How to Make Butter in a Vitamix Blender

Today's post is all about how to make butter in a Vitamix blender! I purchase grass-fed, non-homogenized Jersey cow's milk from a local farm, so I always have this rich layer of cream at the top of my jar of milk. I skim some of this cream and use it to make homemade butter.

I am going to step you through how I make butter, being as detailed as possible so that I can include answers to questions that I had when I first began trying to make butter. I use my Vitamix blender to make butter, but check out the links at the end of this post to find additional resources for making butter using different methods.

Skim the cream

I pick up my milk from the farm in wide-mouth half-gallon glass jars. These jars are wonderful for skimming the cream from the top of the milk since I can fit a 1/4 cup dry measuring cup into the mouth of the jar and simply scoop the cream off the top and put it into another glass jar.

(If you are working with a smaller-mouthed jar and cannot fit a scoop into the jar, I suggest to either use a bulb baster to remove the cream, or to shake the cream back into the milk, pour it all into another container, and put it back into the refrigerator for a few hours until the cream has risen to the top again. Then, you can scoop out the cream as outlined above.)

You'll know when you are scooping into the milk, as the milk is a different consistency than the cream (the milk is much thinner) and will "swirl" into your measuring scoop, mixing with your cream. I almost always like to leave a little cream in with my milk, so just scoop as much cream from the top as you would like.

(I usually wait a couple of days after skimming my cream to whip it into butter. It is easier to whip, and I have had better success by waiting....see note below.*)

Make the butter

On the day I plan to make butter, I set my jar of cream on the counter 2 or 3 hours in advance. Bringing it to room temperature seems to ripen it a little more and helps it to whip more easily.

I have found that it works best to only whip 2-3 cups of cream at a time in my Vitamix. During this winter season, I'm getting about 1/2 cup of cream from each half-gallon of milk (and I'm still leaving some cream in with my milk), so the cream pictured here is the cream skimmed from 2 - 3 gallons of milk.

Pour the cream into the Vitamix and add salt to taste (1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon per cup of cream is a good rule of thumb if you prefer salted butter). Place lid on Vitamix.

Beginning at the lowest speed, slowly increase the Vitamix to the highest speed, watching the cream slosh and splash high in the container. Soon (usually within 30 seconds) the cream will "drop" a little and not splash so high; you can hear a change in the way the Vitamix is blending now.

Turn down the speed to a level 5 or 6, and use the tamper to begin pressing the cream into the blades. The butterfat should begin to separate, and continue to press the butterfat globules into the sloshing buttermilk for a few more seconds. (From the time that I turn the speed of my blender down to a level 5 or 6 until the butter is ready, this entire process usually only takes 30-60 seconds.)

Strain the butter

I use a fine-mesh sieve over a large bowl and pour the contents of the Vitamix into the sieve.

The liquid in the bowl under the sieve is buttermilk (not cultured -- just "whey" from the butter). Set aside for other uses.

Wash the butter

Using cold water, rinse the butter. I put a couple of ice cubes in my strainer while I am rinsing my butter to keep it from softening while I knead and press it with my spatula.

You want to "squeeze" out as much buttermilk as you can from the butter, as this will help your butter to last longer.

(Also, I either ensure that I have a very clean sink before doing this, or I put a bowl underneath where I am rinsing the butter. You don't want to lose that butter!, and if you were to let some escape into the sink, you want to be able to rescue it -- so a clean sink or a large bowl have been the best ways for me not to lose my butter.)

Store the butter

I like to shape my butter (using my hands or a small metal spatula) into a small loaf so that it fits on my rectangular butter dish. You can even weigh it to get exactly 4 ounces (half a cup of butter = 1 stick).

This butter stays fresh for about a week, so if I make more butter than we'll eat in a week, I freeze the extra by wrapping it in parchment paper and then wrapping it again in cling wrap. I write the date on the top with a Sharpie, and it's ready for the freezer!

Enjoy your butter!

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Hints, tips, and troubleshooting:

..After a few days, fresh cream gets a little "clumpy," so I like to skim it when the milk is only 1-3 days old. It's thick and rich, but it's still easy to work with.

..Using buttermilk: Lately, I haven't been culturing my buttermilk. We just use it in place of milk or water for baking, and my husband likes it on his oatmeal in the mornings. It is not sour yet! -- Think of it as leftover cream with the butterfat removed.

..*Sometimes my cream will whip right up into butter on the day I bring it home from the farm. Other times, when I have tried to whip it up immediately, I haven't had success and have to wait for my cream to ripen. I suggest letting your jar of skimmed cream ripen in the refrigerator for a couple of days before attempting to whip it into butter.

..If your cream just refuses to whip into butter, I suggest to repeat the high speed for about 30 seconds, and then turn it down to a level 5-6 again, pressing the butterfat into the blades of the Vitamix. The only times that this has not worked for me is when my cream is "new" and fresh. My advice is to re-refrigerate the cream, let it ripen there for a couple of days, and then bring it to room temperature and attempt to whip it again.

Resources and Links:

The science of butter-making.

Making butter in a Bosch mixer.

Making butter in a KitchenAid mixer.

Why grass-fed butterfat is really good for you!

Making cultured butter.

A short history on butter.

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Do you have tips and hints for making butter in a Vitamix? Do you make butter using other tools (mixer, blender, or churn)? I look forward to hearing about your ideas and experiences!

..This post is happily shared with the Homestead Barnhop #154..