Recipe Notes: Browned Butter Blondies

20 February 2019

Recipe from Cook's Illustrated, January 2019

My mom frequently made brownies, but I don't recall her making blondies. Thus I was not familiar with this treat until much later in life. I only recall making them once before but I don't find a post in my blog about them. When a recipe appeared in Cook's Illustrated I knew I wanted to try it. A blondie tastes more like a chocolate chip cookie than a brownie. The test kitchen's favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, which I enjoy, uses browned butter, as does this blondie recipe.

These blondies were pretty easy to make, no mixer is required and the ingredient list is not very long. The dry ingredients—AP flour, salt, and baking powder—were whisked together and set aside. Butter was browned and poured into a mixing bowl where it was mixed, in turn, with brown sugar, eggs, corn syrup, and vanilla. The flour mixture was added and the ingredients combined using a rubber spatula. Toasted pecans and milk chocolate chips were stirred in and the batter was poured into a prepared baking pan. It baked at 350° for about 35 minutes. Total time from start to removing the pan from the oven was about 80 minutes.

The blondies taste good and keep reasonably well. They are nether super sweet nor super rich. When fresh they had a thin veneer of crispness but as leftovers the texture, while not a problem in itself, offers little contrast. There are many other recipes for similar treats that I have enjoyed more than these, so I probably won't be making them again.

Recipe Notes: Chicken Noodle Soup

28 January 2019

Recipe from All Time Best Soups, America's Test Kitchen, 2016, p. 41; also available online.

For the second consecutive winter I am continuing to work my way through All Time Best Soups. I don't make all of the soups in the book, there are many that don't appeal to me. Most of the soups I have made have been very good, there have been very few I wouldn't make again. The next one to try is a classic: chicken noodle soup.

The broth was made using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. The thighs were browned in a Dutch oven then set aside. The skin was removed so the broth does not become too greasy. After pouring off the fat in the Dutch oven a chopped onion was cooked until just softened. The chicken was returned to the pot with the onion, water, bay leaves, and salt. This was simmered for 45 minutes with the lid on. (In the recipe boneless, skinless chicken breast is added for the last 15 minutes with the intention of using this in the soup and not the thigh meat. We prefer dark meat so skipped this step.) The broth was strained, let to sit for 10 minutes, and the fat was removed from the surface. After cooling, the thigh meat was removed from the bones and chopped up for the soup. In the Dutch oven a chopped  onion, some carrots, and celery were cooked in oil. The broth was added to the pot with some dry thyme (only because the supermarket was out of fresh thyme) and simmered until the vegetables were tender. The shredded thigh meat and wide egg noodles were added and cooked until tender. The soup was finished with some fresh parsley and seasoned with salt and pepper. Total preparation time was 2 hours 10 minutes, much of it hands off.

This is another winning recipe from All Time Best Soups. The broth was rich and flavorful without being greasy. The preparation time was not at all onerous, especially since it includes preparing the broth from scratch. We enjoyed some great chicken noodle soup for many meals as it kept well, even in the freezer.

Recipe Notes: Italian Chocolate-Almond Cake

23 January 2019

Recipe from Cook's Illustrated, November 2018

A few years ago I made chocolate financiers, a small cake/cookie that uses almond flour instead of wheat flour. This produced a lighter, more delicate cookie that still packed some chocolate punch. The recipe for Italian Chocolate-Almond Cake, also known as torta caprese, does the same thing. But does it produce a flourless chocolate cake that is worth baking?

Butter and bittersweet chocolate were combined and melted in a microwave oven then some vanilla extract was stirred into the mixture. Egg whites, combined with sugar, were whipped to stiff peaks and transferred to a large bowl. Egg yolks, combined with sugar, were whipped until thick and pale yellow. The chocolate mixture was added and mixed followed by almond flour, cocoa powder, and salt. One third of the whipped egg whites were added to the bowl and mixed. The chocolate batter was folded into the remaining whites then baked in a springform pan for about 50 minutes. From the start of prep to taking the finished cake out of the oven was 105 minutes. 

This cake did live up to its promise. Like the financiers, it was a lighter version of a flourless chocolate cake. It was moist and tender without being fudgy, it still had plenty of chocolate flavor, and it kept well. This is a cake to seriously consider when looking to make a chocolate dessert.

Recipe Notes: Skillet Beef Top Loin Roast with Potatoes

20 January 2019

Recipe from Cook's Illustrated, November 2018

The November 2018 issue of Cook's Illustrated has a holiday recipe for Beef Top Loin Roast with Potatoes. NY strip steaks are cut from this roast which is also called a strip roast. It is a well-marbled cut of meat that produces tender steaks. The magazine recipe calls for a five pound roast and includes five pounds of potatoes, enough for a crowd! Fortunately the web site has a recipe for smaller portions which would be more appropriate for the two of us. The roasted potatoes look wonderful and the roast should be similar to a rib roast, which we have enjoyed for special occasion dinners.

The three-pound roast was trimmed, seasoned with salt and pepper, wrapped, and left in the refrigerator over night. Instead of Yukon gold potatoes, which I couldn't find, I used "gold potatoes"; I don't know what the difference might be, if any. These were peeled, the ends removed, and they were cut crosswise into quarters. The roast and trimmings were browned in a skillet. The roast was removed to a plate and the trimmings to a sauce pan. The potatoes were layered in the pan and one side was well browned on the stove top. Removing the skillet from the burner, the potatoes were covered with foil which was perforated. The roast was placed on top of the foil and the skillet placed in a 300° oven and cooked until the beef's temperature reached 115°. Meanwhile, beef broth, fresh rosemary and thyme, gelatin, and garlic were added to the sauce pan with the rendered beef trimmings, brought to a boil, and then passed through a fine mesh strainer producing 2 cups of jus. The beef was removed to rest and the foil was removed from the skillet. The jus was poured around the potatoes which were placed in a 500° oven until the liquid was reduced by half. It took 2½ hours to cook the meat and potatoes.

 

The beef was excellent, tender and well seasoned. The jus was also very good with a delightful flavor from the thyme and rosemary. The potatoes, however, were disappointing. They were not done, were a little tough, and the browned ends didn't add much to their flavor or texture. As leftovers they had a somewhat rubbery consistency. I don't know if the problem with the potatoes was undercooking or something to do with the variety of potatoes that I used. I don't know if I'll make this again. The beef and jus were very good but the roast potatoes were not. There are other roast beef recipes that work just as well so why go to the trouble of roasting the potatoes if they are not going to work out.