Texas Longhorn Butter

Today I made Longhorn Butter for the first time. We have made plenty of butter from the Jersey milk we trade eggs for from "the milk ladies", but in the few months we have been milking the Longhorns, we have never gotten enough cream to make butter. We have been weaning the calves, so we have begun to milk the two Longhorns twice a day. Now we are getting anywhere from a gallon to 1 1/2 gallon of milk a day, and the amount of cream we are getting has increased. Our milk production is enough for us and for our pig that we are raising for meat.

So today I skimmed all the cream from the last 3 days into one 1 quart canning jar. Then I began shaking the jar and continued shaking it for about 35 minutes. Some people like to add salt before they begin shaking, and this does work, but Danielle likes to add the salt after she "washes" the butter.

As you shake the jar, and when the butter begins to "make" you will see that the cream gets thicker and takes on a yellower tint. You will see small "globules" begin to form and they will stick to the sides of the jar if you stop shaking it. Then it seems like the whole contents turns into the thickness and texture of a granular milk shake. This means you are close to being finished with the first part of the process. Continue shaking until the butter forms and floats in the jar, separated from the "butter milk" which has returned to it's whiteness in color. Strain off the buttermilk and take just the butter and put it into a bowl. begin to "work" the butter by smashing it against the side, then scraping it back up and forming it. Do this repeatedly and work out all the moisture. You will see a milky white liquid rise through the butter and you can continuously pour this moisture off. When you are done with the run off, pour some cool water over the butter and begin to "work" it again, folding in the cool water and working it through the butter. Again the milky white liquid (whey) will rise up and you can pour it off. Continue to do this until the runoff is clear, and has all been removed. Some people will do this process several times. When you are finished, you can add salt if you didn't add it earlier and if you like salted butter. Work the salt in really well, and then put the butter into whatever you would use as a "form". We made a 1/4 pound stick form out of mesquite, and Danielle uses wax paper or reused butter stick paper to wrap the butter. Refrigerate or freeze based on when you will need the butter, but it is useable immediately.

MB