Butter has a rich multi-cultural and historical relevance. For children, however, butter is utterly delicious. It can be a treat by itself or simply enjoyed with bread. Many mothers today are worried about the fat content and shy away from butter for their kids.
I remember my mother and grandmother not being fat but healthy. The amount of physical work they could do, I am not so sure I or other women today can do. Their gym was their kitchen, pulling the ropes to spin the paddle and churn the butter apart from using a grinding stone to make tasty curries. Making pure, fresh, unadulterated food for their kids.
Every twice a week, I would wake up to the sound of the churning and the anticipation of a treat looking forward to not only the butter but also buttermilk during the summer. Some of the butter was also used to make ghee (clarified butter) which then enhanced the flavours of Indian breads and many vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.
So imagine in those good old days how much savings were there. The cream collected from the milk for 4-5 days, once set with milk and curd, gave fresh butter, buttermilk and ghee.
The learnings for me from then were zero waste, effective use of by products, use of slow cooking techniques, use of natural earthen pots and stone grinders as well as preparation of freshly prepared home food without preservatives and with love.
Neelima Widge
A Mother, Grandmother and an education consultant with Lotus learning.