What to do with 5 pounds of Amish butter

[Andy M.]

Salt does lower the freezing point of water so it remains liquid at 32ºF rather than ice. That's why we salt our roads when it snows. Salted foods may not get frozen hard at 32ºF but will still be preserved.

However, once a food is chilled to a certain temperature, the bacterial activity that causes spoilage has been stopped and will remain stopped until the food temp is raised to a higher temperature.

I keep pounds of both salted and unsalted butters in my freezer and never noticed a difference in freshness after prolonged storage.

 

[taxlady]

No. I'm not sure. It just doesn't make any sense logically to me.

Once butter is frozen, it's preserved. Done.

Both salted and unsalted butter freeze quite quickly in a modern freezer.

I can't imagine that unsalted keeps better in the freezer.

In the fridge or on the counter the salt matters more.

I wouldn't trust JoC for food science, so lets hope your sister can weigh in. If I have time later ill do some research

JoC was referring to periods of over six months. When I first read it, I thought it sounded so weird that I thought about it a lot. All the bits of food science I have read in JoC that I have bothered to check on have been correct.

Salt does lower the freezing point of water so it remains liquid at 32ºF rather than ice. That's why we salt our roads when it snows. Salted foods may not get frozen hard at 32ºF but will still be preserved.

However, once a food is chilled to a certain temperature, the bacterial activity that causes spoilage has been stopped and will remain stopped until the food temp is raised to a higher temperature.

I keep pounds of both salted and unsalted butters in my freezer and never noticed a difference in freshness after prolonged storage.

You make good points Andy. And if we are talking about a deep freezer with a temperature of 0 F (-18 C) water will freeze, whether there is salt in it or not.

 

[Steve Kroll]

Went shopping yesterday and the market had gotten in a shipment of 5 pound logs of Amish butter for $6. Very creamy and rich tasting. What to make, what to make?

Are you certain the butter is actually made by the Amish? I wouldn't be so sure. Take a look at this:

Amish Butter: Really?

I've also seen "Amish Country" or "Amish Style" on packaging here, but that doesn't carry any weight since there is no government standard that defines specific requirements for including the word "Amish" on the label. It might mean nothing more than the product was rolled into a log shape.

 

[jennyema]

JoC was referring to periods of over six months. When I first read it, I thought it sounded so weird that I thought about it a lot. All the bits of food science I have read in JoC that I have bothered to check on have been correct.



You make good points Andy. And if we are talking about a deep freezer with a temperature of 0 F (-18 C) water will freeze, whether there is salt in it or not.

Andy made my point much better that I did!

 

[Andy M.]

...You make good points Andy. And if we are talking about a deep freezer with a temperature of 0 F (-18 C) water will freeze, whether there is salt in it or not.

Water will freeze @ 32ºF where salted water won't. At 0ºF salted water will also freeze depending on the salt concentration. BUT, whether or not the salted water is solid ice, slush or liquid, it's still at 0ºF so it is preserved and will not spoil. Freezing isn't required for preservation, low temperature is.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Scones. As a bonus...THEY freeze well! If you are so inclined you can also use it to bake a butter crust pie. Crud, now I want pie...

 

[mysterychef]

How about some different compound butters with garlic or any fresh or dried herbs?

 

[sparrowgrass]

Addie, I am in cow country out here in MO, and I never heard of chemically treated hay. Almost all pasture raised cattle eat hay in the winter, because grass doesn't grow when it is cold outside.

Hay is just dried grass, the same grass that the cows eat all summer. One field is for grazing, one for pasture--sometimes farmers even cut hay and then pasture. No chemicals, unless you are talking about fertilizer, and the fertilizer is used on hayfields and pastures.

About 'Amish' butter--I leave my butter out on the counter in a covered container, all year round. The only butter I have ever had mold was labeled 'Amish'. May have been a bad batch, but I have been cautious about it ever since.

 

[Addie]

Addie, I am in cow country out here in MO, and I never heard of chemically treated hay. Almost all pasture raised cattle eat hay in the winter, because grass doesn't grow when it is cold outside.

Hay is just dried grass, the same grass that the cows eat all summer. One field is for grazing, one for pasture--sometimes farmers even cut hay and then pasture. No chemicals, unless you are talking about fertilizer, and the fertilizer is used on hayfields and pastures.

About 'Amish' butter--I leave my butter out on the counter in a covered container, all year round. The only butter I have ever had mold was labeled 'Amish'. May have been a bad batch, but I have been cautious about it ever since.

The Amish tend to let the cow patties do the fertilizing. They don't use chemicals in their fields.

 

[GotGarlic]

The Amish tend to let the cow patties do the fertilizing. They don't use chemicals in their fields.

Actually, most of them do: Do Amish use pesticides? Most Amish farms are not organic, and most Amish farmers use a variety of pesticides and fertilizers

Mad Cook, I think, as someone mentioned earlier, there is a "mystique" about the Amish and their lifestyle that makes some people assume that they live as if it were 1850. They don't. But the myth allows them to command higher prices for their goods. It's excellent marketing

 

[Zagut]

Great price for the butter.

What to do with it?

Toast, Cinnamon/Sugar toast, Cheese toast,
Garlic toast, Cookies, Heap on Baked Taters, and any way you normally use butter.

It freezes well so you can do that too.

The best thing to do with it is to enjoy it.

 

[Mad Cook]

How about some different compound butters with garlic or any fresh or dried herbs?

Anything with high levels of salt or garlic eg bacon or garlic butter freeze OK and are safe to eat (assuming all other factors are OK) but the flavours start to go off - not "off" as in contaminated but just less pleasant to taste. I think the recommended time for keeping bacon in the freezer, say, is one month. It won't do you any harm after this but the longer you keep it frozen after the recommended time the less it keeps its flavour. Garlic can get to taste quite nasty if the product it's in is kept too long in the freezer

Butter may be the same although I haven't noticed it much.

 

[Mad Cook]

The Amish do not treat their cows with hormones. And they are fed mostly grass, not chemically treated hay. So it makes their butter purer in the real sense. They do adhere to the laws of their State as to what the cows must be tested for before it can be sold to the public. Such as TB. And the milk or cream must be pasteurized also. But it is not ultra pasteurized. Ultra pasteurized is when it is pasteurized twice. I have no idea why, but it certainly kills the flavor of the product. Restaurants here do not use the ultra products. And you can really taste the difference.

Thanks, Addie. I thought it might be something like that. It probably makes the butter taste better too. Contented and healthy cows living as natural a life as is possible in captivity must produce better and more flavoursome milk and cream.

 

[cave76]

I know this is late----- but ghee (clarified butter) is one way to use up a lot of unsalted butter. Or if you ever buy more----- just send it to me. LOL