Runners have discovered that they can churn butter by strapping bags of heavy cream to their torsos and running for around an hour. It’s called “churn and burn” — or more simply “butter runs” — and it actually works. You may be asking yourself why. It all started when Oregon-based runner Libby Cope (pictured) began to wonder if it could be done. She Googled it to see if any other runners had successfully made butter and found no mention of it. That’s when she decided to be the first. She poured some heavy cream and sea salt into a Ziploc bag and strapped it to her running vest. She hit the trails and at about 2½ miles, she did a “butter check.” She notes that the cream was still mostly liquid, so she kept churning and burning. By 4 miles, the liquid started getting creamy, and mile 5½ curds had formed. In the end, she spread the finished product on some bread and ate it. Now, countless people have tried the churn and burn, adding variations of it for themselves. Some test it at different speeds and distances, while others have wondered if they can make butter while dancing. Some have even wondered if they can make ice cream while running. Runners like Irene Choi have put their own twist on it. She made corn juice honey butter, calling it an “excellent use of my time.” Dairy Farmers of Canada says all you need to make your own butter is 2 cups of 35% cream and ½ teaspoon of salt. It’s recommended that you use glass jars, not baggies attached to human torsos, but the principle is the same: Shake, strain out the liquid, rinse the butter in water, and serve.
