Pudin de Lolita - Lolita's Pudding (pg 215)

On page 215 is this pudding, dedicated to Lolita.  I wish I knew who she was.  There are other puddings dedicated to other women, some of whom are clearly Encarnación Pinedo's nieces.  This could be to one of her nieces who was referred to by a nickname.  Or it could be to a family friend or cousin.  

What is intriuging about it is that it is a sweet pudding (one and a half pounds of sugar!!!) but it also has meat in it.  It reminds me of the old (early 1800s and prior) ante recipes.  They were originally designed to be served at the beginning of the meal (thus ante or "before") which did have meat and sugar in them.  Later they were declared to be desserts, and typically did not have meat in them.  Pinedo put several ante recipes in her book.  I made one previously, which you can view by clicking here:  Ante de Camote y Pina - A Luscious Dessert with Sweet Potatoes and Pineapple (pg 16).

The questions I had with this recipe are:  Exactly what kind of pudding is it?  She offered a variety of pudding styles, from boiled to steamed to baked to baked in a bain marie.  She mentioned using crumbled bread, so is it like a bread pudding?  But with the requirement of cream and eggs, presumably lots of them, I wondered if it were more like a baked custard.  I still don't know exactly what a "kettle cup" is, but I presume it is around what we call 2 cups or 16 ounces.  She said three kettle cups, which is six of our cups.  That is a lot of cream!  

I decided to create it as a custard pudding, with the eggs and cream being the major support and the other ingredients making it interesting.  I was very tempted to bake it in a bain marie, but decided she would have specified that if she felt it was important.  Puddings like this need to be baked in a very low oven so the custard doesn't curdle or cook up like scrambled eggs.  I also chose to interpret a kettle cup as one of our 8-ounce cups, at least at the beginning of making the recipe, until I saw how the thing was going together.  Then I would adjust as needed.

She did mention early in the pudding section that puddings should be put into shallow baking dishes.  Instructions noted!

Her recipe

My Translation

My Redaction

1 pound sliced almonds

1 1/2 pounds sugar

8 ounces chicken breast, already cooked

3 cups cream

1/2 ounce butter, melted

1/2 cup bread crumbs

6 large eggs, separated

For crumbs: I started with two 3-inch diameter rolls, broken open to dry, & pounded in the mortar.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.  Butter the inside of a large, shallow ceramic dish.  (See Notes.)

Chop the chicken breasts into about 1/4-inch pieces.  

In a large bowl, mix the cream and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved.  Add the melted butter and mix well.

Separate the eggs.  Beat the yolks well and then mix them into the cream mixture.

Mix the bread crumbs into the cream mixture.

Mix the chicken and almonds into the cream mixture.  

Whip the egg whites to stiff.  Fold them into the cream mixture.

Fill the baking dish.  

Bake for 1 hour (see Notes), until the center jiggles when the pan is shaken but stops when the movement stops, and the top is browned.  

Let cool at least a little before serving.

Chopped chicken.

Cream, sugar, yolks, and breadcrumbs, all mixed.

With the chicken and almonds.

With whipped egg whites.  That is one full bowl!

My Notes

Instead of two chicken breasts as she specified, I decided the one really big one I had on hand would suffice.  I weighed it instead of counting the quantity.

The chicken breast was previously cooked on a grill after being rubbed with olive oil and ground black pepper.  There was not a lot of seasoning on the piece I chose, so I don't think the pepper influenced the flavor of the dish.

I did some reading in my Ratio book by Michael Ruhlman in order to get a sense of how many eggs were "necessary."  Believing this would be a custard-like dish, I decided to use 6 eggs for 3 cups of liquid, giving a ratio of 12 ounces eggs to 24 ounces cream.  Keep in mind that eggs are very carefully sized for us, whereas Señorita Pinedo made do with whatever eggs were available to her.  They could have been all different sizes.

I had no idea how much volume the recipe would make, so I ended up using two ceramic baking dishes; one held 2 1/2 liters and the other 2 liters.  It helped to use a ladle to move the batter into the dishes.  

I thought it was done after 45 minutes of cooking, but once I broke through the crust on the top, the middle looked liquid, so I put it back in the oven for another 15 minutes.  It is possible it was ready at 45 minutes -- it was browned and it certainly smelled good.  

Ready for the oven.  Two full baking dishes.

After 60 minutes of baking time.

The Verdict

Letting the pudding cool a little seemed to give it a chance to set up in the middle.

The browned top was a crunchy crust.

My first bite was ... interesting.  Wow, was it sweet!  But the flavor of the meat came through, which was intriguing when combined with the almonds and the sweet.

The custard I expected was more like the matrix which held together the chicken and almonds.  It was not dense; I suspect because of the whipped egg whites.  

It tooks a few bites before I really liked it.  My mouth had to adjust to the concept of meat and sweet.  But then I liked it.  The almonds added a nice crunch.  

It was sweet, as I said, and it was rich.  I will have more, as will my guest taster who was trying to guess all that was in it and thought there was some fruit in it.   He certainly enjoyed it.

In thinking about this blog post, I had trouble deciding if it was a dessert (but it had meat in it!) or a side dish (but it was sweet!).  My guest taster thought you could have it as either, depending on what you wanted for the meal.  I think that is good advice.  

I then shared this with two other guest tasters.  One, quite the foodie, thought it wasn't very sweet at all (I was astonished) and liked that because he doesn't really like sweet foods.  He also felt, at first, that it had undercooked bread in it but then later decided that wasn't it and it wasn't a problem.  He loved the nuts and how crunchy they were.  He was surprised to know there was meat in it.  

The other guest taster did not enjoy the food.  He felt his mouth was "conflicted" because of the meat and sweet combination.  It was "okay" but not something he would want to repeat.  But he did think that he could get used to it if he other opportunities to try it.

Success!

It was just as good warmed up the next day.  Maybe even better, as I got more of the custardy part in each spoonful.

I hope Lolita would be pleased with my result.

If I were to do this again, I would use half the amount of chicken and almonds, and I would use about 1/3 of the amount of sugar.  But I would still use the same amount of cream and eggs and bread crumbs because my mouth kept wanting more of that matrix around the meat and nuts.  I think changing the amount of butter is optional.

If I did this as a modern "upgrade," I would reduce the amount of sugar a lot, try using whole milk instead of cream, and consider using raisins as a delightful bit of chewy sweet.  But still use chicken, because I think it surprises people, and that is always fun.

Huevos con queso - Eggs with cheese (pg 127)

If you are new to this blog, I translated Encarnación Pinedo's 1898 cookbook, El Cocinero Español (The Spanish Cook) and am attempting to get it published.  In the meantime, I cook from it and post the attempts here on the 15th of the month.  I also publish them on my other historical cooking blog, "Goode Eates", found here:  https://historicalrecipes.blogspot.com 

Today's recipe is on page 127, "Huevos con queso" or "Eggs with Cheese."

My Translation

Keeping in mind that she was cooking over fire; the idea of browning with a hot fire is equivalent to broiling in an oven.

My Redaction

Per serving:

butter

1 slice bread

1/4 to 1/3 cup shredded cheese

1 egg

ground pepper

ground nutmeg

The butter asked politely to be included.

Melt butter in frying pan.  Add slice of bread, sprinkle most of the shredded cheese on the bread, break open the egg, and gently let it sit on top of the cheese.  Sprinkle the egg with the rest of the cheese and then with pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Set heat to low, cover the pan, let cook for 6 to 10 minutes or until egg is cooked almost to your liking.  When the egg is nearly cooked, place pan under the broiler for a minute or two to finish melting the cheese and brown it a little.

My Notes

She didn't say to use butter on the pan, but I did anyway.

I used mozzarella cheese, although I think a stronger flavored cheese would be good, too.

I tried this twice.  The first time the heat was 2 of 10, I did not cover the pan, and after nearly 45 minutes, the egg was not cooked and the bread was toasted too much.  I put a lid on it and let it cook a few minutes more before broiling it.  The result was an egg that was overcooked (I like runny yolks) and dry toast.  Not exciting.  My guest taster didn't realize that there were any spices on it, and I had trouble tasting them even though I knew they were there.

Build the bread stack in the pan.

Bread and cheese

Bread cheese egg.

Bread cheese egg cheese spices.  Use more spices.

After about 30 minutes of cooking.  The cheese melting but the egg is still uncooked.

After cooking under the lid for about 10 minutes.  Egg is cooked.

Under the broiler for less than two minutes.

Overcooked, in my opinion.

The Verdict

The second time the heat was set a little higher, 4 of 10, and I covered the pan.  After 8 minutes the egg was nearly done but the toast was burnt (ugh).  I didn't broil it because I didn't want to cook the toast any further.

I also used more spices, but not too much.  

What I got was an egg that was cooked just right and toast that was blackened on the bottom and not tasty.  I could taste the spices, which I liked.

Attempt #2, after about 8 minutes cooked under the lid.

Egg is just right.  Toast is burnt.

My conclusion:  use the lower heat and cover the pan.  No one wants to wait 45 minutes or more to eat their egg and toast.

So success?  Almost but I'm not sure I can really count it as such yet.  With a little practice I could get the timing just right and really enjoy it.

I think this would be a good meal to serve a crowd with these modifications:  Heat the oven to 350 degrees F, use a cookie sheet and set up each serving on the sheet so you can cook a bunch at a time.  You might not need to broil them but the broiler is right there if you do.  While one batch is cooking, set up the next.  

This also seems like a good camping recipe, since you get toast and an egg with one pan (and a lid!) and one cooking run.

Ejotes en pipián - Green beans in pipián (pg 91)

This particular Pinedo recipe caught my attention because it looked too basic.  On page 91, we find Ejotes en pipián or Green beans in pipián.

My Translation

A pipián is a stew or sauce made primarily with roasted and ground nuts or seeds.  It is of ancient Mayan or Aztec origin.  Her recipe, if taken as written, says to cook ("stew") green beans with roasted and ground peanuts, and that is all.  On the other hand, if you look at other recipes that indicate using a pipián, you see a more complex sauce.

• Pg 22:  a sesame pipián with tomatoes, chiles, walnuts, pine nuts, spices, and more.
• Pg 22-23: a pipián with roasted melon seeds and almonds, with chiles, bread, and salt.
• Pg 71:  she cautions that a pipián needs to be delicately spiced using mainly cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, and to never use garlic.

I made this recipe three times in order to gain an understanding of what she might have meant with her very simple ingredient list.

In all cases, I chose to use a store-bought nut butter that contained just nuts and maybe salt because the nuts were already roasted and ground.  I didn't know if she would have ground the nuts to so fine that the nut butter was smooth or if there would be chunks, so I used what I had in my home already (nutty peanut butter) for the first and third attempts, and a similarly chunky almond butter for the second.

I started with a pound of green beans that I steamed in the microwave.  My focus was on the sauce, not the method of cooking the beans.

For the first attempt, on the stove, I slightly heated the peanut butter but immediately realized that it was too thick to turn into a sauce.  So I added some chicken broth and stirred while continuing to warm it until I had a pourable sauce.  Then I added a tiny bit of cinnamon and cloves and some salt.  

Once I had the sauce so the spices were barely tastable, I put the cooked green beans into the sauce and stirred to coat them.

This worked well until suddenly the sauce "seized up" and clumped all over the beans.  No longer a sauce, the beans were mixed with small lumps of spiced peanut butter.  I could not revive the sauce consistency with more broth or heating.  While it tasted fine, it was not what I had expected to achieve.  I wanted a sauce coating the beans.

This brought me back to page 71 where Pinedo wrote,  "There are also those who prefer the toasted almond pipián because it doesn't break like peanuts and pumpkin seeds."  When a sauce breaks, it loses its emulsion, and that is exactly what appeared to happen with my sauce.

So the second attempt used almond butter.  I used the same amount of green beans, steamed in the microwave, but I added more cinnamon and cloves and also a small amount of chile flakes.  I used enough broth to make a sauce.  

This made a beautful coating for the beans that didn't break.  My guest tasters thought I could bump up the spice level more but really accepted the beans as they were offered.  I liked that the spices were delicate, the chile heat was there but not dominant, and the sauce mostly stuck to the beans.  This matched with what Pinedo wrote, "only the amount necessary for the goal will be used or until it in good consistency."  My only thought was that I could have made less sauce, although we all enjoyed eating the sauce either directly from the spoon or spread over the roasted pork I served with the meal.

Almond butter, broth, and spices before mixing.

After mixing and heating.

The third attempt is documented with the following.

My Redaction

1 pound of green beans, cooked in the microwave or steamed

1/3 cup chunky peanut butter (it has salt in it)

1/3 cup chicken broth

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon chile flakes

1/16 teaspoon (or so) ground cloves

Put the sauce ingredients in a small saucepan.  Over very low heat, stir with a fork.  Stir rapidly and continuously until the ingredients form a sauce.  Keep heating the sauce very gently, stirring occasionally, while the beans finish cooking.  Drain the beans, pour the sauce over the top, then toss the beans with the sauce.  

My Notes

My peanut and almond butters both had salt in them, so I did not feel the need to add more salt to the sauce.

If you don't have chile flakes, maybe a dash of Tabasco or similar sauce would do.

In my first two attempts, I used 1/2 cup each of the nut butter and broth.  While tasty, this seemed like too much sauce for one pound of green beans.

I didn't get the sauce too hot in the pan as I figured the hot beans would help with that.  

Serve it right away.

 Peanut butter version

Saucy!

The Verdict

This attempt, with peanut butter, did not break!  Hooray!  I don't know why but I worked hard to (1) get and keep the mixture blended well with that fork, and (2) keep the temperature low while the sauce was heating.

Mmmm!

After the sauce forms, giving it more time to heat allowed the spices to infuse.  

The amount of sauce, about 2/3 cup, seemed just right for the amount of green beans.

The taste was lovely!  My guest taster is not a fan of peanut butter but certainly enjoyed the sauce.  The spices and chile shifted the flavor away from the sauce tasting like peanuts, and we both liked the overall blend.  I suppose you could increase the spice quantities more, but I liked their delicate subtlety.

Success!  

The version with almond butter - and I would use the same amounts as with the peanut butter - is just different enough to make it interesting.  

I didn't realize how much steam was coming off the beans when I took the picture.

Adobo para lomos - Marinade for loins (pg 4)

The grocery store had an incredible sale on pork loins the other day, so I partook with the idea of finding a Pinedo recipe for it.  And I did.  On page 4 is a "Marinade for loins" that looked intriguing.  I had some questions with the instructions, so I experimented a little bit which you will see in the notes.

Here it is, "Adobo para lomos":

My Translation

My Redaction

3.4 pound boneless pork loin

1 cup apple cider vinegar

1 cup water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon pepper

1 tablespoon cumin seed

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

2 fresh bay leaves

8-inch long piece of fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon loosely packed fresh oregano leaves

<The usual picture with all the ingredients disappeared!>

Day 1

Slice the loin into 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick pieces

Strip the leaves off the rosemary stem; discard the stem.  Mix marinade in plastic tub with a lid.  Whisk the ingredients well together.

Immerse the meat in the tub.

Refrigerate.

Shake the container once in the evening.

Day 2

Shake the container 2 (or more) times during the day.

Day 3

Shake the container in the morning.

Heat up a little olive oil in a Dutch oven or fry pan, then reduce the heat to low (2 of 10 or so).

Fry the meat slowly over that low heat until it looks done about 2/3 of the way up the sides.  Flip the meat and continue to cook slowly.

Serve hot.

A lot of meat.

Herbs and spices of the marinade

Altogether now!

My Notes

I wasn't sure if I should cut the meat or not, but since she indicated "frying," I decided to cut the loin into individual servings.  It is possible she meant to fry the entire loin, keeping in mind that "frying" doesn't always mean to fast cook it in hot oil.

I had to guess on the spice quantities, and I know marinades are supposed to be strong in flavor.  I kept in mind that cloves "tend to be full of themselves," so I kept their quantity low in relation to the rest of the ingredients.  I had fresh bay leaves because of a cute little dwarf bay bush called "Little Ragu" that is now growing in my yard.  (It helps to find a foodie who works at the local nursery!)

When removing the meat from the marinade to cook, I pulled all the leaves off before putting the meat in the pan.  I didn't worry about the spices.  

For the first batch, I considered her directions to "add broth," which seemed to be another ingredient and not the liquid from the marinade.  I tried that, adding a little beef broth to the pan, just enough to bring the liquid level up to about 1/4 inch.  Then I realized that it would take a long, long time to get the food "almost dry."  I risked overcooking the meat.

So for the second batch I used just olive oil to slowly cook the meat.  When it appeared done, I noticed the pan was almost dry but, of course, the oil did not evaporate.  Perhaps I could have used less oil.

I had 16 slices of meat, so I cooked two batches of four in the Dutch oven and four in a skillet.  I didn't see any cooking time or result differences between the two pans.

I noticed that the meat released a lot of liquid into the pan while cooking, making the addition of broth unnecessary.

Done marinating

The Verdict

We weren't very hungry, so we split a piece of meat.  It was ... interesting.

We both noticed the fruity flavor right away.  I attribute that to the apple cider vinegar.  The spices were dominant, and I felt they were on the edge of being too strong.  It wasn't off-putting, but my guest taster asked, "What kind of meat is this?"

In other words, the spices and fruit flavors dominated each mouthful, and we couldn't really enjoy the taste of the pork.  He felt the meat was just a touch chewy; I thought it was fine.

My conclusion was that either I should not have cut the meat into slices or I should have marinated the slices for a shorter amount of time, perhaps just overnight.  I suspect that having the whole loin cooking in the Dutch oven for a long time (over low heat) would probably have allowed the food to be almost dry.  

There were no issues with the meat getting a chalky texture after three days in the marinade.  

So I will declare it a success, although I wasn't entirely thrilled with it.  

The leftovers were consumed in a variety of ways, and I think the strong flavor, while still there, was mellowed with time.  Sometimes I served the pork with a sauce. (Try making a passionfruit coulis and add some broth, or something similar with mulberry molasses.  Fruit with pork is always a winner with me.)  Sometimes I served it as it was but with butternut squash soup and toast.  Reheating the meat made it a little drier, but the sauce helped.  My guest taster would dunk the meat in the soup.  More success!

Costillas de puerco fresco con setas - Fresh pork ribs with mushrooms (pg 88)

I found some pork baby back ribs on sale, so I took advantage of the deal and tried a Pinedo recipe that had been on my radar for a while.  I love pork and especially ribs!

The recipe is on page 88, Costillas de puerco fresco con setas.  

My Translation

Fresh pork ribs with mushrooms.

            Prepare the ribs as to grill them; but these are fried in unsalted fat or olive oil. They are put to fry in a frying pan, turning them several times and seasoning them with salt and pepper on both sides.

            They are removed from the pan when they are well browned; immediately these are put to fry in the same juice that has remained in the pan: a few mushrooms cut into rounds, with onion, parsley and well-chopped basil, a glass of white wine and half of hot water.

            The ribs are placed in the same dish and covered with the sauce.

My Redaction

3 pounds pork baby back ribs, cut into pieces that fit the Dutch oven

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

less than 1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 of a large onion

8 small portabella mushrooms, cleaned

1/8 cup finely minced fresh parsley

1/8 cup finely minced fresh basil

8 ounces white wine

4 ounces hot water

Preheat over medium low a Dutch oven that is big enough to fit the ribs.  Lightly sprinkle the ribs with the salt and pepper.  You may use more or less seasoning according to the ribs and your preferences.

Drizzle the oil in the pan and let heat a little.  Add the ribs to the pan and cook them slowly, turning them "several times" as needed to cook them through.  Don't rush this.

In the meantime, chop the onion into small pieces, but not finely chopped.  Remove the stems of the mushrooms and discard.  Slice the mushrooms into rounds if possible.  

When the ribs are cooked and browned, remove them from the Dutch oven and place on the serving dish.  To the juices and fat in the pan, add the onion, mushrooms, and herbs, and the water and the wine.  

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer until the onions are transparent and the liquid is reduced.  Spoon the sauce over the ribs just before serving.

Ribs sprinkled with salt and pepper; beginning to cook.

Nearly done.

About this much of everything.  Or as you want!

What was leftover in the pan.

Beginning to sauté. 

Done!

My Notes

To "prepare the ribs as to grill them," Pinedo suggested on page 89 to remove the fat.  A person I knew whose father was butcher also recommended that you tear the membrane encasing the ribs (or sometimes on just one side) away from the meat.  The ribs I had did not need either technique.

I cut the ribs into three big chunks.  Afterwards I thought that I should have cut them into serving-sized portions, which I now recommend.

The Verdict

The ribs browned beautifully, and I checked their internal temperature before declaring them done.

I thought, while simmering the sauce, that I had added too much liquid.  I could have simmered it longer to reduce it, but I didn't, so there was more liquid than what I felt was "right."  When I spooned it over the ribs, most of the liquid rolled off the meat and onto the platter, but the important flavors stayed on top.

Ready to serve.  Note the liquid on the platter.

The dish made a lovely presentation: the steaming ribs and the sauce with its bits over the top.  I served it with steamed green beans dressed with a little butter, liquamen, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper; and a soft dinner roll.  And wine.  Don't forget the wine!

Served.  Yum.

My guest taster and I enjoyed the meal very much.  The ribs were tasty, and the sauce added flavors and texture that we don't normally associate with eating ribs.  Those flavors of onion, mushroom, and herbs complemented the meat quite well!

My only negative feedback is that I wanted the flavors to be stronger.  It could be that adding so much liquid diluted the flavors, and if I had reduced it more, they would have been better.  Or I could have added more herbs to really bump it up.  Perhaps use 6 ounces of wine and 3 ounces of water?

I also wanted more mushrooms.  I was tempted to put in a lot more at the beginning, but she indicated just a few.  I held back.

It wouldn't hurt to have a lot more sauce to put on the ribs.  I would have enjoyed some of the bits with each bite of meat.  

But still, I declare it a success.  We enjoyed the reheated leftovers later, without the extra liquid.  They were fine.  I still wanted more flavors, though!

How to Judge Good Flour (pg x)

Today I am taking a different approach to my blog post.  It is the 15th of the month, so I am posting something from Pinedo's book, but instead of a recipe, I wanted to test her advice on how to know if the flour you are using is of good quality.

In her introduction, on page x, she wrote: 

Which I translated as:

            Flour, when it is good, is known by taking a handful of it in the hand and squeezing it tightly; if it compacts and unites in a mass, it is of the best quality and the mixture that is made of it will be soft, ductile, and elastic; while adulterated flour is much heavier than fine and laborious to knead. If it is tested as said above, it will not give the same result.

            Second--A small amount is taken and [with] the fingers are kneaded; if it is soft and flexible it is good, and if it is sticky and rough it is bad.

            Third--Put a little bit on the table and blow gently with your breath; if there are little piles on the table that have resisted the action of the breath, it is good, and if it is completely scattered, it is bad.

            Fourth--A thimbleful is taken in the palm of the hand and rubbed gently with the finger: if the flour flattens and is slippery, it is of inferior quality, and, on the contrary, if rubbing it feels rough in the hand as if it was fine sand, it is good.

I tried these tests and took pictures to show the results.  

Keep in mind that I expect my flour to be good.  We have the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 - and subsequent legislation - that requires food additives and adulterations to be reported, pushing businesses and manufacturers to sell us food we can rely on to be what the label says it is.  

This is so very different from what Pinedo, and the rest of the United States, experienced in 1898.  No one was held accountable for what they did to food, and adulteration with alternate ingredients and even poisonous additives was widespread.  Milk was "kept fresh" with embalming fluid; what was labeled as olive oil often contained no or little oil from olives; "strawberry" jam was made from apple pulp, sugar, red food coloring, grass seed, and strawberry flavoring; and more.  Manufacturers wanted to make money, so they cut costs wherever they could and didn't worry about the consequences.  

If your stomach can take it, take a look at Leon Landone's 1906 book Foods that are drugged.  (Click here for the link to it.)  Be astonished at all the food products, including baby food, that it lists.  Now when I see labels that use the word "pure," I have a better understanding of why that has been important.

So was my flour of good quality?  Keep in mind that proper labeling doesn't mean good quality, just that my flour wasn't mixed with chalk or Plaster of Paris.  It was worth the test.

Test #1

I took a handful of flour and squeezed it tightly.  

Before squeezing

After squeezing.

Uh oh.  My flour did not compact and unite into a mass.  It failed the first test.  

Test #2

I kneaded a little flour with my fingers.

She did not say to get it damp at all; I just used the flour from the bag.  It did not feel sticky and rough, but I was not sure it was "soft and flexible."

Test #3

I spread a little on the counter and gently blew on it.  

Before blowing

After blowing

If you look very carefully, you can see that some of the flour moved when I blew on it.  But very little.  I actually started blowing harder to get it to move, and I couldn't without making a big mess.  This was encouraging.

Test #4

I estimated a thimbleful into the palm of my hand, and I rubbed it with my finger.

Before rubbing

After rubbing

I think the rubbing flattened it, but it did not feel slippery at all.  It did feel like very fine sand.

The Verdict

While not every test gave me a clear result, I feel my flour was at least good quality and not adulterated.  I appreciated that she gave several tests so I could have options, otherwise the first test and maybe the second would have convinced me my flour was bad. 

What I used was a house brand flour, which may not have been as high quality as, say, a name brand.  Often house brands are made by the name brands but not labeled as such in order to reduce the price.  It would be informative to try these tests on other brands, especially the ones that advertise their high quality, and compare them.  

Success!  

Now I have to go clean all the flour off of my camera.  : )