Whenever you find a sale on REAL butter, go ahead and stock up. You can freeze butter or you can home-can it. Canned butter lasts for years if the seals are secure and it’s kept in a cool place. Always pressure can butter instead of water-bathing it. Butter is dairy and non-acidic so the water bath method will not stop botulism. Canning butter is so easy and the best type of jars to use are half-pint, wide-mouth jars. The wide mouth makes it easier to get the butter out of the jars and opening a half pint at a time is convenient for most families.
Ingredients
5 pkg unsalted butter
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
10-12 half pint jars, lids and rings
jar lifter and lid magnet or tongs
metal or plastic jar funnel
small dish of vinegar
several clean cloths
pressure canner and some knowledge of its use
pot for melting and boiling the butter
a ladle
pan for heating lids
Directions
1. Oven – set to 250* F – This is for heating the jars. You don’t have to heat your jars in the oven, but if you use water, you will need to dry out the jars before adding the melted butter. That’s kind of a pain, so put your jars on a baking sheet and put them in the oven set to 250*F for about 20 minutes before adding the butter.
2. Go ahead and put 3-4 inches of water in your pressure canner and bring up the heat.
3. Boiling butter: Put water in the pan to heat lid and rings, go ahead and bring the heat up under that as well. Put the butter in a heavy pot and melt it, bring it to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmer. Let the butter simmer for 10 minutes or so. You’re evaporating some of the moisture from the butter and getting it good and hot. Be sure to stir it and don’t allow any of the milk solids ( the little while particles) to burn and don’t let it boil over!
4. Once everything is good and hot, carefully take the jars out of the oven. Place the jars right side up on a clean dish cloth and place the canning funnel in the jars one at a time and fill the jars with hot butter, leaving a 1/2″ head space.
5. Using a clean cloth dipped in vinegar and then squeezed out, clean off the jar rims. Place lids and rings on each jar, tighten the rings just firmly but not hard.
6. Put the jars in the pressure canner that has 3-4 inches of hot water in it. I put in a couple of strategically placed clean dish cloths in case the little jars topple over. They can rattle against the sides and each other and break.
7. Half-pints of butter in the canner: Put the lid on the canner and fasten it down. Allow steam to flow out of the vent for about 10 minutes. Place the weight (at 10 pounds) or gauge (11 pounds) on the vent and when it reaches the correct pressure (when the weight begins to rattle) start timing.
