Gastronomy: Homemade Butter, Life's Simple Pleasures

High cholesterol be damned! I understand the need to cut back, eat healthy, and watch your intake, but it’s also important to live and appreciate the small beauties that life offers. Sometimes, the simplest of pleasures can be found in the humblest of places. In this instance, I’m talking butter. Not mass-produced, over-salted, sticks of trans-fat, but, rather, the creamy, lightly salted delicacy, that can be paired with a rustic piece of bread or a freshly-picked vegetable.

In less than 5 minutes time, my son and I whipped up a fresh batch of homemade butter. We served it on crackers with tomatoes and fresh herbs: An effortless act for a fanciful delight.

Homemade Butter
2 c heavy cream, organic or not ultra-pasteurized
Fine sea salt

Whirl cream in a food processor until it separates into buttermilk and clumps of butter. Keep processing until the butter forms into larger clumps, approximately 3 minutes.

Pour mixture into a strainer and let drain briefly. Squeeze butter to extract the remaining buttermilk.

In a clean bowl, add sea salt to taste.

Note, the extracted buttermilk can be saved to use in homemade baked goods. Yum!