White Fluffy Icing

Musings of a reasonably competent home cook.

Archive for October, 2009

For the Soul AND the Flu

Oct 26

Posted by Laura in Food of Love | 3 Comments

 
Flu season is upon us. Ick.

Actually, this year we didn’t really get a true off-season, thanks to H1N1. Now there are two flu vaccinations, stores are routinely stocking out of hand sanitizer, and parents are keeping kids home from school at the slightest sniffle.

Time to break out the food world’s most effective weapon against illness: chicken soup.

I can’t make you take your vitamins or wash your hands ten times a day. I’m not going to come to your house and tell you, for the last time, to turn off ‘The Biggest Loser’ and go to bed, for crying out loud, because sleep boosts your immune system. But if you do get sick, I might just show up at your door with a pot of chicken soup and a loaf of bread.

Several studies have been performed in recent years on chicken soup’s medicinal qualities. Perhaps it’s simply a tasty way to get more fluids. Maybe simmering the chicken releases an enzyme that speeds recovery somehow. Or maybe the chicken is just a distraction, and the spices are really doing all the therapeutic work. I predict that the scientific community will eventually succeed in sussing it out, and a couple of years later we’ll see it in pill form at the pharmacy.

And that will be a mistake. Because whatever chemical loveliness is in chicken soup, conspiring to make us better, at least some of its healing power lies in the comfort it provides. The process of eating it just feels good. A scientist would chalk that up to the placebo effect, and I say, who cares? If the thought that the soup is going to make me feel better is what actually makes me feel better, sign me up.

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Kiddie Chemistry

Oct 18

Posted by Laura in Baking | 4 Comments

There is something magical about cooking, and baking in particular. Anytime I make a cake, I marvel at how different (and wonderful) the finished product is compared to the ingredients. Think about it. On the kitchen counter of your imagination, line up butter, sugar, eggs, flour, salt, and baking soda. Now envision a glorious layer cake. Definitely greater than the sum of its parts, wouldn’t you say?

The secret is chemistry. When you combine all those ingredients in the right order, and apply the right amount of heat for the right length of time, you get cake.

My mom had me cracking eggs into a bowl at age two. Somewhere around age eight or nine, my parents gave me a chemistry set, which I had been begging for. I loved carefully mixing all the exotic powders and liquids and following the special instructions, and watching amazing magical things unfold. Then one day I thought: Wait a second! This is cooking, without the snack at the end. Wasn’t this what I’d already been doing in the kitchen with Mom? Carefully mixing powders and liquids and following special instructions? Afterwards, I still had to clean up a big mess, but a well-executed experiment did not produce brownies. I’d been had.

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A Blog by Any Other Name

Oct 12

Posted by Laura in Baking | 10 Comments

When I was a kid, there were two reasons to look forward to October. One was the Brazoria County Fair, and the other was my big brother’s birthday. Not because of his birthday per se, but because every year he asked for the same confection to celebrate: chocolate cake with white fluffy icing.

White fluffy icing. White fluffy icing! I thought every kid grew up with white fluffy icing. It’s funny how three little words can trigger a flood of childhood memories. Memories of wearing “jellies” and cooking with my mom, memories of harvest gold kitchen appliances, memories of eating cake on the red place setting which meant it was your special day.

As it turns out, White Fluffy Icing is a Southern tradition. Except that most people call it Seven Minute Frosting, so named for the length of cooking time it requires (if the benevolent frosting fairies are on your side, that is). To add to the identity confusion, the actual name of the recipe my mom uses, courtesy of Aunt Claudia, is Never Fail Swirl Frosting. Who knew? All I know is that over the years, my mom’s cake developed in me a Pavlovian reaction to the title I know and love: White Fluffy Icing!

Truth be told, Never Fail Swirl Frosting is a smidge different than Seven Minute Frosting, and the technique is quite a bit easier. The latter requires beating the egg whites with an electric mixer while they cook over simmering water, which is challenging enough. But on top of that, you must constantly monitor the temperature on an instant read thermometer (with your third hand, of course). Again, good fairy vibes help. Low humidity does, too, since it’s technically a cooked meringue.

For Never Fail Frosting, you gradually beat hot syrup into egg whites in a mixer – no thermometer, no chance for overcooking the whites. Today, I tested the outer limits of the technique by making white fluffy icing on a rainy day – and the title holds true: it has never failed me. So tell those fairies to hold off until you tackle buttercream.

Some people add chopped nuts and/or coconut to their white fluffy icing. I hear it is delicious on banana cake, yellow cake, just about anything – but I wouldn’t know, because in my mind, white fluffy icing belongs on top of a rich, dark chocolate cake. Oh yeah, and it’s low fat, too. It will, however, make your pancreas hurt if you lick too much out of the bowl. Not that I would know.

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Never Fail Swirl Frosting

3 egg whites, room temperature
A few grains of salt
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Beat the egg whites with salt and cream of tartar at high speed until almost stiff. Meanwhile, combine the sugar and syrup in a small saucepan and cook just until bubbles form around the edges.

Gradually pour the hot syrup over the egg whites, beating constantly at high speed. Return the syrup to the heat several times during the process, to keep it hot.

Add the vanilla and beat for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, until the mixture is the desired consistency. Use immediately.

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