Food Porn: Ina's Blondies
I have many cookbooks, diverse and wonderful, but more often than not the recipes I choose are from either my copy of “The Joy of Cooking” (bought at The Strand in 1990) or found by Googling “Ina Garten [bolognese, blue cheese dressing, spinach and cheddar soufflé, on and on]". Ina has never steered me wrong. I’ve never had an Ina recipe fail on me. Ina is always ready.
A few summers ago I went to a friend’s rental place in the Hamptons. He had drawn up a whole week’s worth of menus. He shopped for the week, made a few pounds of chicken salad for the casual lunches, everything in the fridge was labeled and dated. I remember him saying something about how he’d “gone full-fucking Ina” for those few weeks.
It’s amazing but not at all surprising that Ina could go from writing White House nuclear policy (during the Carter administration) to creating prefect recipes. When it comes to nukes and cukes you have to get things right or we’re all going to be in a pickle. GET IT?
It took a bit of time to get the kitchen in our new house up to speed but in the middle of last week I pronounced us open for business and my first baking endeavor was Ina’s recipe for Blondies. I’m not going to reprint the recipe without her permission but I am going to show you some photos from my time with Ina.
Get it all out there, baby. Setting out a neurotic mise en place doesn't guarantee success but it sure gives you a firm footing. In addition to setting out the correct amounts of a component, think about the temperature of those elements. Unless a recipe specifically calls for a cold ingredient assume that each element should be at room temperature.
Fold in your inclusions! Don't clobber them with the mixer except under extreme duress.
This photo is here only because I want to put my face down into the pan.
The edges are starting to pull from the dish so here comes the yum.
Thank you, Ina! Ready for butchering.
