Creme Fraiche
EQUIPMENT
- Medium-sized pot
- Instant thermometer
- Wide-mouth quart jar with a lid
INGREDIENTS
- Heavy cream (organic, pasteurized, grass-fed, from A2 jersey/guernsey cows)
- Yogurt (organic, pasteurized, grass-fed, from jersey/guernsey cows)
METHOD
- In the pot, heat the cream gently and slowly to 180 degrees [use little o] F, using a thermometer to test. This should take about 5-7 minutes.
- When it reaches temperature, remove from the heat and set pot in a cold water bath
- Cool cream until temperature reaches 110°F
- While cream is cooling, fill 1/4 of jar with yogurt.
- Add the cooled cream to the yogurt in the jar and mix well
- Cap the jar and set on the counter for 24 hours to complete the fermentation process
- Store in the refrigerator and use in any way you’d like
Creme Fraiche from Commercial Cream
Probiotic properties of Creme Fraiche
This is a key ingredient in the GAPS milkshake but, trust me, once you’ve tasted this beautiful cream, you will be looking for ways to add it to everything you eat. I find it to be the ultimate ‘dip’ for chicken, vegetables, fruit… I stop short of dipping my fingers in it, but I can’t say as much for a small spoon as I pass the fridge.
The process below promotes long fermentation resulting in a high-quality fat and probiotic mixture that supports your microbiome, brain, hair, nails, and bones. It also is believed to give you a supply of slow burning energy – getting you from one end of your day to the other without flagging. The long fermentation, 24 hours, makes this cream nearly ‘dairy’ free, almost completely free of lactose and 95% free of casein. Many people who struggle with dairy, can use this recipe as a starter to reintroduce dairy back into their life. See “Dairy Introduction Protocol”
This long fermentation probiotic has many health benefits to the microbiome and gut, where 85% of our neurotransmitters are made. That is why this long fermented food is now called a “Psychobiotic” as it improves the environment of the gut to produce natural neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin, our “feel good” hormones.
This recipe calls for A2 dairy – the milk of Jersey or Guernsey cows (the brown cow). These cows produce milk that’s more nutrient dense profile than regular dairy. Jersey Guernsey cows are not modified to mass produce dairy, so each cow makes much less milk per day, retaining the nutrient density in each liter. This diary is easier to digest, especially for those who are mildly sensitive to dairy.
(* A2 refers to the type of protein in the milk and the type of cow the milk comes from. Jersey or Guernsey cows are not genetically modified, they are our culturally historical animals. Therefore the diary they produce is a more whole, natural, traditional product, making it more nutrient dense and easier to digest.)
