Posted in: TV | Tagged:

Good Eats: Reloaded Season 2 Review: Alton Brown's Buttercream Dream

Published Tue, 12 May 2020 16:41:33 -0500

Appropriately following last week's, "A Cake on Every Plate: The Reload" in which Alton Brown walked the viewers through making an utterly delicious yellow cake in about 300 easy steps. "Icing Man Cometh: The Reload" has us indulging in that creamy white topping called frosting. Apparently, frosting goes atop of cakes and icing atop of cookies. Hmmm, I never thought there was any distinction between the two, and neither did 2003 Brown. So, I should not feel bad making cake out of a box, thank goodness. So box cake is okay, but buttercream should be made from scratch? Okay, that I can definitely handle. As Brown redeems himself from some bad reviews from the early 2000s (when viewers tried to make his frosting) I attempt to make this updated new recipe with two inches of water and a dishtowel. Wait, what?

Alton Brown takes us on a buttercream tour on Good Eats: Reloaded, courtesy of Cooking Channel.

In this updated version, it's more butter, fewer eggs and an increase in sugar. I was pleased that the recipe was quite easy to make and I didn't need to be a math or chemistry wiz. I did opt to make the American buttercream recipe since it required less work and no eggs (I ran out). Okay, so maybe it wasn't the less work that got to me rather than the missing ingredients (who wants to stand in line in the supermarket these days). With scrumptious frosting at hand, the next step was to learn how to actually frost. Unfortunately, I do not own a turntable or a slew of hardware like what Brown had on display. Seriously, are wooden planks and a blade really necessary? Some serious homicidal symbolism there. A spatula? Now we're talking! Oh my, I needed a piping bag. I improvised with a zip lock bag for decorating purposes and forgot to have it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, so I'm thinking take two might be better.

From cake and frosting and back to the cow with next week's "A Chuck for Chuck: The Reload" I will not be venturing into the kitchen to make any type of beef, but rather watching this purely for entertainment purposes, my love for all things Brown, and possibly allowing my vegetarian nature to cheat vicariously through some much needed Chuck.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!