Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
box. They were sealed in Ziploc plastic bags inside the box. They look
and smell okay. How long a shelf life do brownies have when shipped by
mail? They haven't been refrigerated, but they probably have not been
exposed to high temperatures, either. They still feel relatively soft.

Someone went to a lot of trouble to make them and I'd hate to throw them
out. At the same time, though, I can't really afford to be sick for two
days from eating something that has spoiled. What do I do?

What sort of spoilage occurs in baked goods, anyway? I know that things
like bread and cookies get stale and stiff, but do they ever get
hazardous to eat?

thanks,

kathy

(kathy) wrote in news:32b17c7c.0401030809.434f89a8
@posting.google.com:

> Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
> box. They were sealed in Ziploc plastic bags inside the box. They look
> and smell okay. How long a shelf life do brownies have when shipped by
> mail? They haven't been refrigerated, but they probably have not been
> exposed to high temperatures, either. They still feel relatively soft.
>
> Someone went to a lot of trouble to make them and I'd hate to throw them
> out. At the same time, though, I can't really afford to be sick for two
> days from eating something that has spoiled. What do I do?
>
> What sort of spoilage occurs in baked goods, anyway? I know that things
> like bread and cookies get stale and stiff, but do they ever get
> hazardous to eat?
>
> thanks,
>
> kathy
>

Due to their high sugar content they should probably be fine. Baked goods
can go moldy but that's usually obvious.

Wayne

In rec.food.cooking, kathy > wrote:
> Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
> box.

Call your local department of public works and find out when the next
pickup of hazardous waste will occur. In the meantime, get them out of
the house, preferably sealed in an airtight metal container.


--
....I'm an air-conditioned gypsy...

- The Who

On 3 Jan 2004 08:09:20 -0800, (kathy)
wrote:

> Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
> box. They were sealed in Ziploc plastic bags inside the box. They look
> and smell okay. How long a shelf life do brownies have when shipped by
> mail? They haven't been refrigerated, but they probably have not been
> exposed to high temperatures, either. They still feel relatively soft.
>
> Someone went to a lot of trouble to make them and I'd hate to throw them
> out. At the same time, though, I can't really afford to be sick for two
> days from eating something that has spoiled. What do I do?
>
> What sort of spoilage occurs in baked goods, anyway? I know that things
> like bread and cookies get stale and stiff, but do they ever get
> hazardous to eat?
>

It's your summer now - is it humid? Do they have any mold?
I sincerely doubt they will spoil on you... but they will
get stale and should be very stale by this time.



Practice safe eating - always use condiments

sf writes:

> It's your summer now - is it humid?

Not in Europe (where I live). It's moderately humid outside, but quite
cold. Warmer inside but much less humid.

> Do they have any mold?

I dunno. What does mold look like?

> I sincerely doubt they will spoil on you... but they will
> get stale and should be very stale by this time.

So they are safe to eat, but probably won't taste good? They still feel
soft through the plastic.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

I know you didn't mean it this way, but you've asked a sort of trick
question. No one can tell you the brownies are safe to eat because then
you might get sick, and we'd be at fault. On the other hand, brownies
aren't really a highly volatile food. If they look and smell O.K., they
probably are fine. Then on to the third hand, how valuable are a bunch
of home made brownies? If you're worried, toss them. The peace of mind
will be worth it.

If it were me, I'd go with the reasoning on the third hand. Any time
I'm not sure of food, I throw it away instead of worrying about it.

But then, I wouldn't be worried about the brownies in the first place.
Baked goods might get stale which means they don't taste good, but
they're not usually poisonous. Baked goods sometimes get green mold on
them, but then you can see it; you don't have to guess. I wouldn't
worry about brownies the way I'd worry about unrefrigerated chicken or
seafood where the food might taste fine but make the eater dreadfully
sick later.

--Lia


kathy wrote:
> Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
> box. They were sealed in Ziploc plastic bags inside the box. They look
> and smell okay. How long a shelf life do brownies have when shipped by
> mail? They haven't been refrigerated, but they probably have not been
> exposed to high temperatures, either. They still feel relatively soft.
>
> Someone went to a lot of trouble to make them and I'd hate to throw them
> out. At the same time, though, I can't really afford to be sick for two
> days from eating something that has spoiled. What do I do?
>
> What sort of spoilage occurs in baked goods, anyway? I know that things
> like bread and cookies get stale and stiff, but do they ever get
> hazardous to eat?
>
> thanks,
>
> kathy

On Sat, 03 Jan 2004 22:34:51 +0100, Mxsmanic
> wrote:

> sf writes:
>
> > It's your summer now - is it humid?
>
> Not in Europe (where I live). It's moderately humid outside, but quite
> cold. Warmer inside but much less humid.

? (kathy)> ? You moved?
>
> > Do they have any mold?
>
> I dunno. What does mold look like?
>
Here's what it looks like:
http://www.cheesy-wotsits.co.uk/breadexpday7.htm




Practice safe eating - always use condiments

Mxsmanic > wrote:
> sf writes:

>> It's your summer now - is it humid?

> Not in Europe (where I live). It's moderately humid outside, but quite
> cold. Warmer inside but much less humid.

>> Do they have any mold?

> I dunno. What does mold look like?

You'll know it when you see it. Lots of white/dark blotches.

>> I sincerely doubt they will spoil on you... but they will
>> get stale and should be very stale by this time.

> So they are safe to eat, but probably won't taste good? They still feel
> soft through the plastic.

At worse, they'll be stale. Try one and see how it tastes.

"kathy" > wrote in message
om...
> Someone sent me some brownies on November 19, and I've just received the
> box. They were sealed in Ziploc plastic bags inside the box. They look
> and smell okay. How long a shelf life do brownies have when shipped by
> mail? They haven't been refrigerated, but they probably have not been
> exposed to high temperatures, either. They still feel relatively soft.
>
> Someone went to a lot of trouble to make them and I'd hate to throw them
> out. At the same time, though, I can't really afford to be sick for two
> days from eating something that has spoiled. What do I do?
>
> What sort of spoilage occurs in baked goods, anyway? I know that things
> like bread and cookies get stale and stiff, but do they ever get
> hazardous to eat?
>
> thanks,
>
> kathy

You're kidding right?

You've has some home made Brownies since November 19th?

Shame on you....
;-)

If they have no mold and small OK they are probably OK.

Hurry.

Dimitri

Dimiri writes:

> You've has some home made Brownies since November 19th?

No, they didn't arrive until December 29 or so.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

>At worse, they'll be stale. Try one and see how it tastes.
>
>

I might wrap a brownie in a paper towel, and get the paper towel a little damp
and nuke it 10-15 seconds. It would probably make it quite not so stale.

Michael O'Connor - Modern Renaissance Man

"The likelihood of one individual being correct increases in a direct
proportion to the intensity with which others try to prove him wrong"
James Mason from the movie "Heaven Can Wait".