Breast milk butter – An easy recipe that actually works

Try this fast and easy recipe to make breast milk butter. Why other recipes didn’t work, and what I did differently. It takes less than 5 minutes and is perfect for any extra milk you might have in your fridge or freezer. 

Can breast milk make butter?

Were you as surprised as me to find out you can make butter from your extra breast milk? Or was I just late to the party?

I knew breast milk, or liquid gold, could be used for so many things, including using it for skin conditions, but it didn’t occur to me to make my own breast milk butter from it.

When I saw how easy it really could be – I had to try it! 

Little did I know, it’s not as easy as shaking your breast milk in a jar as fast as you can, like every other recipe on the internet says. See what I did below to actually make breast milk butter that works. 

Oh the disappointment

At first, I tried what all the recipes on the internet say. I put my breast milk in a jar and started shaking it! After many, many, minutes, I knew this was a waste of time.

So I poured the milk into a bowl and tried using my mixer to see if this would get my milk to whip into butter. 

Welp, it didn’t. After several minutes with my mixer it was obvious that it was not going to work either. Although I was super disappointed, I was also determined. At this point, I got creative.

Making a better recipe

I decided to try to add an oil as a thickener, so I melted 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil and slowly added this into the milk while mixing with my hand mixer. It seemed to do the trick! After that, my milk thickened to a consistency similar to butter. 

You can use this breast milk butter interchangeably with regular cow’s butter. Use it on muffins, toast, or pancakes – the skys the limit! You can also use this butter for baking (although I haven’t tried that yet). These are just a few creative ways to make yummy treats with your milk. 

If you are just as intrigued as I was, below is the breast milk butter recipe I created to successfully make butter from your milk. Yes, I’ll tell you what it actually tastes like too!

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How to make breast milk butter –

Key ingredients and equipment:

• 2 oz of breast milk  
• 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil or cow’s milk butter
• Dash of salt (optional)
• Small bowl and hand mixer

Instructions:

Step 1:

Slowly heat coconut oil in 5-10 second increments in the microwave until it turns to liquid. 

Then pour thawed, refrigerated, or freshly pumped breast milk into a small bowl. It should already be at room temperature. Next, add a tiny bit of salt (optional).

Step 2:

On the lowest speed, mix with hand mixer for several minutes. The amount of time may vary.  Milk will form into a thick consistency similar to butter. There may be a small amount of liquid left over from your milk. I dumped mine into a smoothie for the kids!

Once thickened you can mix in additional ingredients like dried herbs from your spice cabinet. 

Step 3:

Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator. I label mine as human milk butter!  

Tip!

You could also use this method to thicken your milk if you are using it topically. Just leave out the salt. It’s a great way to rub it into the skin like a body butter. 

How long does breastmilk butter last?

Store breast milk butter in airtight container for 2-3 days. The shelf life with this also depends on if you used fresh or frozen milk. Fresh milk can be kept longer than milk that has been frozen and thawed. If you butter develops any odor, then please discard. At this point, I would follow the recommendations for shelf life as you would regular breast milk.

Is breast milk butter good?

Yes! Being as though it’s just breast milk, coconut oil and salt, it will taste like regular breast milk! 

My toddler loves this butter on his bread or warm muffins. 

What does breast milk butter taste like?

It kind of tastes like breast milk, silly!

I didn’t discover breast milk butter until my third baby! My third “baby” is almost 2 and is winding down on nursing. Although, I have one grocery bag stash in my deep freezer. Making things like butter out of it has been incredibly fun. Coming soon, breast milk ice cream!

Super simple recipe, right?!  Did you try this breastmilk butter recipe? Any thing else you’ve made with your own milk? I’d love to hear how it went and what you thought! 

Want more ideas of what you can make with your breast milk?