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Hello all!
I finally got a cream separator and so with the cream I know have a tried making light sour cream (with the recipe from this board) and it was a complete flop (using Dexter cow cream). It didn't thicken, and taste (terrible) just like cream. Any idea what happened? Also I know store and homemade products are very different but how do the manufacturers get their sour cream so light and whipped?

Thanks for any info!

If you are using "light" cream, you are going to get thinner sour cream. I believe you can adjust your cream separator to give you higher fat content. The higher the fat content, the thicker the sour cream.  Also, it will firm up a bit in the fridge.

When I make sour cream, I skim the thickest cream off the top of my jars. Usually the jars have sat in the fridge undisturbed for 2-4 days so the cream really rises and gets very thick on top. Put the cream in a clean jar, add a bit (I don't measure to be honest.....perhaps 1 tablespoon per quart of cream) of good tasting/smelling buttermilk, cap it, shake, and leave at room temp until it is thickened. It will be even thicker when chilled.

If you have a food processor with a dough blade or a mixer w/whisk attachment, put the cold sour cream from the fridge straight in. Process it until it becomes thick and fluffy.....like whipped cream only thicker. Don't go too far or you will have butter. But butter takes a long time with cold sour cream so don't worry too much.

Now REALLY good tasting sour cream is made with one of the aroma type cultures you can purchase. I can eat this by the spoonful!

Let us know how it works out!

Kristin

Thanks for sharing your method, Kristin.  One of my goals for my cow's next lactation was to make good sour cream - now I know how!

You know, Karen, I use this same cream for butter. With 2 cows, I'm always making butter. Consequently, there's always sour cream available.

And it was Johann's idea about "fluffing" it with the food processor. I can't take the credit. But if you think about it, to make whipped cream, the cream must be really cold. So to make whipped sour cream, it must be really cold.

Regardless of the whipping or not, it is all delicious!

Yeah, I don't care for cultured butter...but the sour cream sounds wonderful.  I never thought of whipping it, though.

I use my food processor to make butter all the time.  It can make butter in 3 minutes flat at the right time in her lactation.

Kristin -

I will be trying this recipe for sour cream the next time I mae parmesan (that's when skim my milk). I have never seen a sour cream recipe that wasn't cooked and this looks so simple. Thanks for posting it.

I have just tried Kristin's method and all I got was a big jug of thick cream    It doesn't really have any of that nice sour cream flavour & is just like eating slightly tangy thick cream.

Would it be best to use some cultures to try and get a better flavour in it??

Muffet,
How long did you set your cream out and how warm was your house?  If it isn't warm enough, the cultures will grow really slowly.  also, you will want to cover it with a tea towel or other permeable cloth so the cultures can breathe.

I use the top of my refrigerator for projects like this from October to April, as the countertop isn't warm enough to culture things well during the cooler months.

Miss Muffet,

If you are going for the same flavor I love in sour cream, I really find using the Flora Danica or Aroma Type cultures to give the best flavor and to be closest to what you are used to from a company like Daisy. You may not get the same flavors with homemade sour cream or even store bought buttermilk although I like those too. Of course, if it is made from cream, I like it. 

My cream sat out for just over 24 hours.  I was beginning to think that nothing was happening at all then all of a sudden it thickened. It also continued to thicken in the fridge.  The container had a cloth over it whilst on the bench but has been covered in cling film in the fridge.  My house is not too cool at the moment.  32C here yesterday so the house is sitting in the low 20's at the moment. 

I made this late last week and tasted some today.  It had a really harsh back note to it that was unpleasant to consume.  Any ideas what may have caused this??  It wasn't so much sour as bitter.  I ended up throwing it out.

I am going to give this another go tomorrow and another culture instead.  tnsven, I see a small shopping spree in my future.  I don't have any Flora Danica