selecting a retail butter
 

I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).

Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
temperature.

Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it warms
to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring. It
also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?


--
Kim, Merritt Island, Florida 32952

selecting a retail butter
 

"Kim" > wrote in message
om...
> I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
> O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
>
> Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
> temperature.
>
> Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
warms
> to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring. It
> also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?


Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in the
amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit of
difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking. I
use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco and
Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html

selecting a retail butter
 

"Vox Humana" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Kim" > wrote in message
> om...
> > I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
> > O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> >
> > Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
> > temperature.
> >
> > Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> warms
> > to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
It
> > also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
>
>
> Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in
the
> amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit of
> difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking. I
> use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco and
> Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
>

Butter might be butter -- but Amish Butter tastes like butter of my
childhood. [I've churned a few, but not many -- my little arms wore out my
grandmother's patience ...]
I try to purchase it whenever I can, which is about 3-4 times a year when I
get to the market that sells it. It comes from Ohio.

I use the ordinary butters for baking, mostly Costco's different brands of
salted and unsalted. It still doesn't compare in taste to butters I remember
in Europe either in the 70's & 80's.

Dee

selecting a retail butter
 

"Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
...
>
> "Vox Humana" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > om...
> > > I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing
Land
> > > O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> > >
> > > Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at
room
> > > temperature.
> > >
> > > Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> > warms
> > > to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
> It
> > > also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> >
> >
> > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in
> the
> > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit
of
> > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
I
> > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
and
> > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> >
>
> Butter might be butter -- but Amish Butter tastes like butter of my
> childhood. [I've churned a few, but not many -- my little arms wore out
my
> grandmother's patience ...]
> I try to purchase it whenever I can, which is about 3-4 times a year when
I
> get to the market that sells it. It comes from Ohio.
>
> I use the ordinary butters for baking, mostly Costco's different brands of
> salted and unsalted. It still doesn't compare in taste to butters I
remember
> in Europe either in the 70's & 80's.

The USDA standards for butter are based in large part on differences in
taste. I agree that there are flavor differences from brand to brand. I
understood the OP's question to be more of a function one: that is, are
there differences in the melting profiles of various brands and does that
make a difference in the baked goods?

I live in SW Ohio and there are some Amish people in the vicinity. A small
farmer's market sells Amish baked goods close to my house. They must be
from a line of people with poor baking skills! I bought a pie once and it
was quite unimpressive. I have had Amish cheese from NE Ohio (Wayne County)
that was quite good. Where does your butter come from?

selecting a retail butter
 

On Mon, 01 Mar 2004 01:34:56 +0000, Vox Humana wrote:

> Butter is butter. [ ... ] I haven't noticed a bit of difference between
> brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking. I use Land 'o Lakes,
> store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco and Gordon Food
> Service. It's all the same to me.

I would agree to a point. If you're using butter in a cookie recipe or as
a binding agent for crumb pie crusts, I have yet to taste a difference. If
butter is part of the flavor you're going for, like in buttercream
frosting or certain candies, quality is noticeable.

I treat butter in similar ways to cinnamon. I'll use Cassia bark when the
cinnamon is one of many flavors. If the point of the taste is cinnamon,
I'll use real cinnamon for the extra boost of flavor. The exception to
this is in my doughnuts because, well, it's 2g in a recipe that makes 36
doughnuts so it's not like I'm gonna break the bank using Ceylon cinnamon.

--
-Brian James Macke
"In order to get that which you wish for, you must first get that which
builds it." -- Unknown

selecting a retail butter
 

"Vox Humana" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "Vox Humana" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > >
> > > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > > om...
> > > > I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing
> Land
> > > > O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> > > >
> > > > Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at
> room
> > > > temperature.
> > > >
> > > > Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as
it
> > > warms
> > > > to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow
coloring.
> > It
> > > > also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> > >
> > >
> > > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary
in
> > the
> > > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands
being
> > > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a
bit
> of
> > > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
> I
> > > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
> and
> > > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> > >
> >
> > Butter might be butter -- but Amish Butter tastes like butter of my
> > childhood. [I've churned a few, but not many -- my little arms wore out
> my
> > grandmother's patience ...]
> > I try to purchase it whenever I can, which is about 3-4 times a year
when
> I
> > get to the market that sells it. It comes from Ohio.
> >
> > I use the ordinary butters for baking, mostly Costco's different brands
of
> > salted and unsalted. It still doesn't compare in taste to butters I
> remember
> > in Europe either in the 70's & 80's.
>
> The USDA standards for butter are based in large part on differences in
> taste. I agree that there are flavor differences from brand to brand. I
> understood the OP's question to be more of a function one: that is, are
> there differences in the melting profiles of various brands and does that
> make a difference in the baked goods?
>
> I live in SW Ohio and there are some Amish people in the vicinity. A
small
> farmer's market sells Amish baked goods close to my house. They must be
> from a line of people with poor baking skills! I bought a pie once and it
> was quite unimpressive. I have had Amish cheese from NE Ohio (Wayne
County)
> that was quite good. Where does your butter come from?
>
>

I don't have the package right now, but as I recall, it is Madison, which is
Lake Co., but there are some Madisonville's, etc in Wayne County listed.

Years ago I visited the Amish in Ohio and they welcomed me into their homes
while I was looking for some quilts. The inside of the homes I saw was poor
compared to only one Amish home that I've visited in Lancaster. I love
their butter, but I oft wonder about it due to this observation. I live in
the Shenandoah Valley VA where there are a lot of Mennonites and a lot of
quilt making going on, but I've not seen any for sale that I would say was
good quality. I wonder sometimes if the 'good ole days' were that good.

I might add that I do use Horizon Organic Butter for the table when I run
out of the Amish butter and I cannot taste a difference in it from the
common butter brands.

Dee

selecting a retail butter
 

"Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
...
>

>
> I don't have the package right now, but as I recall, it is Madison, which
is
> Lake Co., but there are some Madisonville's, etc in Wayne County listed.
>
> Years ago I visited the Amish in Ohio and they welcomed me into their
homes
> while I was looking for some quilts. The inside of the homes I saw was
poor
> compared to only one Amish home that I've visited in Lancaster. I love
> their butter, but I oft wonder about it due to this observation. I live
in
> the Shenandoah Valley VA where there are a lot of Mennonites and a lot of
> quilt making going on, but I've not seen any for sale that I would say was
> good quality. I wonder sometimes if the 'good ole days' were that good.
>
> I might add that I do use Horizon Organic Butter for the table when I run
> out of the Amish butter and I cannot taste a difference in it from the
> common butter brands.


My sister lives in Lake County and I have been to Madison several times.
Madison is the home Bluestone Perennials
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/c...cgi/index.html, a very
well respected mail-order nursery specializing in perennials. It is a
quaint old town but I don't recall any Amish there. We have a Shar Pei that
came from a breeder (who also operates a large Shar Pei rescue) who lives on
a farm near Wooster, Ohio in Wayne County. (Not to be confused with
Waynesville near Dayton, Ohio which hosts the Sauerkraut Festival and was
featured on that "Cooking from Quilt Country" TV show several years ago.)
When we visit her, the back roads (she lives on a farm) always have a number
of horse drawn buggies. When you pass by groups of Amish near the roadside,
they always smile and wave. There are some Amish to the east of us in south
central Ohio as well.

I think that people romanticize their way of life a bit and are surprised to
see that they don't live in picturesque homes with high quality, handmade fu
rniture and museum quality quilts. I have heard a few people say that they
are not very clean. I suspect that rather than being dirty, instead they
sometimes live in worn (shabby but now sheik) homes and make do with things
that many would discard.

selecting a retail butter
 

"Vox Humana" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
> ...
> >
>
> >
> > I don't have the package right now, but as I recall, it is Madison,
which
> is
> > Lake Co., but there are some Madisonville's, etc in Wayne County listed.
> >
> > Years ago I visited the Amish in Ohio and they welcomed me into their
> homes
> > while I was looking for some quilts. The inside of the homes I saw was
> poor
> > compared to only one Amish home that I've visited in Lancaster. I love
> > their butter, but I oft wonder about it due to this observation. I live
> in
> > the Shenandoah Valley VA where there are a lot of Mennonites and a lot
of
> > quilt making going on, but I've not seen any for sale that I would say
was
> > good quality. I wonder sometimes if the 'good ole days' were that good.
> >
> > I might add that I do use Horizon Organic Butter for the table when I
run
> > out of the Amish butter and I cannot taste a difference in it from the
> > common butter brands.
>
>
> My sister lives in Lake County and I have been to Madison several times.
> Madison is the home Bluestone Perennials
> http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/c...cgi/index.html, a
very
> well respected mail-order nursery specializing in perennials. It is a
> quaint old town but I don't recall any Amish there. We have a Shar Pei
that
> came from a breeder (who also operates a large Shar Pei rescue) who lives
on
> a farm near Wooster, Ohio in Wayne County. (Not to be confused with
> Waynesville near Dayton, Ohio which hosts the Sauerkraut Festival and was
> featured on that "Cooking from Quilt Country" TV show several years ago.)
> When we visit her, the back roads (she lives on a farm) always have a
number
> of horse drawn buggies. When you pass by groups of Amish near the
roadside,
> they always smile and wave. There are some Amish to the east of us in
south
> central Ohio as well.
>
> I think that people romanticize their way of life a bit and are surprised
to
> see that they don't live in picturesque homes with high quality, handmade
fu
> rniture and museum quality quilts. I have heard a few people say that
they
> are not very clean. I suspect that rather than being dirty, instead they
> sometimes live in worn (shabby but now sheik) homes and make do with
things
> that many would discard.
>
>
Even tho I was born in Ohio, I don't know much about where all the towns
are located, but where I visited was probably closer to Athens, Ohio. I
have heard that (and this may be rumor) because of their slothfulness, that
they moved away from Lancaster. Perhaps it was that they didn't feel so
inclined to be as diligent. But I did find the homes a bit too unclean for
my taste and I am not a fastidious person. I can say this, there wasn't one
that didn't give me a smile.

Once when I was in Lancaster at a quilting show, I was lusting after a
Bernina sewing machine. A woman made a call for me and then gave me
instructions to go to an Amish farm where the woman of the house gave
(GAVE!) me a sewing machine to turn in towards a new Bernina near where I
live. No questions asked.

As for the Ohio butter, I will be buying some in April, so I'll let you know
where it is from.
Bye,
Dee

selecting a retail butter
 

Butter in Europe. That's called "terroir". It tastes different because of
what the cows eat. Chicken egg yolks are deeply darker in Italy than here in
the US, too. Again, it's what the animal eats, climate, et cetera. The same
goes for plants. Like, you can't take an old Pinot Noir vine from the chalky
soil of Burgundy, move it to the sandy soil in Florida, and get even close
to the same result. I'd bet that if you brought a cow from the US to Europe
that after awhile butter made from the transplant cow's milk would not taste
different from the local stuff.
As to a difference between Amish American and regular American butters, it
has to be the way the land is treated by the Amish (versus large
corporations' treatment), and perhaps hand-churning ina wooden churn has
some impact on texture (as opposed to chuning in HUGE stainless-steel
machines).

"Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
...
>
> "Vox Humana" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > om...
> > > I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing
Land
> > > O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> > >
> > > Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at
room
> > > temperature.
> > >
> > > Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> > warms
> > > to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
> It
> > > also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> >
> >
> > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in
> the
> > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit
of
> > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
I
> > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
and
> > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> >
>
> Butter might be butter -- but Amish Butter tastes like butter of my
> childhood. [I've churned a few, but not many -- my little arms wore out
my
> grandmother's patience ...]
> I try to purchase it whenever I can, which is about 3-4 times a year when
I
> get to the market that sells it. It comes from Ohio.
>
> I use the ordinary butters for baking, mostly Costco's different brands of
> salted and unsalted. It still doesn't compare in taste to butters I
remember
> in Europe either in the 70's & 80's.
>
> Dee
>
>
>
>
>

selecting a retail butter
 

Vox Humana wrote:
> "Kim" > wrote in message
> om...
>
>>I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
>>O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
>>
>>Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
>>temperature.
>>
>>Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
>
> warms
>
>>to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring. It
>>also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
>
>
>
> Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in the
> amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit of
> difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking. I
> use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco and
> Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
>
>
Butter isn't butter, there is butter and butter, some butter have
coloring added.

/Gabriel Wallden

selecting a retail butter
 

"Gabriel Wallden" > wrote in message
...
> Vox Humana wrote:
> > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > om...
> >
> >>I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
> >>O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> >>
> >>Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
> >>temperature.
> >>
> >>Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> >
> > warms
> >
> >>to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
It
> >>also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> >
> >
> >
> > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in
the
> > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit
of
> > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
I
> > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
and
> > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> >
> >
> Butter isn't butter, there is butter and butter, some butter have
> coloring added.

What physical differences (aside for taste which is accounted for in the
USDA grading system) in the final product could one expect from using one
brand over another? That is the essence of the OP's question.

selecting a retail butter
 

"Gabriel Wallden" > wrote in message
...
> Vox Humana wrote:
> > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > om...
> >
> >>I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing Land
> >>O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> >>
> >>Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at room
> >>temperature.
> >>
> >>Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> >
> > warms
> >
> >>to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
It
> >>also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> >
> >
> >
> > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary in
the
> > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands being
> > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a bit
of
> > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
I
> > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
and
> > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> >
> >
> Butter isn't butter, there is butter and butter, some butter have
> coloring added.
>
> /Gabriel Wallden

I believe I've given this opinion before, but will repeat myself if I have:
Butter I buy retail takes at least 3-4 times the length of time to melt in
the microwave as my Amish butter --
Vox Humana: the brand is "Amish Country" mfg. Minerva Dairy Inc., Minerva,
Ohio 44657 [I had previously stated erroneously where I 'thought' it was
mfg'd.

I use this Amish butter for two purposes, bread and butter & melting it for
white popcorn bought at an Mennonite store.

Dee
Dee

selecting a retail butter
 

"Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
...
>
> "Gabriel Wallden" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Vox Humana wrote:
> > > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > > om...
> > >
> > >>I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing
Land
> > >>O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> > >>
> > >>Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at
room
> > >>temperature.
> > >>
> > >>Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> > >
> > > warms
> > >
> > >>to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
> It
> > >>also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary
in
> the
> > > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands
being
> > > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a
bit
> of
> > > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
> I
> > > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
> and
> > > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> > >
> > >
> > Butter isn't butter, there is butter and butter, some butter have
> > coloring added.
> >
> > /Gabriel Wallden
>
> I believe I've given this opinion before, but will repeat myself if I
have:
> Butter I buy retail takes at least 3-4 times the length of time to melt in
> the microwave as my Amish butter --
> Vox Humana: the brand is "Amish Country" mfg. Minerva Dairy Inc., Minerva,
> Ohio 44657 [I had previously stated erroneously where I 'thought' it was
> mfg'd.
>
> I use this Amish butter for two purposes, bread and butter & melting it
for
> white popcorn bought at an Mennonite store.

I have been to Minerva many times but my visits were years ago. I pass
through the area every year or two. I should stop and check it out.

selecting a retail butter
 

"Dee Randall" <deedoveyatshenteldotnet> wrote in message
...
>
> "Gabriel Wallden" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Vox Humana wrote:
> > > "Kim" > wrote in message
> > > om...
> > >
> > >>I read the best baking butter is the firmest butter. I am comparing
Land
> > >>O'Lakes and Breyer's (?).
> > >>
> > >>Land O'Lakes has more yellow coloring and is ridgedly firm even at
room
> > >>temperature.
> > >>
> > >>Breyers seems to act more like a butter I recognize. It softens as it
> > >
> > > warms
> > >
> > >>to a really soft, oozy, consistancy. It also has less yellow coloring.
> It
> > >>also costs more. I Breyers better for baking?
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Butter is butter. It doesn't have coloring added. Butter does vary
in
> the
> > > amount of water it contains with some premium and imported brands
being
> > > lower in water and quite a bit more expensive. I haven't noticed a
bit
> of
> > > difference between brands of domestic butter when it comes to baking.
> I
> > > use Land 'o Lakes, store brands like Kroger's, and butter from Costco
> and
> > > Gordon Food Service. It's all the same to me. The US Department of
> > > Agriculture sets standards for butter. You can read all about it he
> > > http://webexhibits.org/butter/grades.html
> > >
> > >
> > Butter isn't butter, there is butter and butter, some butter have
> > coloring added.
> >
> > /Gabriel Wallden
>
> I believe I've given this opinion before, but will repeat myself if I
have:
> Butter I buy retail takes at least 3-4 times the length of time to melt in
> the microwave as my Amish butter --
> Vox Humana: the brand is "Amish Country" mfg. Minerva Dairy Inc., Minerva,
> Ohio 44657 [I had previously stated erroneously where I 'thought' it was
> mfg'd.
>
> I use this Amish butter for two purposes, bread and butter & melting it
for
> white popcorn bought at an Mennonite store.
>
> Dee
> Dee
>

As soon as butter hit $5 per lb. at the supermarket, I switched to the local
restaurant purveyor at $2.65 per lb. The no name unsalted butter is
indistinguishable from what is available at the supermarket. Hope this
helps.

Fred
The Good Gourmet
http://www.thegoodgourmet.com