Crème Fraîche

I have been intrigued by crème fraîche for some time. I've seen it used to finish many recipes, sweet and savory alike; though I never saw it in any store. I remember seeing a short segment on Food Network about how to make crème fraîche from scratch and it looked really easy. For some reason, I think it was Alton Brown doing the segment, but I wasn't really paying attention, and I never saw it again.

The ease of the process stuck with me, and it was in the back of my mind to try it for some time. I recently got on the internet in search of a crème fraîche recipe. I found several, and they each were basically the same. I settled on a recipe from the Joy of Baking website because it had a pretty picture and detailed instructions.

Indeed, the process was quite simple. Crème fraîche is basically heavy whipping cream and a little buttermilk left to sit at room temperature for about 24 hours; and it thickens all on it's own. It was amazing to see the crème fraîche take form, though I think I could have let my sit longer so it could thicken even more. I think I was just nervous about it sitting out too long.


Plus, the recipe called for pasteurized heavy whipping cream, as ultra pasteurized would take longer to thicken. Sure enough, I looked, and I had purchased ultra pasteurized. Lesson learned. All in all, the crème fraîche had good flavor, and I enjoyed it on some french toast with some fresh blueberries and powdered sugar. It was a lot like sour cream, only I got to make it myself, so it was a lot more fun and satisfying. I do plan on making it again, hopefully with better execution. Not bad for a first attempt, though.

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