Fare Exchange Boost boxed brownies with homemade icing
Good morning, indispensable readers. On the sunny August day of this writing, and probably the equally sunny day of your reading, frozen treats are on our minds as well as our menus.
It’s Avery Moon who raised the topic, writing while visiting in Chattanooga. “I have been hearing from my California friends about a lot of variety in ice cream they have sampled there, including basil ice cream and, of all things, gorgonzola ice cream. I would like a recommendation and some recipes. Also, what about nitrogen ice cream? Can it be made at home? And can gelato be made at home? If so, please share the directions and recipes for all, plus telling me what equipment is absolutely required.”
Here’s an Indian food update from Margaret McNeil. “I made the Chicken Tikka Masala tonight using the Saffron Road Simmer Sauce. It was delicious. I followed the recipe and used 2 pounds of chicken. There wasn’t a lot of sauce. I think it would be better to use one package of sauce for each pound of chicken. I hope you have a chance to try the sauce.”
BROWNIE ICING
A couple of years ago a reader, newly graduated from college, gave her mother’s secret for incredible brownies. “Just use your favorite brownie mix, but top with homemade icing.” Now her mother, J.D.N., has shared the recipe that she testifies produces brownies “iced and mailable.”
Icing for Brownies in the Mail
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
1⁄3 cup evaporated milk ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
Melt butter. Add sugar and evaporated milk. Bring to a boil; boil and stir 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add chocolate morsels; stir until melted.
Pour over a pan of cooked brownies. When brownies are cool the icing sets up nicely.
Cut into squares and layer in a Tupperware box, separating layers with wax paper.
They hold up in the mail, still edible and always appreciated.
ON BRINING
It’s good to have the background on brining meats, straight from our local experts, Mr. and Mrs. Sunday.
“Brining works because the salt molecule is small enough to penetrate the fibers of the meat and cause proteins to uncurl. You’ll be amazed at the difference it can make (juicier and more tender). Marinades, on the
other hand, are usually made of molecules much too large to penetrate, so you get surface effects only (unless the marinade has plenty of salt).
“There are two styles: wet and dry. In wet brining, you dissolve salt in water (1/4 cup per quart is a good mix) and put your meat in a zip-top bag with the salt solution, excluding all air (to make sure the brine touches every part of the meat). Wait half an hour to overnight (depending on thickness and convenience). Then rinse, pat dry and cook normally. If brining for more than 1 hour, refrigerate (food safety 101).
“In dry brining, you just rub the meat thoroughly with salt and let it sit, etc., as in wet.
Wet brining is more easily controlled than dry in that, once the meat is in the brine in the bag, it’s easy to store and you can be sure you’ve got the right amount of salt. Dry brining doesn’t dilute the flavor of the meat by adding extra water and is particularly good for things that won’t easily fit in a zip-top bag, like turkeys.
“You’re counting on the salt extracting enough water from the meat to dissolve itself. This can easily take twice as long as wet brining and can be a little erratic as it depends on how wet the meat was, salt crystal size and other variables.
“All light-colored meats benefit from brining (pork, chicken, fish), and if you’ve ever eaten corned beef you’ve actually been eating brined brisket (that’s mostly for the change in flavor, though, not just texture). Note that some pork and chicken is sold with a brine solution already injected; no need to brine those.
“Does the kind of salt matter? Some folks can taste the iodide in regular table salt and the crystals are small. Like a lot of cooks, we use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt (crystals bigger than table salt but much smaller than Morton’s).
“If salt bothers you, be sure to rinse well before using the brined meat to get rid of the surface salt. Some folks add half as much sugar as salt to the brine; this will hide much of the salty taste (but the sodium is still there).”
FIG FUTURES
A.E. saw the request for fig recipes, “and I decided to research salads made with figs. This one struck my eye because it suggests champagne vinegar, which someone recommended last week as being not so strong as other vinegars. This recipe is credited to Laura Vitale, and I made a few changes to simplify.”
Roasted Fig Salad with Goat Cheese, Prosciutto and Arugula
This easy salad is a work of art — it’s a feast for the eyes as well as being incredibly delicious. Figs and prosciutto are a match made in heaven.
Honey Vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon Dijon
mustard 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar or champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon honey Kosher salt and freshly
ground black pepper 1⁄2 cup plus 1 tablespoon
extra-virgin olive oil
Fig Salad:
1 pint Black Mission figs — or figs from your garden
2 tablespoons melted
unsalted butter
1 1⁄2 tablespoons sugar 1⁄4 teaspoon ground
cinnamon
1⁄3 cup shelled pistachios Pinch salt
Pinch freshly cracked
black pepper
8 ounces baby arugula 8 ounces fresh goat
cheese
3 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
For the honey vinaigrette: In a small Mason jar or any small jar with a tightly fitting lid, combine the mustard, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper to taste. Cover the jar and shake it to mix the ingredients up a bit. Add the oil, and shake for about 30 seconds to mix it all together.
For the fig salad: Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Lay the figs out on a baking sheet, cut side up, and drizzle with the melted butter.
In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle the mixture over the figs. Roast in the oven until the figs are plump and juicy and just slightly softened, about 10 minutes. Allow them to cool to room temperature.
Meanwhile place the pistachios, salt and pepper in a small skillet, and set over medium heat. Cook, shaking the pan frequently, until the pistachios are lightly toasted and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the pistachios to a plate to cool.
When ready to serve, scatter the arugula on a long board or a platter, and drizzle some of your vinaigrette over the greens (the greens should be lightly dressed, not drenched). Place the roasted figs, cut side up, all over the top of the greens. Add little chunks of goat cheese all around the figs, nestle thin slices of prosciutto around the figs and finally, sprinkle over the toasted pistachios. Serve the remaining dressing on the side.
On that elegant note, we’ll part. But not for long.