Shake Shake Shake...Shake Shake Shake...Shake Your BUTTER!!

What do all of these phrases have in common?

Peanut _ _ _ _ _ _
Apple _ _ _ _ _ _(or other fruit)
_ _ _ _ _ _ Pecan
_ _ _ _ _ _ Brickle
_ _ _ _ _ _ Milk
Famous NY Restaurant (also in Chicago) _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _Cream frosting

If you answered B U T T E R, give yourself a "pat" on the back!  (Maybe not literally.....).  Butter is such an integral part of our lives that we see it everywhere.

One of my favorite memories as a child was of making butter in my Kindergarten class.  I was so excited when my teacher, Miss Simmons, told us that we would be "making butter."  My five-year old mind thought we would be working the churn like the pioneers did--after a quick field trip to the farm to milk the cow and bringing the milk bucket back to class. 

Photo Credit: ImageryandArt.com

 But no, she had an easier and more child-labor friendly way in mind.  We were amazed when she pulled out the pint of heavy cream and a simple mason jar.  She explained that we would sit in our "duck-duck goose" circle and pass the jar around, shaking it as vigorously as we could and after some time we would have butter(I distinctly remember her telling us that we would have to be patient, it takes a long time.  She knew her class well!).  She poured the white cream into the jar, screwed the top on securely, and handed it to my first classmate.  After several passes, we realized how much fun our turn could be.  The boys challenged themselves to shaking until they were red in the face, and the girls were a bit more delicate with it.  We all had fun, and after about three passes around the circle, we began to see solid chunks forming in the liquid. 
That gave my class even more incentive to continue.  It's funny how quiet 20 five year olds can be when they see the fruits of their combined labor working to create something they could.........eat!

When we finished, it looked something like this:

Photo Credit: Grit.com

Our teacher pulled out a loaf of white bread so we could take turns spreading our real, homemade butter on our piece to sample our handiwork.  It was so fresh!
Thankfully today, all we have to do is go to our local supermarket to buy the ready-made butter to use in our favorite recipes.  These are photos I snapped in my neighborhood stores:

*When you buy butter, you are probably supporting America's dairy farmers!

Some of my favorite buttery creations include:
http://allrecipes.com/Cook/jrbaker/Photo.aspx?photoID=270663


http://allrecipes.com/PersonalRecipe/62789942/Vanilla-Bean-Birthday-Cupcake-Frosting/Detail.aspx


http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pistachio-Crusted-Chicken-Breasts-with-Sun-dried-Cherry-and-Orange-Sauce/Detail.aspx


http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Garlic-Bread-Fantastique/Detail.aspx


and

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pizza-Without-the-Red-Sauce/Detail.aspx

For more information about BUTTER and additional recipes,

visit the amazing butter bloggers at:

http://goboldwithbutter.supranet.net/

I'll end with this quote about everyone's favorite ingredient:

"Eat butter first, and eat it last,

and live till a hundred years be past."
--Old Dutch proverb

I'd love to hear about your favorite butter memories, or recipes you like to make with it!