Butter....milk????

When I got to this country I enjoy the most delicious scones I had  ever try in my life, so of course I asked for the recipe, everything looked normal to me until I got to the ingredient call Buttermilk??? Is this some kind of concoction out of milk and butter???? So I decide to investigate a little more, and found this is something in Venezuela we call Suero nothing else but soured milk... Well now I know what it was but I didn't have no even a drop of the dear liquid, since I had never use before for this kind of recipes but to eat with arepa, but that is another story.

So I decide to go and buy some, but there was the snow, and it was so cold outside that I decide to leave for a different day, but my sweet daughter decided she wants to eat the scones that day so she would ask our neighbor (since she was the one with the original scones and recipe) if she may have some buttermilk she may spare and so she went to the neighbor house and ask her to our surprise she came with a new recipe and apologize for not having buttermilk but explain to us how she never bought it because it was so easy to make your own.

So I gathered some different methods here remembering how my own gram mother used to make it...

The cultured buttermilk; I remember when my grams was running low on Suero she kept always the last cup of it and mix it with a liter of fresh milk, she use to left it at room temperature, now I understand it wasn't the TAPARA in which she used to storage but the Streptococcus Lactic a bacteria that comes in the buttermilk commercial that not only is good for you to obtain the buttermilk but also is good for your stomach like yogurt or at least that's what my gramma used to say

No doubt you may do it in a clean glass jar, as I had done it several times...but this are the Taparas that my gramma use back in Venezuela.

 


The acid plus milk;

Basically buttermilk is sour milk so mix a cup of milk with one tablespoon of lemon or vinegar, let it sit for 5-10 min is going to curdle....mix it again and you have buttermilk.

With cream of tartar plus milk;

By now you  have figure out that the base for buttermilk is milk so we will use one cup of milk and 1 3/4 of cream of tartar, mix it well and let it sit for 5-10 min, when it curdle mix it back and you have homemade buttermilk.

Use as needed and enjoy you delicious Buttermilk.....(insert your dish name here, e.i. pancakes, biscuits, scones etc)........

CEVICHE

CEVICHE

1 Lb de pescado blanco 

1 taza de jugo de limones recién exprimidos 

1 cucharadita de sal

1 cebolla mediana rebanada en tiritas

1 diente de ajo machacado 

1 cucharada de pasta de ají amarillo

1/4 taza de cilantro bien picadito dos cucharadas reservadas para decorar

Preparación;

Corté el pescado en trozos de una pulgada yo me guió más o menos por el grosor de mi dedo pulgar, en un envase de vidrio mezcle todos los ingredientes y revuelvalos hasta qué todo el pescado este impregnado de cada ingrediente, déjelo reposar tapado ( mi amigo peruano me dijo que por 15 minutos) depende de sí el pescado ha sido congelado antes y demás medidas sanitarias colóquelo en la nevera de 15 min a dos horas hasta que se vea completamente blanco, sírvalo en copas de martini con el cilantro que se reservo espolvoreado por encima acompañado de una rebanada de batata y un par de cucharadas de maíz (estos dos últimos completamente opcionales)

Tip; para variar el sabor colóquele 1/4 taza de mango cortado en cubos iguales o más chicos que el pescado.

Si lo quiere estiló mexicano cambie el ají amarillo por rebañadas de jalapeños, el maíz y la batata suplantelas por tortillas, decore con pedacitos de tomate y rebanadas de aguacate.

Espero que lo disfruten!!!!

CEVICHE

1 lb. white fish

1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1 medium onion, julianne

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon yellow chili paste

1/4 cup minced cilantro two tablespoons reserved for garnish

Preparation;

Cut the fish into 1 inch pieces I more or less guided myself by the thickness of my thumb, in a glass container combine all ingredients and stir until all the fish is impregnated, let sit covered (my friend Peruvian told me 15 minutes) depends on whether the fish has been frozen before and other sanitary measurements, place in the fridge for 15 minutes to two hours until it looks completely white, serve into martini glasses and garnish with the reserved cilantro, accompanied by a slice of sweet potato and a couple of tablespoons of corn (the latter two completely optional)

Tip; to vary the taste put 1/4 cup diced mango equal or smaller than the fish.

If you want Mexican style change the yellow pepper for jalapeño slices, substitute corn and sweet potatoes for tortillas, decorate with bits of tomato and avocado slices.

Hope you enjoy!!