Buttermilk

 Recently I have been receiving many requests for buttermilk from our customers, which has prompted me to do some more research into the making of it and the story of it. I have always known that buttermilk is more popular in the South than it is up here in New England. Down south people drink it and use it all the time; whereas, up here most people just use it when called for in a recipe. Those that consume buttermilk regularly claim that it more beneficial to your health than any vitamin or specialty product out there. It will smooth your skin, cure any stomach problem, keep you calm and all sorts of things.

 Real buttermilk is the fluid that is left over when butter is made. The tartness comes the lactic acid in the milk caused by the fermenting of the lactose sugars and the thickness is from the breakdown of the proteins. In South America and in India buttermilk is milk that has begun to sour after being left out and not refrigerated. The buttermilk that is found in the grocery store is cultured  buttermilk that has lactic acid added to it and often coloring to resemble flecks of butter. 

 My problem is that I will never uses a whole quart of buttermilk before it goes bad and I feel really bad when I waste food. My grandmother, Baba,  had always told me that you could just add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup of  whole or lowfat milk and let it sit on the counter for five or so minutes and you could use that as a substitute for buttermilk. Recently I was making breakfast and wanted to make buttermilk pancakes but, did not want to go out and get some buttermilk just for the one dish. So, I decided to give Baba's trick a try. Well after one phone call and a bit of patience (just five minutes) I had made my very own buttermilk without having to run to the store or think of what i could make for the rest of the week using the rest of the buttermilk. My buttermilk however did still did not have the same tanginess that real buttermilk has yet it worked well for me.