Oh I forgot … the NYTimes did a story this last week on a Knoxville-area buttermilk producer. Included several recipes: biscuits, chicken, and a cake:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/26/magazine/26food-t-000.html?_r=1&ref=dining
Holy crap, but that sounds delicious! Thanks also for the mango lassi recipe: I’ve been wondering for years how to make a mango lassi (obviously not wondering hard enough to actually research it), and my couple of attempts using yogurt didn’t work out too well.
Meatballs. Yes, meatballs. And they are AWESOME.
One and a half pounds of ground beef
8 oz of buttermilk
1/4 c. oregano
salt and pepper to taste (a teaspoon each maybe)
8 slices of whole wheat bread, torn into small pieces
Mix everything well, shape into balls, bake in the oven at 350 F for about 20 minutes or until they are no longer pink inside.
These freeze really well.
I have a recipe for nutmeg cake that will blow you away that calls for buttermilk.
BUt you don’t get to have it.
You can freeze all kinds of milk, including buttermilk, with little or no noticable degradation in quality, especially for the purposes of baking. So freeze the rest and you’ll have it whenever you need it!
OK, here ya go: Note, it’s mostly just a list of ingredients; it presupposes that you already know how to make bread.
1 package yeast (I buy yeast in bulk, so 2.5 teaspoons yeast)
3 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup grated cheese
Mix together, let rise, shape into loaf, let rise and bake at 400.
My husband and I began making this before we were married, in his apartment oven because the thermostat on mine was unreliable. We used regular milk soured with apple cider vinegar. I never made it with real buttermilk until quite recently, and it was a revelation. The flavor was tangy yet smooth, and it makes great toast.
We usually use shredded cheddar, but you can use almost any cheese. Put in a tablespoon of blue cheese for some zip, or a little asiago and spread with garlic butter.