187 replies to this topic

[donbert]

Right, for those who have requested....

...

Not pictured: his cape

/blushing/ I cut the San logo out myself /blushing/

That's hilarious!

[donbert]

The results of the Dulce De Leche tasting are unfortunately going to have to wait till I get back to NYC. The winners were 14, 17, then 19 (in that order). Because we did this double blind I don't know what the brands were. They're all definitely of the 4 hour batch though.

[Kouign Aman]

I think DdeL might be hard to make work for baking because it gets too thick. Every recipe I've seen that calls for scm is using it as liquid and binder. Perhaps if the DdeL can be thinned.... Magnolia brand is very pourable scm.After 4 hours of boiling, its a little..waxy? textured and very stiff.

Borden's response is incomplete. Eagle is also thicker than Magnolia.
Interesting that M is sweeter, I didnt pick that up.

The caramelization & sweetness is more of the abundantly added sugar in scm than the milk sugars which are a small % of the total. The protein crosslinking serves for the texture change it seems.
The really dark ones are 24 hours & are probably pretty nasty with the carbon flavor, the really light ones are barely processed. Is there an uncooked control in there? (dont remember number).
It would be interesting to process the canned heavy cream. It wont be sweet, has a much higher fat content. I cant begin to guess how it would come out.

I am dying of curiosity for the results. I wanted to make several cans of DdeL for a friend's gift today, but am holding off til I read the results and then I'll go shopping. I never wanted to leave the oven on for 24 hours, but 4 hours of boiling is piece of cake.

Thanks for blogging! Most very fun to follow and to learn.

[Pan]

The results of the Dulce De Leche tasting are unfortunately going to have to wait till I get back to NYC.    The winners were 14, 17, then 19 (in that order). Because we did this double blind I don't know what the brands were. They're all definitely of the 4 hour batch though.

I hope you have a chance to tell us the brands that won while your blog is still open. Regardless, I wanna know.

[Susan in FL]

The results of the Dulce De Leche tasting are unfortunately going to have to wait till I get back to NYC.    The winners were 14, 17, then 19 (in that order). Because we did this double blind I don't know what the brands were. They're all definitely of the 4 hour batch though.

I hope you have a chance to tell us the brands that won while your blog is still open. Regardless, I wanna know.

I hoping that, too... And will delay the close a while longer in hopes.

[ludja]

...

Since we don't have enough people coming to warrant a 300lbs block we went with the large bricks they have left over from carving down large blocks into ice luges for frat parties.

Another indication that you may be a cocktail geek, you empty out your friends freezer every time you visit to fill with block ice. 


edit:spelling

I hope you have time to report on Saturday's cocktailfest as well!

I love this shot of your friend's freezer; true dedication.

edited to add: Any thoughts on how to put together a Tequila Grapefruit Crusta like you had at Grammercy Tavern? It sounds wonderful...

I guess one could start by subbing tequila for the whiskey and grepefruit for the lemon...

WHISKEY CRUSTA

Ingredients:
- 2 oz Blended Whiskey
- 1 Lemon Juice
- 1 oz Triple Sec
- 1 tbsp Superfine Sugar
- 2 tsp Maraschino Liqueur
- Garnish: Lemon Wedge, Orange Peel

Edited by ludja, 11 December 2006 - 10:37 AM.

[donbert]

Sorry for the delay in the dulce de leche results. I forgot the packet notes that decoded the numbers from the tasting the real brand names in my hurry to make the bus to Boston. I'm finally back in NYC so without further ado here are the results:

Brands of Tested

1.) Eagle
2.) Iberia
3.) Le Cena
4.) Magnolia
5.) Nela
6.) (Nestle) Carnation
7.) Pathmark
8.) Star


Test Setup

The bottoms of each unopened can were labeled and boil, completely submerged under water, at a simmer for 2, 4, and 12 hours. Cans were in cold water to stop the cooking before opening. Each can was then randomly placed on a numbered index cards. Testers were given the choice of spoon, corn tortilla chip, pretzel, or table water crackers as tasting mediums. Testers voted for their top 3 and worst.


Best

1.) Magnolia - 4 Hours
2.) Eagle - 4 Hours
3.) Pathmark - 4 Hours


Worst

1.) Pathmark - 12 Hours
2.) Nela - 2 Hours
3.) Iberia, La Cena, Nela - 12 Hours


Lightest to Darkest - 2 Hours

1.) Star
2.) Iberia
3.) Nela
4.) Eagle
5.) Magnolia
6.) Carnation
7.) Le Cena
8.) Pathmark


Lightest to Darkest - 4 Hours

1.) Star
2.) Nela
3.) Magnolia
4.) Le Cena
5.) Eagle
6.) Pathmark
7.) Iberia
8.) Carnation


Lightest to Darkest - 12 Hours

1.) Magnolia
2.) Star
3.) Nela
4.) Le Cena
5.) Pathmark
6.) Iberia
7.) Eagle
8.) Carnation


Tasting Notes

2 Hour Group - In the past I have successfully boiled a single can for just over 2 hours with decent results, however with this group there they were all undercooked both in flavor, color, and consistency. This may be due to the extra time necessary to bring a group of 8 cans to temperature before they begin to cook. With every brand there was a heavy dairy flavor that wasn't present in either the 4 or 12 hour. In future experiments for more consistent results times should be measured from the point that the internal temperature of the cans reach equilibrium with the simmering water.

4 Hour Group - This group was undoubtedly the best on all points (flavor, color and consistency) from this experiment. The Carnation and Iberia brands had a hint of dairy flavor that might improve with further cooking. Magnolia and Pathmark were the only two that maintained a liquid consistency that would flow freely from a spoon. Star brand developed a slight grainy texture. No brand was unduly sweet or had a burnt flavor.

12 Hour Group - 12 hours is beyond the illogical extreme for boiling cans of sweetened condensed milk into dulce de leche and not advisable. All brands became too dark, had a burnt after taste, and were too firm. Some brands also became grainy in texture.


Suggested Brands

Magnolia - for use as sauce or when a more liquid consistency is desired (drizzling over desserts).
Eagle - for use as a spread or when a more stable shape is desired (spooning quenelles).


Supplemental Experiment Notes

Having ruled out the 2 and 12 hour groups, future experiments should test within the 4-6 hour time range. For more statistical significance a larger pool of testers should be used. Due to taste from fatigue having to taste all 24 kinds of dulce de leche at once to compare/contrast, a series of binary comparisons with a large pool of testers over time may be more accurate as well.

Also curious and worth future experimentation is the difference between Magnolia and Eagle labels given that they received top marks and both made by Eagle Family Foods Inc. (EFFINC). Although the response from EFFINC was that Magnolia has a sweeter profile the primary difference detected in all three testing times were color and consistency. Both have identical nutritional facts but very different results when cooked.

[Susan in FL]

Thank you for following up, making the icing on the cake, and thank you for a great week!