Field note: crinkle cookies crack because the outside sets before the inside finishes rising. Roll them in granulated sugar first, then powdered. The granulated layer keeps the powdered sugar from melting into the dough, so the snow stays bright white across the blue.
Every crack is a crevasse. Every crevasse is delicious.
Prep30 min
Cook30 min
Chill1 hr
Total2 hr
MakesAbout 24 cookies
Serves24
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: butter is yellow, and yellow plus blue makes green. A toothpick tip of violet gel cancels the yellow so the cookies read true cobalt. Color theory: 1. Swamp-colored cookies: 0.
Reagents
Dough
Snow Coat
Procedure
Mix the dry. Whisk the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and ½ teaspoon fine salt in a bowl.
Beat until fluffy. Beat the butter and 1 cup granulated sugar with a mixer on medium-high until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
Turn it cobalt. Beat in the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla extract, royal blue gel coloring and the toothpick tip of violet gel coloring until the dough is evenly cobalt. Aim a shade deeper than you want; the snow coat softens it.
Bring it together. Add the dry mixture and mix on low just until no streaks of flour remain.
Chill. Cover and refrigerate the dough until firm, 1 hour. Cold dough spreads less and cracks sharper; the cold is back on the team. For the last 15 minutes, heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment.
Double roll. Put the ½ cup granulated sugar and the powdered sugar in separate bowls. Scoop 1½-tablespoon (about 26 g) balls of dough, roll each in the granulated sugar, then in the powdered sugar until thickly coated, and space them 2 inches (5 cm) apart on the sheets.
Bake. Bake one sheet at a time until the edges are set and the tops are puffed and cracked but still soft in the centers, 10 to 12 minutes. Pull them before the edges brown; browning pushes the blue toward green.
Cool. Cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, then move the cookies to a rack.
Field notes
Use gel coloring, not liquid drops. Liquid thins the dough and gives you pastel instead of cobalt.
Two-tone glacier: tint half the dough, leave half pale, then press one small ball of each together before rolling.
Spoon and level the flour, or weigh it. Packed flour makes a dry, cakey cookie.
Cobalt teeth are temporary. Heroism has side effects.
Make ahead. Refrigerate the dough up to 2 days, or freeze uncoated balls up to 3 months. Let frozen balls sit 15 minutes, roll them in the sugars and bake, adding 1 to 2 minutes.
Storage. Store airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days. A fresh dusting of powdered sugar brings back the snow.
Contains. milk, egg, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-010 · CO-01 The Cookie Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/cobalt-crackle-cookies/
More from the lab
SRD-010 is the only protocol on file in the Cookie Line so far. The nearest matches from the other lines: Open the register →
Field note: a pavlova is a meringue with a soft heart. The sugar dissolves completely into the whites, a little vinegar and cornstarch keep the middle like marshmallow, and a low oven dries the outside into a crackling ice shelf.
Ice-shelf crisp outside. Soft-hearted inside. Like any good hero.
Prep30 min
Cook1 hr 15 min
Chill1 hr
Total2 hr 45 min
MakesOne 8-inch (20 cm) pavlova
Serves8
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: rub a dab of meringue between your fingertips. Gritty means undissolved sugar, so keep whipping. Smooth means launch. Country of origin: disputed by Australia and New Zealand. Snow Roach declines to take sides.
Reagents
Meringue
Snow Cream
Jewels
Procedure
Prep the shelf. Heat the oven to 250°F (120°C) with a rack in the middle. Trace an 8-inch (20 cm) circle on a sheet of parchment and flip it ink side down onto a baking sheet.
Whip the whites. In a spotless bowl, whip the egg whites and salt on medium speed until soft peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Keep the bowl free of fat; even a speck stops the whites from rising.
Dissolve the sugar. Raise the speed to medium-high and add the superfine sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, about 15 seconds apart. Keep whipping until the meringue is stiff and glossy and feels smooth, not gritty, between your fingertips, 5 to 8 minutes more.
Lock it in. Sprinkle the cornstarch, white vinegar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract over the meringue and whip 10 seconds more, just to combine.
Shape the iceberg. Pile the meringue inside the circle and shape it with a spoon into a tall disk with a shallow crater in the center, sweeping the sides up into jagged ridges.
Low and slow. Bake until the outside is dry and crisp but still pale, about 75 minutes. Turn off the oven, prop the door open with a wooden spoon and let the pavlova cool inside for at least 1 hour. Slow cooling prevents cracks. Respect the thermal shock.
Jewel the berries. While it cools, toss the blueberries, raspberries and blackberries with the granulated sugar and lemon juice and let stand until glossy and juicy, about 15 minutes.
Whip the snow cream. Whip the heavy cream, mascarpone, 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract to soft, billowy peaks. Stop early; it keeps thickening as you spread it.
Assemble at the last minute. Set the pavlova on a platter, pile the snow cream into the crater, spoon the berries and their juices over the top and scatter on the mint leaves. Dust with more powdered sugar and serve within the hour.
Field notes
Separate the eggs while they are cold, then let the whites warm up for 30 minutes. Warm whites whip higher.
Humid day? Leave the baked shell in the turned-off oven until you assemble; meringue drinks moisture from the air.
Save the 4 yolks for lemon curd, or use one in the Snowcap Summit Cottage Pie.
Cracks are fine. Real icebergs have them too.
Make ahead. Bake the meringue up to 2 days ahead and store it airtight at room temperature. Whip the cream up to 4 hours ahead and refrigerate. Assemble just before serving.
Storage. Assembled pavlova is best within an hour. Leftovers keep, covered, in the fridge for 1 day; the meringue softens into something like a cloud, which is also good.
Contains. milk, egg
PROTOCOL SRD-011 · CA-01 The Cake Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/iceberg-pavlova/
More from the lab
SRD-011 is the only protocol on file in the Cake Line so far. The nearest matches from the other lines: Open the register →
Field note: lemon juice thickens sweetened condensed milk on contact, no heat required. Fold in whipped cream, freeze, and the filling slices like a lemon semifreddo, straight from the deep freeze.
No oven for the filling. She sets it with acid and cold. Mostly cold.
Prep20 min
Cook10 min
Chill6 hr 30 min
Total7 hr
MakesOne 9-inch (23 cm) pie
Serves8
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: citric acid tightens the milk proteins; the air in the whipped cream keeps ice crystals small. Slice test at -0.4°F (-18°C): clean edges, zero regrets.
Reagents
Graham Crust
Lemon Cream
Snowdrift
Procedure
Press the crust. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Stir the graham cracker crumbs, granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon fine salt and melted butter until it looks like wet sand. Press it firmly over the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch (23 cm) pie plate, packing it tight with the bottom of a measuring cup.
Bake and cool. Bake until fragrant and a shade darker, about 10 minutes. Cool completely, about 30 minutes; a warm crust melts the filling. Make the filling during the last 10 minutes.
Set the lemon. Whisk the sweetened condensed milk, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, lemon juice and a pinch of fine salt until the mixture thickens noticeably, about 1 minute. That's the acid setting the milk.
Whip. In another bowl, whip 1 cup heavy cream with the vanilla extract to medium-stiff peaks.
Fold. Fold one third of the whipped cream into the lemon base to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest until no streaks remain.
Deep freeze. Spread the filling in the cooled crust and smooth the top. Freeze uncovered for 1 hour, then cover tightly with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 5 hours more or overnight.
Snowdrift. Just before serving, whip the remaining ¾ cup heavy cream with the powdered sugar to soft peaks. Pile it over the frozen pie in swoops and snow the remaining 1 teaspoon lemon zest over the top.
Slice clean. Let the pie stand at room temperature for 10 minutes, then slice with a knife warmed under the hot tap and wiped dry between cuts.
Field notes
Use fresh lemons; bottled juice tastes flat.
Zest before you juice. It's far easier on a whole lemon.
Swap in lime juice and zest for a key-lime-style cousin.
Short on time? A store-bought 9-inch (23 cm) graham crust works; skip the baking.
Make ahead. Freeze the pie without the snowdrift, wrapped airtight, for up to 2 weeks. Add the topping just before serving.
Storage. Keep leftovers covered in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. Let slices stand 10 minutes before eating.
Contains. milk, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-012 · FR-02 The Frozen Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/deep-freeze-lemon-icebox-pie/
Field note: real snow cones are shaved, not crushed, so the ice drinks the syrup instead of shedding it. Three homemade syrups do the work: Cobalt, a vanilla syrup colored with butterfly pea flowers; Lemon Reagent, bright and sharp; and Snow Cap, a sweet coconut cream for the summit.
Fresh powder in a cup. Cobalt until the lemon says otherwise.
Prep25 min
Cook15 min
Chill1 hr
Total1 hr 40 min
Makes8 snow cones, with about 3 cups (700 ml) of syrup
Serves8
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: butterfly pea flower is a natural pH indicator. Cobalt in plain syrup, violet within 2 seconds of contact with Lemon Reagent. Trials run: 31. Trials that ended in a second snow cone: 31.
Reagents
Cobalt Syrup
Lemon Reagent Syrup
Snow Cap Cream
The Snow
Procedure
Brew the Cobalt. Bring the 1 cup water and 1 cup granulated sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the syrup turns clear, about 3 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the butterfly pea flowers and steep 10 minutes, until the syrup is deep cobalt. Strain, pressing on the flowers, then stir in the vanilla extract and a pinch of fine salt.
Mix the Lemon Reagent. In a second small saucepan, warm the ⅔ cup granulated sugar, ⅓ cup water and lemon zest over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, then simmer 1 minute. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and a pinch of fine salt. The juice goes in last because boiled lemon tastes cooked. Strain out the zest once it cools.
Whisk the Snow Cap. Whisk the sweetened condensed milk, coconut milk and a pinch of fine salt until smooth. Pour into a squeeze bottle or small jug and refrigerate.
Deep chill. Refrigerate the Cobalt and the Lemon Reagent until cold, at least 1 hour; cold syrup melts less snow. For the last 15 minutes, put 8 paper cones or small cups in the freezer.
Make the snow. Let the ice cubes sit at room temperature for 5 minutes; slightly wet ice shaves fluffier and shatters less. Shave them in a snow cone machine or ice shaver. No machine? Pulse 2 cups of ice at a time in a blender in 1-second bursts until it looks like fresh powder, and keep each batch in the freezer while you shave the next.
Build the summit. Pack the snow loosely into the frozen cones and mound each one into a tall dome. Spiral 2 to 3 tablespoons of Cobalt over the top, slowly, so it soaks in instead of pooling.
Run the experiment. At the table, drizzle about 1 tablespoon of Lemon Reagent over each blue dome and watch it turn violet where it lands. Crown with a ribbon of Snow Cap and serve at once, with spoon straws.
Field notes
No butterfly pea flowers? Whisk ¼ teaspoon blue spirulina powder into the cooled sugar syrup for the same cobalt. It won't change color, but it still looks heroic.
Butterfly pea flowers taste mild and earthy, like a gentle green tea, so the vanilla carries the flavor. Find them online or at Asian grocers, sold as tea.
Squeeze bottles keep the drizzle neat and let kids run the color change themselves.
Too sweet? Add an extra squeeze of lemon to the Lemon Reagent. Too sharp? More Snow Cap.
Make ahead. Make the Cobalt and Lemon Reagent up to 2 weeks ahead and the Snow Cap up to 5 days ahead. Shave the ice to order.
Storage. Refrigerate the syrups in sealed jars: Cobalt and Lemon Reagent up to 2 weeks, Snow Cap up to 5 days. Shaved ice does not keep, so make it fresh.
Contains. milk, coconut
PROTOCOL SRD-001 · FR-01 The Frozen Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/snow-roach-snow-cones/
Field note: Baja-style fish tacos with one rule. Keep the batter ice cold. When cold batter hits hot oil, the bubbles flash to steam and the crust sets thin and shattering. Then slaw, lime crema and cotija come down like weather.
The batter goes in ice cold. That's the power. That's the crunch.
Prep30 min
Cook30 min
Total1 hr
Makes12 tacos
Serves4
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: batter at 38°F (3°C) into oil at 365°F (185°C). The wider the gap, the lacier the crust. Gluten stays asleep in the cold, so the crust never turns chewy.
Reagents
Ice-Cold Batter
Lime Snow Crema
Snowpack Slaw
Cold-Water Cod
To Serve
Procedure
Chill the batter. Whisk the all-purpose flour, ¼ cup of the cornstarch, baking powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, garlic powder and oregano in a medium metal bowl. Put the bowl and the unopened sparkling water in the freezer for 15 minutes while you make the crema and slaw and cut the fish. Cold is the whole trick.
Stir the crema. Stir the sour cream, mayonnaise, lime zest, 1 tablespoon lime juice and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt together. Add the water a teaspoon at a time until it drizzles from a spoon, then refrigerate.
Salt the slaw. Toss the green cabbage with 2 tablespoons lime juice and ½ teaspoon kosher salt and let it sit 10 minutes to soften slightly. Fold in the cilantro.
Prep the cod. Pat the cod fillets very dry and cut them into 4-by-1-inch (10 by 2.5 cm) strips. Season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt, then toss in the remaining ¼ cup cornstarch and shake off the excess; the dusting helps the batter grip.
Heat the oil. Pour the neutral oil into a heavy 4- to 5-quart (4 to 5 L) pot to a depth of 1½ inches (4 cm) and heat over medium-high to 365°F (185°C) on a clip-on thermometer. Set a wire rack over a sheet pan nearby. Stay with hot oil the entire time.
Warm the tortillas. While the oil heats, warm the blue corn tortillas in a dry skillet over medium-high heat, about 30 seconds per side, until soft and toasty. Stack them in a clean kitchen towel to stay warm.
Batter at the last second. Pour the ice-cold sparkling water into the frozen dry mix and whisk just until combined. Lumps are fine; overmixing wakes the gluten.
Fry. Dip a few strips of cod in the batter, let the excess drip off and lower them gently into the oil, away from you. Fry 4 or 5 at a time, turning once, until deep golden and the fish reaches 145°F (63°C) inside, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on the rack, sprinkle with flaky sea salt and let the oil climb back to 365°F (185°C) before the next batch.
Bring the snowstorm. Fill each tortilla with slaw and a piece of fish, drizzle with crema and let the cotija cheese snow down over the top. Add pickled jalapeño slices, tuck in two chives so they arc up and back like antennae, and serve with the limes, cut into wedges.
Field notes
No thermometer? Drop in a little batter. At 365°F (185°C) it sizzles hard and floats within 2 seconds.
Blue corn tortillas are nutty, sturdy and exactly the right color for the job. Yellow corn works too.
Little kids? Serve the fish strips on the side with crema for dunking.
Cool the oil completely, strain it and save it for the next fry night.
Make ahead. Make the crema and shred the cabbage up to 1 day ahead; dress the slaw within 30 minutes of serving. Fry right before eating.
Storage. Fried fish is best fresh. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours for up to 2 days, then reheat on a rack in a 400°F (200°C) oven until hot and crisp, 6 to 8 minutes.
Contains. milk, egg, fish, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-002 · SV-01 The Savory Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/snow-roach-tacos/
Field note: a crispy chicken sandwich with no fryer. The panko gets toasted gold in butter before it meets the chicken, so the crust comes out of the oven crackling. Then a tangy, peppery white sauce, pickles and a heap of ice-cold iceberg.
Hot crust, cool head, iceberg lettuce. Obviously iceberg.
Prep25 min
Cook30 min
Total55 min
Makes4 sandwiches
Serves4
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: iceberg lettuce is about 96 percent water, the most frozen-adjacent lettuce on record. Selected for crunch, cold and team spirit.
Reagents
White Sauce
Frost-Crust Chicken
To Build
Procedure
Toast the frost. Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add the panko breadcrumbs and stir constantly until evenly golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Tip into a shallow dish, cool 5 minutes, then stir in the Parmesan. This is the frost crust.
Whisk the white sauce. Whisk the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, horseradish, black pepper, granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon garlic powder in a small bowl. Refrigerate; it gets better as it sits.
Make the cutlets. Slice each chicken breast in half horizontally to make 4 cutlets, then pound them between sheets of plastic wrap to an even ½ inch (1.25 cm). Season both sides with 1¼ teaspoons kosher salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and the onion powder.
Set the line. Line up three shallow dishes: the all-purpose flour in the first, the egg beaten with the Dijon mustard and water in the second, and the frost crust in the third.
Coat. Dredge each cutlet in flour and shake off the excess, dip it in the egg mixture and let it drip, then press it firmly into the crust on both sides.
Bake. Set a wire rack in a rimmed sheet pan and brush the rack with the neutral oil. Lay the cutlets on it and bake until the crust is deep golden and the thickest part reads 165°F (74°C), 14 to 18 minutes. Rest 3 minutes.
Toast the rolls. Spread the cut sides of the potato rolls with the remaining 1 tablespoon softened butter and toast them, cut side down, in the skillet over medium heat until golden, 1 to 2 minutes.
Build the hero. Swipe both halves of each roll with white sauce. Layer on dill pickle chips, a hot cutlet, another spoonful of sauce and a cold drift of iceberg lettuce. Close it up and eat right away, while the crust is hot and the lettuce is cold.
Field notes
Hold the shredded iceberg in ice water until the last minute, then spin it dry. Maximum crunch, maximum cold.
Thighs work too: pound boneless thighs to ½ inch (1.25 cm) and bake to at least 165°F (74°C).
Want heat? Whisk ½ teaspoon cayenne into the flour.
Leftover white sauce is excellent on fries, grilled vegetables and Snow Roach Tacos.
Make ahead. The white sauce keeps 5 days in the fridge. Bread the cutlets up to 4 hours ahead and refrigerate them on the rack, uncovered; bake straight from the fridge, adding 2 to 3 minutes.
Storage. Refrigerate leftover cutlets within 2 hours for up to 3 days. Reheat on a rack at 400°F (200°C) until they reach 165°F (74°C), about 10 minutes, so the crust crisps again.
Contains. milk, egg, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-003 · SA-01 The Sandwich Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/the-snow-roach-sandwich/
More from the lab
SRD-003 is the only protocol on file in the Sandwich Line so far. The nearest matches from the other lines: Open the register →
Field note: cottage pie is shepherd's pie made with beef. The mash goes on in tall piped peaks so the broiler can gild every tip, like sunrise on a glacier range. White pepper in the mash, because black pepper leaves footprints in fresh snow.
Every peak gets a golden summit. Every summit gets claimed.
Prep30 min
Cook1 hr 10 min
Total1 hr 40 min
MakesOne 12-inch (30 cm) skillet pie
Serves6
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: one egg yolk in the mash holds the peaks upright and browns the tips faster. Peaks on the test pie: 41. Peaks remaining after dinner: 0.
Reagents
Snowcap Potatoes
Beef and Gravy
Procedure
Start the snow. Put the Yukon Gold potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold water by 1 inch (2.5 cm) and add 1 tablespoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer until a knife slides in with no resistance, 15 to 18 minutes. Starting in cold water cooks them evenly to the center.
Brown the beef. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a 12-inch (30 cm) oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Press the ground beef into an even layer, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of the kosher salt and sear, undisturbed, until a deep brown crust forms, about 4 minutes. Break it up and cook until no pink remains and it reaches 160°F (71°C), 3 to 4 minutes more. Spoon off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.
Build the base. Add the yellow onion, carrots, celery and the remaining 1 teaspoon kosher salt and cook, stirring, until soft, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook until the paste darkens to brick red, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle in the all-purpose flour and stir 1 minute.
Simmer the gravy. Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce, scraping up the browned bits. Add the thyme leaves and black pepper and simmer until the gravy coats a spoon, 8 to 10 minutes. Take the skillet off the heat and stir in the frozen peas; they stay bright and sweet. Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Mash. Drain the potatoes and return them to the hot pot for 1 minute to steam dry. Mash with the butter until smooth, then beat in the warm milk and white pepper and season with kosher salt to taste. Cool 5 minutes, then beat in the egg yolk.
Pipe the peaks. Spoon the mash into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip, or into a zip-top bag with a corner snipped off. Pipe tall peaks over the filling, edge to edge, so no gravy shows. No bag? Spread the mash and pull it up into points with a fork.
Bake and gild. Set the skillet on a foil-lined sheet pan and bake until the gravy bubbles at the edges, about 20 minutes. Switch the oven to broil and broil, watching closely, until the tips turn golden, 2 to 4 minutes.
Claim the summit. Rest the pie 10 minutes so the gravy sets. Plant the thyme sprig on the tallest peak and serve.
Field notes
Yukon Golds mash creamy without turning gluey. Never put potatoes in a blender or food processor; the blades make glue.
Swap ground lamb for the beef and it becomes shepherd's pie. Same peaks, same summit.
Stay at the oven door while it broils. Summits go from golden to scorched in under a minute.
Russet potatoes work too; add an extra splash of milk.
Make ahead. Assemble up to 1 day ahead, cover and refrigerate. Bake from cold at 400°F (200°C) for 35 to 40 minutes, until the center reaches 165°F (74°C), then broil the tips.
Storage. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours, covered, for up to 4 days, and reheat to 165°F (74°C). Freeze up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Contains. milk, egg, fish, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-004 · SV-02 The Savory Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/snowcap-summit-cottage-pie/
Field note: white chili thickens itself. Mash a cup of the beans, stir them back in, and the broth turns creamy and pale as a whiteout. Cream cheese finishes the job. Lime at the end wakes everything up.
Lab note. Lab result: bean starch thickens broth the way a whiteout thickens air. Spoon-stand test at minute 35: passed. The spoon was not recovered until the bowl was empty.
Reagents
Tortilla Antennae
Chili
Snowfall
Procedure
Bake the antennae. Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Cut the white corn tortillas into long strips about ¼ inch (6 mm) wide, toss with 1 teaspoon olive oil and a pinch of kosher salt and spread on a sheet pan. Bake until crisp and golden, 8 to 10 minutes, shaking the pan once.
Sear the chicken. Season the chicken thighs with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and sear the thighs until golden, about 4 minutes per side; they finish cooking in the broth. Move them to a plate.
Sweat and bloom. Lower the heat to medium. Add the white onion, poblano peppers, jalapeño and the remaining ½ teaspoon kosher salt and cook until soft, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, oregano and coriander and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute; blooming spices in the fat deepens their flavor.
Simmer. Pour in the chicken broth, scraping up the browned bits. Add the green chiles with their juices and all but 1 cup of the great northern beans. Return the chicken and any juices, bring to a boil, then simmer gently, partly covered, until the chicken is tender and reads at least 165°F (74°C), about 25 minutes. Thighs shred best closer to 180°F (82°C).
Thicken. Move the chicken to a board and shred it with two forks. Mash the reserved 1 cup of beans with a ladle of the hot broth into a rough paste and stir it back into the pot.
Whiteout. Stir in the cream cheese until melted, then add the shredded chicken and frozen white corn and simmer 5 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lime juice and cilantro and taste for kosher salt.
Snowfall. Ladle into bowls and bury each one under Monterey Jack and a spoonful of sour cream. Stand two tortilla strips upright in each bowl like antennae and serve with the lime, cut into wedges.
Field notes
Thighs stay juicy through a long simmer. Breasts work too; pull them at 165°F (74°C) exactly.
More heat: leave the seeds in the jalapeño.
Gluten-free as written; check that the broth and green chiles are labeled gluten-free.
It thickens overnight. Loosen leftovers with a splash of broth or water.
Make ahead. Make the chili up to 3 days ahead; it is even better on day two. Add a fresh squeeze of lime and more cilantro after reheating. Keep the tortilla strips airtight at room temperature.
Storage. Refrigerate within 2 hours for up to 4 days, or freeze without the toppings for up to 3 months. Reheat to 165°F (74°C).
Contains. milk
PROTOCOL SRD-005 · SV-03 The Savory Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/whiteout-white-chicken-chili/
Field note: no baking powder, only steam. Thin batter hits a blazing-hot buttered pan, the water in it flashes, and the edges climb the walls. Room-temperature eggs and milk only: this is the one experiment in the Vault where cold is the villain.
It rises like a glacier and falls like an avalanche. Eat it on the way down.
Prep10 min
Cook30 min
Total40 min
MakesOne 10-inch (25 cm) Dutch baby
Serves3
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: peak rise 3¼ inches (8 cm). Collapse begins 2 minutes out of the oven. Plate cleared at minute 5. Snow Roach permits warm ingredients in this recipe. Once.
Reagents
Batter
Inky Blueberry Compote
The Blizzard
Procedure
Heat the pan. Set a 10-inch (25 cm) cast-iron skillet on the middle rack and heat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Give the skillet a full 20 minutes; it must be blazing hot. Make the batter and compote meanwhile.
Blend the batter. Blend the eggs, whole milk, all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, vanilla extract, lemon zest and ¼ teaspoon fine salt until smooth and frothy, about 30 seconds. Let it rest while the pan heats.
Cook the compote. In a small saucepan, stir the water and cornstarch until smooth, then add the blueberries, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, lemon juice and a pinch of fine salt. Simmer over medium heat, stirring, until about half the berries burst and the juice turns glossy and inky, 5 to 7 minutes. Keep warm.
Butter the pan. Pull out the skillet with a thick, dry oven mitt; the handle is as hot as the oven. Add the butter and swirl until it melts and foams.
Pour and launch. Pour all the batter into the center at once and return the skillet to the oven. Bake until puffed high with deep golden edges, 18 to 22 minutes. Keep the door shut for at least the first 15.
Call the blizzard. Carry the skillet to the table, dust heavily with the powdered sugar through a small sieve and spoon the compote into the center as it falls. Serve right away.
Field notes
Cold eggs? Sit them in a bowl of warm tap water for 5 minutes. Microwave the milk for 20 seconds.
No cast iron? Any 10-inch (25 cm) oven-safe skillet or a 9-inch (23 cm) round cake pan works; the rise is a little lower.
Drape a towel over the hot skillet handle at the table so nobody grabs it.
Savory mission: skip the sugar, vanilla and zest, and finish with shredded Gruyère and chives.
Make ahead. Blend the batter up to 1 day ahead and refrigerate; let it stand at room temperature 30 minutes and re-blend before baking. The compote keeps 5 days in the fridge.
Storage. Best within minutes of baking. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days and reheat in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 5 minutes. It will not rise again. It will still be good.
Contains. milk, egg, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-006 · BR-01 The Breakfast Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/avalanche-dutch-baby/
More from the lab
SRD-006 is the only protocol on file in the Breakfast Line so far. The nearest matches from the other lines: Open the register →
Field note: feta alone is salty and crumbly. Cream cheese and a slow stream of olive oil whip it into a drift that holds its peaks. Honey for sweet, lemon for sharp, black pepper on top for footprints. Everything around it is cold and crisp.
Makes1 big board, with about 1½ cups (360 ml) whipped feta
Serves8
Frost level❄❄❄
Batch size
Lab note. Lab result: 10 minutes in ice water restores the snap to cut vegetables. Grapes frozen 2 hours at 0°F (-18°C) eat like sorbet. Both results replicated, then eaten.
Reagents
Whipped Feta
The Expedition
Procedure
Freeze the grapes. Pull the green grapes off their stems, rinse, pat them very dry and spread them on a parchment-lined tray. Freeze until solid, at least 2 hours. Do everything else while they freeze.
Whip the drift. In a food processor, blend the feta, cream cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest and garlic until smooth, about 1 minute, scraping the bowl once. With the machine running, stream in ¼ cup of the olive oil and blend 1 minute more, until light and fluffy. Taste before seasoning; feta is salty enough on its own.
Firm it up. Scrape the whipped feta into a wide, shallow bowl and refrigerate at least 30 minutes so the peaks hold.
Cut the expedition. Peel the jicama and cut it into 3-inch (7.5 cm) sticks. Halve the radishes, trim the cauliflower into bite-size florets and separate the Belgian endive into leaves. Soak the jicama, cauliflower, radishes, sugar snap peas and endive in the ice water for 10 minutes for maximum snap, then dry well.
Make tracks. Swoosh the whipped feta into drifts with the back of a spoon. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the honey, crack the black pepper over the top for footprints and scatter on the dill.
Launch the board. Set the bowl in the middle of a big board. Arrange the vegetables and blue corn tortilla chips around it, pile the frozen grapes in one corner and stand the pretzel rods in pairs in a tall glass, like antennae. Serve within 2 hours.
Field notes
Little kids: quarter the grapes lengthwise before freezing.
Block feta packed in brine whips smoother and tastes brighter than pre-crumbled.
Long party? Nest the dip bowl in a larger bowl of ice to keep it cold.
Leftover whipped feta is excellent on toast, warm roasted potatoes or The Snow Roach Sandwich.
Make ahead. Whip the feta up to 3 days ahead; let it sit out 10 minutes before swooshing. Cut the vegetables up to 1 day ahead and store them in water in the fridge. Grapes keep frozen for a month.
Storage. Refrigerate leftover dip, covered, for up to 5 days. Return uneaten grapes to the freezer.
Contains. milk, wheat
PROTOCOL SRD-007 · SV-04 The Savory Line · BATCH 1× · snowroach.com/snowfield-whipped-feta-board/
