Powdered Egg Whites: The first experiment.

Well finally, as promised nearly a year ago, I have had a crack at a powdered egg whites dish. All the ingredients are either from my pantry or our little herb garden.

This was the end result. Delicate and very tasty corn cake ramekins topped with a grilled red pepper and Italian herb salad. I gave these to the girls from Stag who were recording in my house mate's home studio, and sweating it out to lay some new tracks on his valve driven reel to reel. I explained this blog to them and asked if they would appreciate a small meal like this if they found themselves in a war time situation. They said absolutely!

I learned a great deal from the process. According to Pace Farms who sell massive amounts of powdered egg whites for commercial use in Australia, powdered egg whites should be mixed at a rate of  7:1 water to egg white powder. I made a huge oversight and failed to consider just how little I needed for my purposes. I used 100grams of egg white powder when I only really needed 25grams which is the equivalent to 6 medium egg whites. This meant I had to continually move up to a larger mixing bowl and ended up wasting loads of egg white mix. 

While I did achieve soft peaks after lots of hand beating with my Swift Whip. I feel I haven't fully demonstrated the ability of powdered egg whites to adequately substitute for fresh egg whites. I feel I really do need to make a souffle or macaroons to prove the point though I feel access to a temperature controlled oven during The Age of Warlords would be limited. 

It was my hope to make fluffy corn cakes in a heavy based pan as a single burner is likely to be what most families will possess or afford to run. I will have another go at corn cakes and try fluffy pancakes as well. I'll need to get myself one of those dope dealers scales and some baggies to measure quantities.  

Corn Cake Ramekins topped with a Grilled Red Pepper and Italian Herb Salad

Corn cakes

300grams corn kernels

300grams creamed corn

25grams powdered egg white (equivalent to 6 medium egg whites)

powdered garlic

dried onions

chilli flakes

water

salt

Red pepper and herb salad

fire roasted red peppers

aged balsamic

extra virgin olive oil

fresh parsley, oregano, basil, and thyme 

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The Age of Warlords has begun!

Take the conditions in the suburban ghettos of Lagos, Nairobi, or Kinshasa and superimpose them on the place where you live now. Think of what would happen if suddenly militias ran the streets and you had to survive on the food in your pantry, and food smuggled in or the food growing on your window sill or in a neighbours back yard. Imagine how you would cope as time wore on. What food would you and your community value as you huddle in small communities under the shadow of a local warlord?
These ideas create dramatic images of a future that is scary but one I feel compelled to imagine. I try to give these scenarios some humanity to temper the sense of horror
But if these things are difficult to imagine then try recalling images and memories from Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunder Dome, Tank Girl, or one of the many movies set in a post apocalyptic nightmare. The makers of these films show images of suburbs being laid to waste and vast distances between encampments being controlled by brutally violent militia. Imagine how with all the pain and loss and with electronic communications infrastructure limited and little connection with the world, would not the feeling of isolation and the grind of each day push you to appreciate the simplicity and joy of a shared meal or a special food?
The Age of Warlords has begun! We in the privileged west (the shrinking minority) do not feel it yet but all over Africa as in many other countries the grinding, hustling, relentlessly violent age is well and truly in place!
The Age of Warlords Cook Book is about how we who have almost always known abundance and privilege might respond to the coming of wide spread war and disorder brought on by resource scarcity, climate change, and growth obsessed capitalism. It is an exercise in speculative empathy and an exploration of food, culture, community, and resilience in a violent future that is the present for so many humans!