The Return Of Buttermilk

Buttermilk was one of the staples of American cooking and life.It represented a homespun era in our history.It was also a rich drink , full of a tart , buttery flavor that people craved. Luckily it's coming back and retaining that farm fresh goodness.

It was the feature of this week's New York Times Dining section. The piece written by Dining regular , Julia Moskin, tells about how buttermilk is made and who is selling it. There are also some great recipes too. Buttermilk is just the milk leftover when butter is churned. There are tiny blobs of butter floating in it giving it its' tangy taste and buttery aftertaste.This is due to the chemical reaction or diacetyl which gives melted butter that distinctive, seductive aroma. Buttermilk was commonplace in both 19th and 20th century America. The South practically lived on it and used it frequently in baking, For those who have never had it ,  it kind of is a liquidy creme fraiche . Buttermilk is also an excellent baking ingredient because it bonds so well with flour and glutens.

Buttermilk , straight off the farm should be bought at farmer's markets or Whole Foods Groceries. Anything else is really not a good representative of it.Some independent dairies such as Cruze's Dairy Farm out of Knoxville TN have taken it to new levels. They sell flavored varieties such as fig and strawberry along with buttermilk ice cream in hipster flavors such as lime cardamon and salty caramel. Buttermilk also keeps well too. It can be unrefrigerated and won't turn sour. There are natural cultures in it, picked up from the usually nonsterile wooden churn.These would start a fermentation process, thickening and preserving the milk, along with souring without spoiling it.This is accomplished by lacto bacilli, the same microbes found i yogurt, sour cream and creme fraiche.

Buttermilk is making a comeback and in a big way. If you haven't tried it before ,do so now.It's a pleasant reminder of our past and a powerful  player in tomorrow's food trends.