A feast with snowcrab.

This is the final product once cooked

The crab with the seasoning on a doubleboiler

The shell is soft so you can cut a slit for the seasoning to penetrate

Crab once cut in a perforated pan

Cutting into large pieces

The crab legs before being cut

Corn before marination and grilling

(Follow the procedure from bottom top as i had problems uploading the photos)

A recipe which is easy and worth the treat for your taste buds.

This is a simple recipe that is followed by my sister-in-law, which was a treat for the whole family. I am going to share with you the secrets of this recipe.

Alaskan Snowcrab 2#

Celery powder 2tsp

Salt tt

Celery seed 1tsp

Mustard powder 1tsp

Red pepper 3tsp

Black pepper 2tsp

Bay leaf 1ea

Cloves 1ea

Allspice 5ea

Pimento powder 2tsp

Ginger powder 1tsp

Cardamom powder 1tsp

Paprika powder 2tsp

The reason that i posted this is naturally being a weekend, the treat will surely be special. The corn was just marinated with salt, pepper & Lime juice. Once it was marniated it is grilled. The meat was this wonderful crabmeat which was to be had by scooping out the meat from the shell. If it is snowcrab it does not need any explanation, it is just filled with meat.

The method for cooking the crab was:

1.Just prinkle the ingredients on the crab which is placed on a perforated container.

2. Place the perforated container on a double boilder with 3 cups water.

3. Cook it for about 10 minutes.

I am sure this is going to be a easy task for your weekend special.

Bavarian Cake

A bavarian cream cake is basically vanilla sauce that has it's shape retained by gelatin. The reason that it maintains it's texture and strength is due to the aerated structure. This is derived by measuring out equal proportions of ingredients in terms of weight. The bavarian cream as such can be used for various dessert preperations.

To make the Bavarian cream, we need to whip the cream, mix it with the vanilla sauce. The vanilla sauce should be allowed to cool and should maintain a temperture that is just warm. Any kind of flavoring needs to be added at this point. It is desirable to add extra flavoring as the whipped cream would reduce the final flavor of the product. (It is recommended to have the molds ready before preparation as the bavaraian cream will set soon).

Bavarian Cream:

Gelatin 1oz

Water 8floz

Heavy cream 32floz

Vanilla sauce 32floz

• Have the molds ready before preparation.
• In a bowl immerse the gelatin, until it is bloomed.
• Whip the cream to a soft peak.
• Have the vanilla sauce warm, into the sauce add the bloomed gelatin.
• Blend one third of the vanilla sauce with the whipped cream fold gently (as it is aerated it may loose volume)
• Mix in the remaining vanilla sauce and fold thoroughly.
• Pour the mixture into molds of your choice and refrigerate.

Vanilla sauce:

Egg yolks 12ea

Milk 1quart

Sugar 8oz

Vanilla extract 1/2tsp

• Heat the Milk and sugar with the extract to a boil.
• In another bowl whip the egg yolks thoroughly
• Add 1/4 portion of the mixture gently into the whipped egg yolks and temper it.
• Whisk it thoroughly and then add it back to the mixture and whisk it thoroughly, once it comes to a boil remove from heat and let cool.

Meringues a pastry delight

Swiss maringue garnish over tarts and blowtorched
Piping of Maringue before baking in oven

Whipping egg whites and sugar together creates the light yet stable aerated mixture known as a meringue. Meringue is commonly used for topping and filling cakes and pastries. It can also be flavored and or dried in a low oven to make cookies, containers (which can be used to hold fruit, mousse, or sorbet) or layers for cakes. Meringue is also used as an ingredient in mousses and batters to lighten, aerate, and leaven them.

A basic ratio for a meringue is 1 part egg whites to 2 parts sugar. As the egg whites are whipped, air is incorporated and the whites break into smaller and smaller globules to form bubbles. When sugar is whipped into the egg whites, the agitation of the mixture and the moisture of the whites begin to dissolve the sugar, which in turn surrounds the air bubbles, coating them and making them more stable.

There are a few basic rules to keep in mind for making a successful meringue. All utensils must be impeccably clean and dry. Make sure that no traces of fat of any kind come in contact with the egg whites, whethere in the form of grease on the utensils or other equipment or from traces of egg yolks in the whites themselves. Fat will interfere with the protein stands which will prevent the egg whites from developing into a foam. A small amount of an acid (cream of tartar, lemon juice, or vinegar) will relax the proteins,helping to stabilize the meringue. You can introduce an acid simply by wiping the bowl clean with lemon juice or vinegar before adding the egg whites or by adding a small amount of cream of tartar to the whites just as they begin to foam. Never use cream of tartar when whipping in a coppor bowl, as it will cause a toxic reaction, turning the whites sightly green. Room temperature egg whites will whip up more readily. Be careful to use sugar that is free of impurities such as flour or other ingredients. Whip the egg whites on high speed until they are frothy, then gradually add the sugar while continuing to whip to the desired consistency (soft, medium, or stiff peak). Avoid overhwipping egg whites, as they become dry and lumpy, making them difficult to incorporate into other ingredients. Prepare meringue (espcially common meringue) just before you intend to use it, because it will begin to collapse if it stands for long time.

There are three types of meringue: common (french), swiss and Italian. Simply whipping the egg whites and sugar to the desired consistency makes common meringue. This is the simplest type of meringue to prepare and the least stable. Also, unless pasteurized whites are used, because of the potential danger of salmonella, uncooked or unbaked common meringue should not be eaten. Therefore, it is most often used in batters to provide leavening. It can also be used for making merinuge shells, bases or layers for cakes, and for piping simple decorations that are baked.

Swiss meringue is made by stirring the egg whites with sugar using a whip ove a hot water bath until they reach a temperature between 115*F and 165*F/46and 74*C, depending on the intended use. The whites are then whipped in a mixer to the desired peak. The meringue can be piped and baked, or dried, in the oven. Swiss meringue can also be used for the same preparations as common meringue to lighten mousses and creams, to fill various cakes, or to add a delicate piped shell border or other decoratie element. Swiss meringue is more stable than common meringue.

Italian meringue is made by whipping the egg whites in a mixer and then adding a cooked sugar syrup. The sugar is cooked to the soft ball stage (240*F/116*C) and added in a thin, steady stream to the whipping egg whites when they have reached the medium peak stage. The whites are then mixed on a medium speed to the desired peak. Italian meringue is the most stable of the meringues and is used in various mousses, buttercreams and for decor work.(above topic taken from baking and pastry)

Expanding Poaching's potential

The above photos and the topic is taken from Food arts magazine

For many chefs, low-temperture cooking conjures images of vacum bags and avant-grade good,but one extremely classic technique well-suited to low temperature cooking is poaching in fat and it doesn''t require a bag.

Low-temperature cooking is often confused with sous-vide cooking. Sous-vide uses vacum packaging, regardless of cooking temperture. Boil in bag qualifies as sous-vide. Low temperature cooking is the technique with temperatures cloe to, or equal to, the food's final desired internal temperature, whether a vacuum bag is used or not. Only two things are required for low-temperature cooking: very accurate tmeperature control (in the world of low-temperature cooking, a single degree celsius can be a big deal; egg yolks go from liquid to creamy to set beteween 62 and 64*F or 144 to 147F) and a good heat ransfer medium, usually water or water vapor.

Immersion cirulators are fantastic little piences of equipment designed to do this job. Over the past year or so the price of ciruclators has dropped below $1,000, helping them to proliferate in kitchens across the country. They come in different varieites, but the type most chefs use plungs inot a normal 120 volt socket, takes up less space than a blender, and can be clamped onto any pot, bus tub or deep hotel pan. Essentially the cirulators consists of a 1,000 watt heating element, a temperature sensor, a stirring pump (to keep the temperature even throughout the cooking medium), and an electronic control cirucuit. Typically, these cirulators use water as the cooking medium, but water is not the only choice. They're designed to cirulate oil as well.

Circulators with oil has many advantages:

• No speical sous-vde HACCP permits are required.
• No expensive vacuum machine is necessary
• poaching in oil or fat can add flavor and mouthfeel without leaching out the flavor as water would.
• Oil paching and foods cooked a la confit are classic, respected, and customer accepted technique
• A circulator can heat a larger volume of oil than it can water because it takes less energy to heat oil than water.
• Treated properly, the oil can last a long time because it's not being overheated.
• Oil des not evoperate as water does.

Cherry clafouti

This is a recipe that serves for 4 people

For the clafouti

Eggs 6ea
Sugar 3oz
Vanilla bean Split and scraped 1ea
Salt 1 pinch
Brown Rum 2Tbsp
Milk 3/4cup
Flour 3oz
Butter for greasing
Fresh Cherreis pitted 1.5#

For the Cherry Sauce

Fresh Cherries pitted 1Cup
Confectioners sugar 1Tbsp

For the Garnish

Fresh Cherries
Melted White chocolate
Confectioners Sugar
Cookie twirls
Mint

Directions:

For the clafouti: Crack the eggs into a bowl, and sugar and whisk together until foamy. Add the vanilla bean and salt, whisk in the rum and milk, then fold in the flour. Liberally grease four oven-proof remekins with the butter. Fill each ramekin 1/4 full with the batter. Divide the cherries evenly among the remekins, and fill to the top with the remaining batter. Bake in a 325* oven for 40 minutes. Remove, allow to cool slightly, then turn the clafoutis out of the remekins.

For the cherry sauce: Place the cherries and sugar together in a blender and puree to a smooth consistency.

To Serve: Cut a wedge out of the clafouti, positon together on the plate, and spoon the sauce onto the plate beside it. Place fresh cherries on the plate and drizzle the chocolate over them. Garnish the dish with the confectioner's sugar, cookies and mint.

Culinary Creations the Pastry way

BLOW SUGAR CREATION

Though you may not understand what they speak in the video, it is worth the art and the skill in which it is done.

CREME BRULEE