Making Butter at Home

I saw this tutorial on how to make fresh butter and couldn't resist trying it myself.  Unless you add other ingredients, pure butter is actually only heavy whipping cream, which I didn't realize.  The process was a little more involved than I thought it would be but that was really my fault.  I did some of the whipping by hand and then used a handmixer instead of a standing mixer like suggested (perhaps I should start thinking about investing in a Kitchenaid?).  The whipping took about 30 minutes and just when I was ready to give up, I saw small pockets of liquid form in the mixture, a signal that I was on the right track. 

I squeezed the water out, wrapped the butter in aluminum foil and chilled in the refrigerator.  I didn't add honey but did mix in vanilla so the butter has a tangy but sweet flavor.  I really think this would taste awesome on warm pancakes or french toast.  Overall, it was pretty cool to make my own jar of butter from a mere pint of heavy cream I bought at Stop & Shop, and I'll probably try it again in the future.