Butter me up!

Churn your own wild garlic and nettle butter

A friend and former colleague told me that making your own butter is a game changer for the ardent foodies of the world - and how right he is. He is a bit of an expert in the world of ‘grow your own, brew your own, forage your own’ and he puts a lovely Italian twist on everything he does.

Making my own butter really is one of the best things that I do. I have two methods, one using a butter churner, which is quick, easy and efficient. The second is equally so and is the hand churned method. I love this method because the only kitchen tool used is your hand and it is basically as follows:

• Source the freshest double cream possible and place it in a decent sized earthenware or glass bowl. Working with the cream at room temperature will speed up the process

• Have a second bowl of cold water ready for a later stage in your butter making

• Use the fingers of one hand in a claw like position, beat or whisk the cream with your fingers. After a few minutes, depending on the quantity of cream being used, it will thicken

• Keep going and after a few more minutes the thickened cream will go quite grainy in texture - this is the best bit! 

• Suddenly the buttermilk will separate and you will have the butter solids forming

• Pour off the buttermilk and reserve this

• Form the butter into a block and wash it in the second bowl of cold water. Press and ‘fold’ the butter block to remove all the last droplets of buttermilk trapped in the block. It is the buttermilk that makes butter turn rancid, so give this stage a bit of attention

• Using two paddles or wooden spatulas shape and reshape the butter on a wooden board or ceramic plate. For an even better finish find two nice pieces of flatten driftwood from one of your walks, clean them up well and use these as your paddles! You can add salt at this stage if you wish. Just sprinkle a little on as you shape the butter, although my French friend is less than happy about salting butter 

The buttermilk can be used in many different ways and is best used sooner than later. I like to use it in baking Dorset Apple cake. It is also great in pancake and Yorkshire pudding dough or even added to pan fried chicken.

You can then chill the butter and use it as it is.

Alternatively, follow one or a combination of the suggestions below. 

1. Collect and blanch a handful of young and tender nettle leaves. Pick a handful of wild garlic leaves. This best done before the garlic starts to flower. Soften the butter gently, chop all the leaves roughly and combine with the butter. Shape the butter and then refrigerate for an hour before using.

2. Collect petals of dandelion and daisy or other edible garden flowers and combine these with the softened butter. Then refrigerate as above. You can experiment with a whole range of garden flowers such as the petals of rose, fuchsia, nasturtium, cornflower and a whole array of veg plot flowers. I also like to use herb flower petals such as borage, lavender, thyme, rosemary and lemon verbena.

Mixing the colours will make you a truly wonderful forager’s butter. What better way to have with freshly picked crab on toast, with hot smoked mackerel pate or with a platter of cold smoked salmon and homemade soft cheeses than with your very own floral or herby butter.  Mouth-watering! 

The wild garlic pictured above was picked near Houns Tout, in March, on a walk from Swyre Head via Kimmeridge Bay. The tender young nettles are from the garden. 

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