Steeping grains that require a mash

[hopshead]

I just bought a book, North American Clone Brews by Scott R. Russell and I am perplexed with some of the recipes. I tried to find contact information for Scott with no luck. His extract recipies sometimes call for steeping grains that I think have to mashed first. For instance, the Fat Tire Ale extract recipe calls for steeping 2lb of Belgian pale malt and belgian special b, crystal and munich malts in 2.5 gallons of water at 150 degrees for 45 minutes. Then a specified amount of malt extract is boiled. I am trying to figure out why you steep grains that have to be mashed first. Does it add anything? From what I have read in Palmer's book it does not look like you will get fermentable sugar in the wort from the pale malt.

[brewmonkey]

They are being "mashed" as it were because the pale & munich malts both have the distatic power to convert and obiously at the 150F mark they will be within the range to do so. Basically this is a mini-mash, albeit a rather thin one.

Is this 2lb's total malt or is it 2lbs of each malt?

[HogieWan]

yep - soaking grain in water that is 150-158 for ~45 mins IS mashing

[rougetrout]

both A and B amalyses are active at this point, as well as some proteases.