolers busy and fascinated with the world that God made.
I really love to do hearth or camp fire cooking and every time we cook outside, my niece and I make butter. I’ve not tried it but I’ve been told that it has a better flavor if you let the cream sit out overnight. Have you tried it like that?
I just love this Christy. I know all about shucking peas & butterbeans, creaming corn….and mudpies
. Our kids don’t know what they missed I’m sure. My favorite thing to do was ride our bikes (sometimes on my cousin’s
handlebars) up to the General Store & get a bottled coke and a Zero candybar. Doesn’t get much better
Some day I would love to meet you, I’m keeping eye out for visits close by. We live south of Atlanta.
What a great site. You and I have a lot in common. I could now and then never stop. I would stay in the kitchen long after the meal. When asked “what are you doing” I would say “just piddling”. I can always, and do find way to keep me busy, my Mom was the same way. She could cook, sew, make quilts craft, paint. I’m not that gifted. When I see something I like, I studied it and made one for myself. I just can’t stay still. My Mother always found things for me to do.
We had a wringer type washing machine, I was in charge of that. Washing, hanging on an outside line, folding, and putting them away. We were a family of 6, one was married. Granny was the one that always had peas, beans, corn and potatoes to put away. She had a chicken pen , that is were we got our eggs and chicken, she made the best chicken and dumplings.
Liked your post and keep them coming. Going to try the butter.
Thanks
I had some heavy cream that was in the fridge for about a week or two weeks before I emptied it and when I poured it out to dispose of it, there was butter in the bottom – it had just settled out. I guess that’s easier than shaking haha.
[...] used this recipe, which calls for two simple items: whipping cream and a mason [...]
I always let the cream sit out overnight . After the butter is made and dumped out in the colander, rinse with cold water. When I was a kid , my cousins lived out in the country and every summer I got to go spend a couple of weeks with them. I loved churning the butter and feeding the chickens. They loved to see me coming because it meant they had less chores !
What wonderful; memories!!!
This brings back such good memories of a simpler time in my life! I will be 67 next month and my sister and I love to talk on the phone (she lives 45 minutes away from me) and relive the good times and this butter recipe is something to add to our conversations. In addition, I was in Birmingham recently and picked up a little paper at UAB with a picture of the old rolling stores that I will treasure since they always came around when I visited my grandparents and I loved to examine everything they carried! Our children and grandchildren need these stories passed down to them and I so much appreciate what you’re doing Christy.
Awww, I love hearing that you and your sister are so close!!! I hope you love the butter and get to make it soon!!!