Chef Dean Wirkerman first made buttermilk by mistake.

"I was making a panna cotta and I was using crème fraîche instead of whip cream to lighten it," he says, but he accidentally over-mixed the crème fraîche. Instead of trashing the failed panna cotta, he just kept mixing to see what would happen.

"The little specks I was finding in the crème fraîche turned into butter. Then I kept mixing it and that butter separated completely, and this watery, milky liquid came out."

He had achieved buttermilk.

These days, buttermilk is a by-product of the house-made butter they whip up in the Cardinal Spirits kitchen. Like any frugal chef, Wirkerman has found a use for it -- buttermilk, plus Greek yogurt, plus mayonnaise, plus fresh and dried herbs, equals ranch dressing.

Courtesy of Executive Chef Dean Wirkerman of Cardinal Spirits.