Buttermilk is my New Best Friend

From the lightest of bakes to crispiest of crusts, Buttermilk has become an ally of mine this past week. An ingredient I have previously never given much time or thought to (mainly because it is in short supply in the supermarkets!) I was given the opportunity to try some fresh, local Buttermilk by the Stirling Food Assembly. Always keen for a foodie challenge I gladly accepted and then wondered, "hmmmm what the heck am I do to!?"

I browsed the interweb for some inspiration and also thought about the 'treat foods' I adore. As I stopped my mouth from watering all over my tablet I settled on 'scones' and 'wings'. Both appeared to benefit from the presence of buttermilk, accorrding to Google, and so after doing my usual 'read-five-recipes-and-do-the-bits-you-like-the-sound-of' I proceed to bake and to marinade. 

Now, as many of my friends and family will tell you, despite being 'pro scratch cooking',  I am an appalling baker. Simple bakes always end up a disaster with me (probably because of the methodology named above) and so I didn't hold high hopes for these Festive Fruit Scones. Similarly - I like a crispy skin to my wings, something I have only just perfected through a combination of boiling and baking so I wasn't yet prepared to trial deep fat frying. However, much to my amazement both experiments blew my socks off - something I put purely down the the buttermilk, and not my talent!

Buttermilk is a by-product of the butter making process and sadly much of it, these days, it's put to waste. This is because we aren't using it as much as our Grannies did when they were growing up. The slightly sour properties in buttermilk do something only a food scientist (which I am not) can probably explain and give another level of flavour, as well as a light and crisp texture. 

I'm pleased to say that my Local Food Assembly will be stocking Buttermilk in 2017 but only in limited supply so you must be quick to order! Go on give it a go, experiment one Sunday afternoon, and impress your loved ones when you take your Scratch Cooking to the next level! 

For full details, you can check out my Festive Fruit Scones and my Grill Master Buttermilk Wings by following the links. 

Enjoy! x