Egg Dilemma

#1
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7/21/06 at 1:17pm
  • Joined: October 2005
  • Location: Muskego, WI
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Hi Everyone,

I have a recipe for Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes. The recipe calls for 4 eggs at room temp. As I mentioned before my husbands father was a professional baker. Therefore my husband believes that he knows EVERTHING that there is to know about baking. I’m not saying that my husband didn’t pick up some tricks of the trade but I have to believe that the author of the recipe knows more then a man with a Landscape Design. The man knows his trees, plants and flowers but baking is a bird of a totally different feather. Knowing my luck everyone who eats my cupcakes would get some kind of killer bacteria. Can I use the eggs strait out of the refrigerator?

Thanks,
Kelley
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#2
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7/21/06 at 2:10pm
  • Joined: March 2000
  • Location: norwalk, CT USA
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Usually, if a recipe calls for room temp. eggs, it's because there's butter in the recipe, and the butter needs to be soft in order to emulsify the other ingredients properly. If there isn't any butter in the recipe, cold eggs are just fine to use.

In any case, you won't make anyone sick by leaving the whole eggs out for an hour to come to room temp. To hasten the process, you can place them in a container of warm water before cracking them.
www.cakesuite.com
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#3
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7/21/06 at 2:51pm
  • Joined: October 2005
  • Location: Muskego, WI
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Thanks momoreg,

There is a 1/4 cup of unsalted butter in the recipe. My hubby has me all nuts that I'm going to make people sick I think that because the bater will be baked at 360 for 30 minutes or so the danger wouldl be negated.

Thanks Again,
Kelley
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#4
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7/21/06 at 3:15pm
  • Joined: May 2006
  • Location: USA
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Here's a link to some food safety, egg-related info.

http://www.foodsafety.gov/~dms/fs-eggs.html
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#5
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7/21/06 at 5:59pm
  • Joined: March 2006
  • Location: NZ
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I am told the french do not refridgerate their eggs. That was on Good Eats. I have never refridgerated mine either, neither did my mother or grandmother. We never got sick from eggs, but we do buy from the poultry man. I only buy eggs from the supermarket if I want to peel boiled eggs.
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#6
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7/21/06 at 6:19pm
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Diane,
That's correct. Eggs that have not been refrigerated do not need to be kept cold. Eggs that come from the farm do not need it. Once an egg has seen the refrigerator, it need to stay cold. I can't recall where I got that info so it may be totally wrong.
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#7
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7/21/06 at 6:29pm
  • Joined: February 2006
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Yeah, I agree with what Diane said...

..only in Australia it was the same. Eggs were kept on the "bench" (counter) for probably a couple of weeks. (and it was similar to a mediteranean climate...not particularly cool)

The general time out of the 'safe zone' for food is about 4 hours. I mean, I wouldn't let it go that long, but I've brought numerous eggs to room temp to use them.

Your hubby sounds like my son...won't even drink milk on it's "use by" date.

April
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#8
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7/21/06 at 9:21pm
  • Joined: December 2004
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He actually helps with the preparation and baking?

or does he turn up in time to eat and cross-examine the finished product.

What he does not know won't hurt him

and

he won't know unless you tell him...
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#9
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7/22/06 at 8:13am
  • Joined: January 2006
  • Location: Renton, WA
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If I remember my sanitation class properly, salmonella enterditis, which is why you need to worry about refrigerating eggs after the 1970-80s, is a result of the large scale chicken processing plants. So, I believe this would be true. Personally, I'd still keep them refrigerated for long periods of time - but if leaving them out to come to room temperature was dangerous I'd know alot of very ill people.

Erik

"Health nuts are going to feel stupid one day, lying in the hospital dying of nothing"
-Redd Foxx

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#10
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7/23/06 at 1:47pm
  • Joined: October 2005
  • Location: Muskego, WI
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Thank you so much everybody:bounce:

All of the info and advice that all of you have given me is extremely helpful and much appreciated.

Thanks Again,
Kelley

PS: Hi Auzzi, He is the cook in our house and I am the baker. He likes to stick his nose in whenever possible to the baking process which is why I try do do all of it when he is at work. That’s not too hard since he is at work about 12 to 13 hours a day. I can’t stand to do my thing while he is here.
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#11
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7/23/06 at 6:25pm
  • Joined: March 2006
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Tell him very firmly not to bully you Kelly!!!
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#12
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7/23/06 at 6:57pm
  • Joined: July 2006
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Diane,
You are right, the author of the recipe does know more than your husband.

Leading the global ban on cup and spoon measurements in recipes!

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#13
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7/24/06 at 7:43am
  • Joined: December 2005
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KELLEYBEAN:
Good morning. I believe you were given much good advice in reading the posts that you have recieved. I believe the reason for the recipe:chef: s directions for you to employ room temp. eggs is so that you do not "CURDLE" your batter. Good luck & enjoy the rest of the day young lady.

~Z~BESTUS.
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#14
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7/24/06 at 8:26am
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I think you are correct about this. Also... and this is more of a question than an answer...

Isn't salmonella on the outside of the egg and transferred to the inside upon cracking? In other words, we contract the salmonella poisoning through handling of the eggs (and touching other food too) rather than eating them?
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#15
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7/24/06 at 10:24am
  • Joined: December 2005
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FREE RIDER:
Good morning. What you are referring to is known in the culinary world as "CROSS CONTAMINATION". It is wise to never mix other food stuff where eggs were in contact such as cutting boards dicing veggies, ete & stuff like that. Enjoy the rest of the day.

~Z~BESTUS.:chef:
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#16
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7/24/06 at 10:59am
  • Joined: May 2006
  • Location: USA
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Thanks, Z.

I did a little looking and found this from the CDC:

"However, unlike eggborne salmonellosis of past decades, the current epidemic is due to intact and disinfected grade A eggs. The reason for this is that Salmonella enteritidis silently infects the ovaries of healthy appearing hens and contaminates the eggs before the shells are formed.
Although most infected hens have been found in the northeastern United States, the infection also occurs in hens in other areas of the country. In the Northeast, approximately one in 10,000 eggs may be internally contaminated. In other parts of the United States, contaminated eggs appear less common. Only a small number of hens seem to be infected at any given time, and an infected hen can lay many normal eggs while only occasionally laying an egg contaminated with the Salmonella bacterium. "

I asked the local grocery store if they have pasteurized eggs and the answer was a resounding... no.
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