Butter Making

[wheels]

It's hard to answer as you can appreciate. I think I would wash it with iced water to try and firm it up, rather than put it in the fridge.

Phil

[Mike D]

When I do mine, it is quite soft, and as I make mine in a food processor I wash it in there too. I just keep putting clean water in and giving it a blitz and until no more butter milk come out - this also keeps the butter cold too, then finally I turn it out and bash it about a bit with a couple of wooden spatulas. I then freeze most of it.

I've never used Asda cream, it is usually Morrisons or Tesco, and IIRC Morrisons gave a better yield - with both butter and cheese.

[jillsouthern]

Hi to you all,
Me again!
Having a go at bread now got the basic hang of butter. Tried twice and followed instructions on Allinson's bread flour bag but even though it rises when proving it doesn't rise any more when baked. It comes out like lead and doughy inside. Suggestions please???
Jill

[Mike D]

Hi Jill,

Good to hear that the butter making has got better...

Are you using a breadmachine or doing it by hand??

I make my own bread all the time now, and I use the breadmachine to mix the ingredients, but the rest I do manually. I kept turning out a succession of bricks until I did a recipe posted on here by Phil aka "wheels". This has got to be the best and easiest bread recipe about...I couldn't find it on the forum, but here is a link to Phil's blog and the recipe

http://www.localfoodheroes.co.uk/weblog/pivot/entry.php?id=368&w=my_weblog

I use Phil's recipe and add some bread improver to it. I do about three loaves a week and I have never had brick since!

There are others on here much more knowledgeable than I, who can pinpoint the cause of the problem - they will possibly be along later!

[realcoolchris]

There are several possible reasons why this may happen but without knowing the recipe or how you made the dough, it's hard to tell what went wrong.

Normally, you allow the dough to roughly double in bulk, knock it back, form your loaf and then let it rise again before baking.

It is possible to over-prove a loaf which causes the internal structure to disintegrate and lose the trapped gasses which would expand in the hot oven and cause the loaf to rise.

Add some vitamin C to the flour, a crushed up tablet will do, and this will strengthen the gluten, which is what forms the structure of the loaf.

Possibly your oven is not hot enough: I would use a minimum temp of 220 deg C for the first 20 mins of baking the loaf; then reduce to 200 C till cooked. But oven temperatures need to be measured; the thermostat is often not accurate. My top oven runs 30 deg C cooler than indicated, so I have to adjust it. An oven thermometer costs around £5 and is a worthwhile investment.

Whilst heating the oven, keep a baking sheet on the shelf and then put your loaf, on its own tray, onto this. The immediate heat transfer will help the rise.

The time of baking needs to be 35 min upwards for a 1 Kg loaf: it's done when it sounds hollow if you rap it on the bottom.

Hopefully, some of these ideas will help for the next loaf.

I'd use this loaf to make a bread & butter pudding: it sounds to me as though it would be just right for that.

[jillsouthern]

Dear All,
Very many thanks for your advices.
I am hoping to have another go later today and will use the different receipe and take on board your comments.
I am trying to do everything by hand, butter, bread and cheese etc as my partner and I are hoping to buy a place with land to become as self sufficient as possible including power, so the more I can do in a traditional way the better.

Once again many thanks, fingers crossed for my next attempt, I'll keep you all posted.
jill

[captain wassname]

Hi I get the impression that its best to use cream for buttermaking as close to the use by date as poss. Is this so?

Jim

[Mike D]

I don't know the answer to that one Jim.

I just get a load for the right money when I can and just make & freeze it, I've never paid any attention to the use by date

[captain wassname]

Cheers Mike Ill get on with the making.I probably got my impression because most of us wait till its reduced due to short date

[wheels]

In traditional butter-making the cream from maybe a weeks milkings was kept then churned giving a naturally soured product to work with. This was of course before pasteurisation, but there is a strong argument that cream at it's sell by date will imitate this.

Phil

[Mike D]

Jim,

I end up getting 600ml cartons of dbl cream from Tesco for £1.67-ish and I get around 12oz of butter from this.

[captain wassname]

Mike I know Im money in @ £1 per 600 ml,but being a tight sod Im looking to maximise my yield.
The expession turd skinning comes to mind.

Jim

[saucisson]

I'm in the same boat, sell by date is 27th of December and I want butter for Christmas day, I think I'll just go for it...

Dave

[captain wassname]

Ive got a couple so Ill go back on the 27th.Im thinking in terms of 50p,
I suppose the sad thing is its still more than they pay the farmer.
Jim

[Mike D]

One of my neighbours has a dairy herd and he get £0.24p per litre for milk.