We are not Shedding you: this is our richest, creamiest episode yet. It’s a Country Crockload of buttery goodness, featuring a rigorous butter taste test and some trenchant observations that will get us banned from Iceland. www.spilledmilkpodcast.com
April 14, 2011
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I commute from Ise to Tsu every day and have been passing the time by listening to all your shows. Glad to have a new release for the ride home.
This was so great. We’ve gotten really into butter lately as my 20 month old daughter has taken to taking the block of butter out of the fridge, unwrapping it and and snacking on it! I’ve tried it and it tastes like unsweetened ice cream. Thanks for another episode that makes me laugh out loud.
Thank you for, once again, making me attempt to stifle my laughter in the office, causing me to snort unattractively. I recall being obsessed with peanut butter and butter sandwiches as a child, in which I spread just as much butter on the sandwich as peanut butter. I also remember the day I made one and thought it was disgusting. (It is quite possible that by “butter” I mean shedd spread… but I think I’ve blocked out the memory)
the nordic region seems to be getting quite the spotlight on spilled milk as of late, yay for icelandic butter. and i’m with molly too, skyr is great! i think i need to try me some smjör.
Any recommendations for something comparable to creamerie classique that is available in Southern California? Love the show!
I’ve had mixed results with Straus Family Creamery. Sometimes it’s stale by the time it gets to us in Seattle, but you should give it a try. Other than that, go to Whole Foods or the like and see what they’ve got, or maybe ask on Chowhound. And let us know what you come up with!
I always use Kerry Gold when I’m making Molly’s Changing Hearts and Minds cake. It’s the richest butter I can find nearby. Of course the recipe takes one less ounce than the package comes in, so there’s a ounce left over for making really good toast.
As for the vikings…check out the crocheted viking at http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2011/04/crocheted_viking_costume.html
I was just reading about what constitutes as “Natural Flavorings” in Barry Glassner’s book “The Gospel of Food.” Apparently “with natural flavors” still means chemical additives, just additives that have not been derived specifically from petroleum. So for instance, a vanilla extract can still be marketed as “Natural” even if the flavor comes from a chemical additive that scientists artificially derive from a pile of hot, moist FDA-approved wood pulp. Yum!
I’m a little obsessed with Iceland and I think their dairy is great. Where did you buy the Icelandic butter? And where can you buy the Cremerie Classic? I looked it up but it looked like it’s only in Portland, but obviously not.
I live in Vancouver BC and usually buy Trader Joe’s butter for cooking and Kerrygold (at Trader Joe’s) for eating, but I could change it up.
PS- Can you buy skyr in Seattle?!
Loved the show, love butter. The flavor differences also have to do with the fact you were tasting two different types of butter–”sweet cream”, most often found in the US and “cultured butter” such as most European butters like Plugra. Cultured butter is made from slightly fermented cream. Sweet cream butter is made from fresh cream. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butter
I just finished up culinary school in December and this reminded me of a classmate’s presentation on butter. He brought a bunch of samples in and we tried them all. I don’t know what it was, the in-your-face-flavour or the hyper-saltiness, but I was oohing and aahing over the “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter” – until I found out it wasn’t butter. Oops! How embarrassing!
Great show!
I’m a little behind on the podcasts, but I’m sure my fellow commuters today were wondering why I was smiling so much. Funny stuff! (I am a Cabot/Kerrygold fan myself.)
When we were in Iceland, we not only giggled that the Icelandic word for butter sounded so close to ‘smear,’ but also at the Icelandic word for milk: ‘mjólk’.
There were a lot of ‘Honey, we’re out of mjólk’ jokes thrown around.
If you’re ever in Maine, I highly recommend that you buy some Kate’s Butter. The best I’ve ever had. Great on bread with a rich cheese on top. Trust me. If only I could buy it in Georgia! http://www.kateshomemadebutter.com/
Love the podcast!
Catching up here. I love unsalted butter just for its cool creaminess.
Here is an activity for your daughter: whip up cream, but with a twist.
The first time do it when it is very cold, and you can add a little bit of sugar and vanilla. Then the next time do it when it is at room temperature. It then turns into butter and real buttermilk.
This is something that occurred by accident when I first tried to whip cream at around age eight or so. It was fascinating, and yet still quite yummy.