Making Your Own Butter

I learned the coolest thing a couple of weeks ago.  How to make my own BUTTER! I'm a butter lover and so this was really an enlightening and joyous occasion for me! I caught a Rachael Ray episode which hosted the amazing Jacque Pepin teaching how to make homemade butter. You can watch him yourself here: Jacque Pepin Teaching the Basics.

But for a quick look at what I learned...Here you go!

 I use a full quart of Heavy Cream

a teaspoon of salt

and my food processor.

Put the cream and salt in your processor and turn it on. It should run for about 10-12 min.

 You won't need to stop the machine. I did just to show the stages it goes through as it magically changes from cream to butter.

It will start to resemble whipped cream.

 Then you'll see the texture turn to a more curdled appearance.

 Still going.... At this point you'll see two different consistencies, part buttermilk and the rest, BUTTER!!

Prepare the next step with a bowl, a mesh strainer, some paper towel, and plastic wrap. 

Using the strainer over the bowl, separate the butter from the buttermilk. 

 

 Dry of the butter as best as you can with the paper towel.

I suggest drying the whole amount a couple of times, then each portioned amount again before wrapping for storage. 

 Place 1/2 cup portions onto individual sheets of plastic wrap.

Look at how creamy and fluffy it is! It really is divine to taste. 

 Roll plastic wrap over and over until you reach the end and the butter is covered entirely.

 Grab the sides of the wrap and flip the butter to close off the ends.

For the $3.58 I spent on 1 quart of cream, I got from this batch: 1 & 1/2 cups of butter (1/2 cup more than the 1 lb. boxes from the store), 

and a little over 1 cup of buttermilk. I collect the buttermilk into a mason jar and use it for biscuits, pancakes, french toast egg/milk mixture, syrups, caramel, etc. Just about anything that buttermilk would make tastier!

I also get the joy of making something from scratch, and the pure delight of eating the fluffiest, creamiest, yummiest butter I've ever had!

The butter and buttermilk, at this point, is NOT pasteurized. I recommend keeping them both refrigerated. They should keep for about two weeks. 

A Small Change

As you can see above, I've added a few tabs to my blog, hoping to simplify.  I like to share my thoughts, processes, and progress on a variety of things here. In order to keep these thoughts semi-organized and easy to refer to, starting now, each post will continue to reside on the Home Page, but can be found by subject on the tabs as well.

Keeping on Track

I thought I'd make some observations and let everyone know how my current fitness plan is going. I'm two weeks in and so far things are going well.  Although Week 2 handed me some challenges that Week 1 was clear of, I'm still feeling great and optimistic about my workout schedule. See the post titled Healthy Life, Healthy Wife for more details on my exact program.

Week 1 - The workouts were fairly simple. I started to feel sore about day 3 and got really amped up about that.  I LOVE that sore feeling!  I found it easier to get my workout in first thing in the morning.  I first thought I'd get up early, but then I remembered... I'm NOT a morning person.  Instead, I get up the same time I always have and still make sure my kids' get ready for school and out the door on time. In between the "get dressed, finish your breakfast, brush your teeth" requests, I was doing reps! Then after my oldest is safely at school, I head into my office and hop on my eliptical machine to tackle the cardio portion of the daily goal. Showered and dressed by 10:30am, I'm ready for the rest of my day and my conscience is clear.

Week 2 - The workouts are much harder.  Those reps are adding up FAST! The cardio, a couple of times, feels like the longest 35 min. of my life. BUT... The sense of accomplishment and power over the mind is much greater than before.  I'm sore EVERYDAY, but again, not a negative!  My husband leaves for Seattle on Sunday, scheduled to return Friday evening.  The nights are longer since he is usually the one that gets up if a child needs help or comforting. Not this week, I'm on day/night 24 - 7 duty.  By Wednesday, I'm feeling really proud of myself for sticking with it even on the one morning my mind was screaming "NO!!!", but my body was cool with it.
Then Wednesday afternoon hits. I fall on my knee after I run about 5 blocks trying to catch my dog that loves to run away! OUCH!!! Instantly my knee swells and starts to bruise.  Thursday morning it hurts SO bad AND my children ALL have a fever.  Not happening today! Friday, still hurts and kids still sick. Again Not happening.
That brings us to today! With my hubby back home, and a day off for myself, I took my workout to the gym. I love that I can do this plan of mine either at the gym or my house. Because I missed a couple of days, I had to decide if I'd pick-up where I left off, or start where I was scheduled to be.  I decided to do the reps and cardio numbers meant for today. Plus a little extra, since my knee was feeling better and I had taken two rest days in a row.  The gym rocked and I loved it. 50 minutes of cardio, 135 leg reps, 220 core reps, and 110 arm reps. It felt GREAT! And I feel like I'm right on track.

Healthy LIFE, Happy WIFE! (and mom)

I would like to thank my friends Sarah Sperry and Heather Fryar for inviting me into their FB fitness communities and events. It has been a great source of mental and emotional support!

For the past several months I've been worrying about my fitness level.  Since my last race in September, anytime I run more than 2 miles, I've struggled with IT band issues. This causes frustrating but real knee pain. Making it difficult to want to run or even workout.  So here's what I'm going to do.  I need to build up some muscle strength, while keeping my IT band loose and un-strained.

Goal #1 - Be running without serious knee pain by my first race this spring.

Goal #2 - Consistency - A workout everyday except Sundays.

Goal #3 - Run at least 3-10k's and 1 half marathon this year.

Goal #4 - (Vanity Goal) Be bathing suit ready by February for our trip to the Dominican Republic.

Plan for #1 - Do IT band treatment exercises, recommended by my chiropractor, twice a day - EVERY day. Make an appointment with a PT and follow his instructions as well.

Plan for #4 – Go back to my “no eating! water only! after 8pm” rule. Snacking after the kids go to bed is my biggest enemy! No More!

Plan for #2, 3 & 4 - (I've already started and am doing great so far!) The key is to not look too far ahead and freak out. I just think to myself, “It’s only an extra 10 or 20 today”.

Here's what it looks like: (I didn't think to include cardio until the second day. Duh! Thus, the Fat GOOSE EGG! on day one.)

 

Day  in Jan.	Cardio (min)	Legs (reps)	Core (reps)	Arms (reps)	Notes
1-Tue	0	10	20	10	0 lbs, ball, girl
2-Wed	30	20	40	20	0 lbs, ball, girl
3-Thur	30	30	60	30	0 lbs, ball, girl
4-Fri	30	40	80	40	0 lbs, ball, girl
5-Sat	30	50	100	50	0 lbs, ball, girl
6-Sun	-	-	-	-	-
7-Mon	35	60	120	60	0 lbs, ball, girl
8-Tue	35	70	140	70	0 lbs, ball, girl
9-Wed	35	80	160	80	0 lbs, ball, girl
10-Thur	35	90	180	90	0 lbs, ball, girl
11-Fri	35	100	200	100	0 lbs, ball, girl
12-Sat	35	110	220	110	0 lbs, ball, girl
13-Sun	-	-	-	-	-
14-Mon	40	120	240	120	0 lbs, ball, girl
15-Tue	40	130	260	130	0 lbs, ball, girl
16-Wed	40	140	280	140	0 lbs, ball, girl
17-Thur	40	150	300	150	0 lbs, ball, girl
18-Fri	40	160	320	160	0 lbs, ball, girl
19-Sat	40	170	340	170	0 lbs, ball, girl
20-Sun	-	-	-	-	-
21-Mon	45	180	360	180	0 lbs, ball, girl
22-Tue	45	190	380	190	0 lbs, ball, girl
23-Wed	45	200	400	200	0 lbs, ball, girl
24-Thur	45	210	420	210	0 lbs, ball, girl
25-Fri	45	220	440	220	0 lbs, ball, girl
26-Sat	45	230	460	230	0 lbs, ball, girl
27-Sun	-	-	-	-	-
28-Mon	50	240	480	240	0 lbs, ball, girl
29-Tue	50	250	500	250	0 lbs, ball, girl
30-Wed	50	260	520	260	0 lbs, ball, girl
31-Thur	50	270	540	270	0 lbs, ball, girl

As the Minutes and Rep numbers increase, I mix up the movement for each area.  

Cardio - Eliptical, Running, Walking, Aerobics, Cycling, Chasing dog down the street because he doesn't know the word STAY!, etc. ;)

Legs – Squats, Plies, Lunges, etc.

Arms – Pushups, Pullups, Bicep/Tricep Curls, etc.

Core – Crunches (all variations), back bends, etc.

For instance: If my rep requirement for Arms is 60, I may do 20 each of three different movements, or 40 of one and 20 of another. It’s whatever I want. Doing a combination of movements with the higher number of reps needed for the daily goal, not only breaks up the monotony, but also gives each area a more thorough workout.

Under Notes:

lbs- I’m documenting how much weight I’m using. Each month I will start over with the Minutes and Reps, but add a small amount of weight, 3-5lbs, to each target area work out.

Ball- I do all my core exercises on an exercise ball if at home. At the gym, there are plenty of machines catered to the core. But if I can’t make it to the gym, I have an exercise ball at home that works great!

Girl- refers to the type of pushup I’m doing. Each month, in increments of 10, Regular pushups will replace Girl pushups.  (I’ve always wanted to be able to do tons of regular pushups and pullups)

I’m turning 34 this year.  I have a condition called Hashimoto’s, a Thyroid disorder that attacks my energy and immune system, among other things. It SUCKS the life out of me some days. But I’m not so bad that I HAVE to get hormone therapy and I’d like to keep it that way.

My best bet: to live as healthy as I can. Get myself as strong as I can. Do things I NEVER thought I could. And with the Lord's Blessings, I will make this year the healthiest and strongest year of my life. My family deserves it and I deserve it.