On the top is a cube of standard butter; it's a premium brand, and it's what I've been using for the last few years.
Below that is fresh jersey butter. The color is so vivid it looks like cake frosting; it's really beautiful stuff.
I skimmed the cream off of yesterdays milking and used the stand mixer to make butter; took about 5 minutes, and what emerged is really, really nice. Since I'm used to salted butter I'm still working out how to salt to taste (you'll see some flakes of kosher salt on the surface of the jersey butter) but I don't think I'll be buying any more butter in the store. Ever.
I'm getting 4 gallons a day from her, and that's more milk than I can possibly consume, but it does allow me to start working with cheese making. I made a batch of fresh mozzarella cheese last night that is to die for; it is SO much better made with raw milk than pasteurized.
Jersey milk is pretty wonderful stuff.
On day 3 of milking she's settled down a little; she understands the routine, and it's the same every day, and practice and repetition will make it her new normal.
I am share-milking her with the calf; the calf gets part of her production, and we get part.
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5 comments:
That's some tasty looking butter, Bruce! I'm mighty jealous, I've never tasted any butter than didn't come from the supermarket.
When I was young and we had cows to milk we always gave them some dry food when we milked, the treat made milking a good thing and the cows produced better with the extra food. My dad milked about 18 to 20 cows bymhand twice a day. He was one of the hardest working and strongest man I have ever known.
That looks delicious! I've never had fresh-from-the-cow homemade butter. Have you used any of it yet? Eager to hear a taste report.
For what it's worth, I haven't bought salted butter in years! Got tired of stocking unsalted for baking and salted for cooking. It's simpler just to add a little extra salt when I'm cooking a savory dish with the unsalted butter...
I don't salt my butter. You can salt it to taste when you eat it if you want. Otherwise, I've heard 1 tsp Per quart of cream.
You are a trooper! Glad you're getting what you want, and it looks amazing.
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