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Lay off the coffee there hunter...
Crack the egg on the edge of the counter, just enough to put your fingers in. Position your hands (and egg) over a bowl and ease the top part of the egg off the bottom. Continue holding the bottom upright.
NOW... when you do the above, about 1/2 of the white will come right on out and into the bowl, leaving you holding the bottom half of the egg with 1/2 white and all the yoke.
Now... here's the fun and easy part (well heck, it's all easy) - hold the now-empty top half of the egg just below, and to the side of the lower full half. Begin to gently pour the reaming egg white into the bowl - have that top egg half ready. All the egg white will pour out on it's own, and RIGHT AT THE VERY END, the yolk will want to follow - at that point, intercept the stream with the empty top half of the shell - and the egg yolk will simply end up there, with all the white in a bowl.
You have now successfully separated the egg white from the yolk (the white is in the bowl, the yolk is in the top half of the egg). Your hands are still pretty much clean.
EASY!
Aloha!
And if you happened to get a couple of shell pieces in that yolk or egg white, don't use your fingers to fish it out (nearly impossible)... instead, take that top or bottom half of the empty egg shell, and fish it out with that (like loves like)! Much easier!
Mahalo nui loa from the Big Island of Hawaii (where we know our eggs!)
Over and out!
The best way to separate the eggs (in my opinion) is the shell to shell method. You should probably use three bowls as well, one for the egg whites, one for the yolks, and one to do the actual separation over. Since the yolk has a very high fat content, even a small drop of yolk in the whites will keep them from lifting, and it's better not to risk it. With three bowls, if a yolk breaks during separation, you can always ditch that one egg white without losing the rest.
A small amount of a mild acid (lemon juice, tartar, etc.) or powdered sugar in the whites can make it easier to get stiff peaks as well, though it may not be appropriate for every recipe.
fatties (i know the girl in the blog wasn't obese, but it's more a state of mind that i'm referring to) need to keep their love of food to themselves. yes bacon tastes good. yes macro photography of plates is fun and easy. but god damn, the petty bourgeoisie cook dinner once and they think they have to tell the world!
I for one found the article to be well written, humorous, and an interesting read. Did I learn anything from it? Of course not (well, other than the author is new to cooking). But articles like this go along way to encourage those who would rarely cook, to try something new!
Sure, you may be a cooking expert (judging from your Nick though, you might need more fiber) - but others may indeed find this article useful, of if anything else, just a nice friday morning read.
I've personally been cooking for many years - but I always enjoy reading about someone reaching out for newer ground.
Finally, was it really necessary to include "nasty slop" and "ugly friends" in your reply? Neither seemed apparent to me (and I really do need to add, I just can't imagine, based on your nick, what YOU look like).
Aloha from Hawaii (and learn to relax, geeezesususus)
It's almost impossible to get a plastic bowl completely oil-free when cleaning (as it's made from oil), and any oil (or yolk, which contains oil) in the whites will keep it from whipping up.
Next time, put the yolks in the plastic bowl, and the whites in the ceramic one. (or glass, or stainless steel ... copper's ideal, but most of us don't have that sort of cash laying around for copper bowls).
One boils bacon to make it less salty; of course, the best butter is made of only two ingredients (cream from scalded milk and salt), so too much salt can spoil the meal.
The French call potatoes "pommes de terre", literally "apples of the earth", but they are still vegetables. By the way, it was the Belgians, and not the French, who invented "french fries".
Finally, keep your egg whites cold, away from oil, and whisk in copper or stainless steel. They will stand at attention for you, and make your souffle as light as air!
I really enjoyed your blog.
ANY sort of oil will keep your egg whites from foaming properly. You need a glass bowl and everything needs to be squeaky clean. If you get the smallest amount of egg yolk in your mixture, it will not beat properly. I usually separate the eggs into a small bowl, then if any yolk breaks i can discard that egg and start over. Eggs separate best when cold from the refrigerator but beat to the highest volume at room temperature.
I just love cooking from that cookbook. I can't wait to see you make croissants ~
On a side note, your friend Andrew is... hopefully single??
For the double boiler, I know you're working with limited supplies and space, but it works better if you use a pot slightly smaller than the bowl. You want the bottom of the bowl to go into the pot, but not the entire bow. Also, you want the water level to be below the bottom of the bowl. Basically, you're using the steam generated by the boiling water to melt the chocolate, not the boiling water itself.
Hope this helps you out next time you attempt the souffle (although, the slouffe looks mighty yummy, too!).
keep eggs cold until you separate them. this makes separating them easier.
if there is anything other than egg white in your egg whites (oil, yolks, etc..) they will not whip up properly. You will also benefit from using a chilled bowl and slightly warmed whites. sit them in a bowl that is on top of a bowl of warm tap water for a few minutes before whipping.
also, tilting the bowl and moving the (electric) whisk in a circular motion, will help incorporate a little more air.