Yes, dear friends, it is feast or famine with these blog posts. BUT I JUST MADE CREME FRAICHE AND IT'S CHANGING MY WORLD... one creamy spoonful at a time.
To make, get a pint-sized mason (or ball... whatever) jar. If you don't have any, go buy a LOT of them. They are useful for making gifts, drinking out of (gin and tonics are our current beverage of choice), storing things, making pickles, etc.
When Ben and I first started canning, we asked family members for jars they weren't using, and I think we have somewhere around 100 jars, ranging in size from 4oz to 1G (64oz). Whoa... that was a big distraction from my main point, which is: CREME FRAICHE.
To make it, get a pint-sized mason jar (oh yeah, now I'm back on track).
Mix equal parts heavy whipping cream and sour cream (buying these two individually is usually cheaper than buying creme fraiche at the store). Since there are only two of us, I did 1/4c of each.
Shake in the jar to mix. Put the lid on and leave on the counter overnight. It will turn into an incredibly smooth, delicious treat that is slightly sweet and slightly tangy and dairy-delicious. Refridgerate after it's overnight adventure on the countertop.
It is about the consistency of... marshmallow creme, but Ben will eat this willingly, and he looks down his nose at me every winter when I come home all excited because I finally broke down and bought a jar of that stuff to put on my hot chocolate (but, let's be honest, I mostly eat it out of the container with a spoon). Did you know that marshmallow creme, which seems really nasty, doesn't have much in it except sugar, egg whites, and xanthan gum?
Back to the task at hand (again...).
What Should I Put it On?
I would eat it on shoe leather, but that's besides the point.
This afternoon, we ate it with fresh berries as a snack. I bought some golden raspberries and some mulberries at the farmer's market here (which is AWESOME), and arranged a layer of goldens around the bottom, followed by mulberries, and one golden in the center.
It is also a great topping for scones or biscuits, which are probably Ben's favorite breakfast food (and he doesn't really like breakfast).
My cookbook automatically opens to this page. I love Ben THAT much.
This is from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food
1 1/2c. APF (all purpose flour)
1/4t salt
4t sugar
2t baking powder
6T (3/4 stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces
3/4HWC (heavy whipping cream - the reason I wake up most mornings)
Set your oven to 350. Mix APF, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Add the butter and mix with your fingers (get your hands in there, and squeeze the butter pieces flat as you mix the flour into them) until the mixture is uniform. For the love of all things happy and holy, DO NOT use a pastry cutter. This is why God gave you hands, friends.
(for your reading pleasure, I have put my soapboxes in italics so you can either get to cooking or be entertained, or both, more easily) Most pastry cutters live in kitchen graveyard drawers and, when they're needed, it goes like this: "Honey, have you seen the pastry cutter?" "The what?" "Oh... must not have one... better go buy a new one..." until the unsuspecting couple has eighteen pastry cutters and can't figure out where to find their measuring cups. Tirade: done. Use your hands.
I will consent to let you pick up a wooden spoon for the next part: add the heavy cream into the flour/butter mixture. Stir it around until it gets really hard to stir. Flip the whole bowl upside down on the counter and smoosh it together with your fingers, kneading if you must to get the dough to come together. It might be a little lumpy and have jaggedy edges. Let it be. The more you work this dough, the less light it is when you bake it.
Cut the biscuits. I cut mine into squares because it is less messing with the dough. Circles are fine, but the more you touch the dough, again, the less light it will be after baking.
Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned.
Ben eats these WITH BUTTER ON TOP. It is absolutely appalling. There is already 3/4 stick of butter in here! As the one who typically gravitates towards fats and sugars in the relationship, I can't believe this man puts butter on - of all things - buttery biscuits. Have I mentioned we have trouble finding pants small enough to fit him? So perhaps this isn't so much appalling as it is amazing. Okay, okay, yes, I am totally a hypocrite: I was advocating for you putting creme fraiche on these. And I still do. Before you do the Ben-Butter method, do try these with creme fraiche. You won't be sad or sorry. I'm not either.
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