Cooking Events at Cook's
Emporium
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We are fortunate to
have talented instructors that gladly share their expertise in
delightful ways. Please join us in our kitchen every Saturday
morning this winter!
Cooking demos begin promptly at 10:00am
each Saturday. Class fee of $5. Pre-registration is not needed.
Please note that seating is on a first-come basis. We suggest early
arrival for best seating.
Saturday, March 27,
2010 - Croquettes with Beatriz Spalding. These little balls
can be made out of rice and stuffed with meat or cheese or can be
formed into small cylinders, ovals or rounds. True to Beatriz' style
-- you're gonna love this one.
Saturday - April 3,
2010 - Profiteroles (Cream Puffs) with Beatriz Spalding. A
classic dessert. These small round cream puffs are served cold
with a sweet filling and sometimes a topping. Don't ever
expect to have leftovers!
Saturday - April 10,
2010 - Strawberry Cream Crepes with Margaret Welder. As
satisfying as they are to eat, it can also be just as satisfying to
make these delicious crepes yourself!
Saturday - April 17,
2010 - Indian Cooking with Rama Sridhar
How fortunate we
are to live in a much more diverse culinary era. We invite you
to explore Indian cooking with Rama this
morning.
There are more
demos scheduled for this spring -- check out the details on our
website!
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KNIFE SKILLS
CLINIC
Thursday,
April 22, 2010 - 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Learn basic knife skills, as well as the
different blade shapes and their uses while Clark Stone, Wusthof®
representative, prepares something for you to sample. Each
participant will receive a FREE Wusthof® paring knife.
Pre-registration and pre-payment required. Please contact us
to reserve your space as soon as possible. Space is limited.
Cost is $40.00.
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Did You Know This About
That?
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Eggs-cellent
Omelets
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For breakfast, lunch,
or dinner, an omelet is a great choice. French in origin, an omelet
is not nearly as difficult as some might like it to appear. The
secret to a great omelet is a great nonstick pan. An egg's proteins
coagulate at low temperatures, and are famous for making a pan
difficult to clean. A good nonstick pan alleviates this problem with
cooking eggs whether preparing scrambled, fried, or as with an
omelet.
Single-fold vs. Double-fold - If
you prefer, an omelet can be simply folded in half and slid onto a
waiting plate. A "single-fold" omelet works well when a lot of
filling is included inside the
omelet.
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Other
Eggs-tras!
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| Omelet Variations
Fill your omelets with delicious fillings according to your
taste. Here are a few of our favorite combinations: 
- Avocado, cheddar cheese, sour
cream, salsa
- Brie, sautéed mushrooms, a sprinkle of
thyme
- Mozzarella, diced pepperoni, and tomato
sauce
- Chile con carne, cheddar cheese, sliced
scallions
- Diced bell pepper, onion, zucchini
-
Ham slice or dice, cheddar cheese
- Tomatoes diced, and a
slather of prepared pesto
- Olive tapenade, diced
tomatoes
Fluffy
Omelets
Separate the eggs and beat the whites until soft peaks are
formed. Carefully fold in beaten yolks and pour the entire mixture
into a heated pan. As the eggs cook, the air bubbles will be
captured, and an airy omelet created.
Egg White Omelets
These omelets use just the white of the egg and are often
preferred for those desiring lower calories or lower fat intake. The
egg whites may be frothed, (not beaten, however), prior to adding to
the heated pan. The  addition of herbs, tomatoes, or onion
provides good flavor enhancements.
Frittatas and Tortillas
Cousins to the omelet, an Italian frittata, or a Spanish
tortilla (see featured recipe below) are similar egg dishes where
additions, (vegetables, meat, herbs, or your choice) are added to
the egg mixture prior to cooking. The result is a thick,
pancake-like egg dish that is flipped halfway during cooking. The
"pie" is cut into wedges and served. Two nonstick pans work well for
inverting the frittata and finishing the cooking. Use a 10-12-inch
heavy-bottomed skillet.
Quiche
 A great quiche has a creamy, custard
filling encased in a tender flaky crust. Eggs are combined with milk
and/or cream to form a custard-like mixture. Additional ingredients
- limited only by the imagination - are added to the mixture or
placed in a waiting pie shell. To prevent a soggy crust, partially
prebake the shell. Use a removable bottom quiche pan or flan pan for
easy presentation. Alternatively, a deep-dish pie dish will perform
well for delicious quiches. Egg Tools
There are all kinds of
tools designed for helping enjoy eggs in every form! You'll be
inspired by the finds at our store including egg slicers for
beautiful salads, egg cups for beautiful presentations, pods for
perfect poaching, coddlers, egg rings, and so much
more!
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Smart Egg
Tips
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Tip #1: For poached eggs, add a
pinch of lemon juice or vinegar to the poaching water; the acid will
help coagulate the egg whites' proteins helping the egg keep a
better shape. Bring the water to a boil, but reduce to barely a
simmer once the eggs have been added.
Tip #2: When dyeing eggs, add a
teaspoon of vinegar to the water and food coloring mixture. The
vinegar's acid will dissolve some of the eggshell's calcium
compounds allowing for greater absorption of the color.
Tip
#3: Use pasteurized eggs for recipes that have an uncooked
egg component. The pasteurization process destroys any potential
salmonella bacteria potentially present in raw eggs. Some grocers
will carry pasteurized eggs, or, alternatively, egg substitutes sold
in cartons are pasteurized.
 Tip #4:
When adding eggs to a hot mixture, temper them first by adding a
small amount of the hot mixture to the eggs, then add the warmed
eggs to the hot mixture. This will help prevent curdling and
separation in the final product.
Tip #5: An egg mixed with a small
amount of cream or water and brushed on breads, cookies, or pastries
will result in a lovely, shiny golden surface. An egg wash will also
help garnishes such as decorative sugars, nuts, or seeds stick to
the surface of pastries during baking.
Tip #6: Rinse raw egg from cooking
utensils under cold water. Hot water will cook the egg's protein
binding it to the utensil's surface.
Tip #7: An egg that floats in water
is a very old egg and should not be eaten. The egg floats because
the air cell located in the rounded end of the egg gains air and
size as the egg ages providing
buoyancy.
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Q & A
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 Q: Some eggs tout extra Omega-3 and
Omega 6 compounds, how are these eggs different?
 A: Chickens fed flax seed
produce eggs with greater quantities of Omega-3 and Omega-6
compounds, essential fatty acids. Flax is high in these compounds
and transfer to the egg through the chicken's feed. Omega compounds
are thought to have health benefits in triglyceride and cholesterol
management.
Q: How can I keep boiled eggs from having
a green-tinged yolk?
A: The green color around
the yolk of a hard-cooked, boiled egg comes from too much heat. The
yolk is high in proteins that when exposed to too high of a
temperature for too long interact with the yolk's sulfur compounds
creating a green color. To avoid this, start hard-boiled eggs in
cool water, allow the pot to come just to a boil, then remove from
the heat. Cover the pot and allow the eggs to stand 15 minutes in
the hot water. Cool the eggs in a cold bath water and peel, or
refrigerate.
Q: What is the
best way to store eggs?
A: Eggs may be kept at room
temperature for a few days, but degrade quickly. Refrigeration
extends the shelf life of an egg greatly. The ideal storage
temperature for eggs is 40ºF. Avoid storing eggs in the door of the
refrigerator, which is typically warmer than the central
compartments. Store eggs in their original cardboard carton; it
helps to maintain a higher humidity environment while reducing odor
absorption.
Q: My omelets are not turning out - what's
wrong?
 A: There are some common issues
that arise when making omelets. Here are some troubleshooting tips:
(1) If the bottom is browning, but the top is still wet: use a lower
heat setting that allows for more even cooking. (2) If the omelet
can't be folded, there may be too many eggs for the size of pan. For
an 8-inch pan, use a maximum of 3 eggs; for a 10-inch pan, use a
maximum of 5 eggs. Also use a modest portion of filling for good
folding. (3) If the omelet is sticking to the pan, use a good
quality nonstick pan. Keep loosening the omelet from the bottom of
the pan during early stages of cooking. A little butter added to the
pan will help with sticking and will add a flavor boost.
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Cookbook Review
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Eggs by
Michel Roux. Photography by Martin Brigdale. Copyright 2005.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ.
 We thought we knew eggs pretty well, but Chef
Roux presents a decidedly French perspective on this ubiquitous food
that opens a new world of flavors and interpretations to us. Michel
Roux clearly has a reverent respect for eggs in all forms and
generously shares his secrets for coaxing great flavor from this
everyday ingredient. He states, "Like bread, eggs are one of life's
most basic and indispensable foods." He includes all the
fundamentals for eggs - boiling, poaching, frying, scrambling, and
baking. From this knowledge base, he explores a myriad of dishes
where eggs are the primary ingredient, and others where eggs provide
the essential distinctiveness to the dish as with soufflés,
custards, meringues, pasta, and many others. His personal recipes
range from eggs as the entrée to eggs as appetizers, snacks, or
desserts. You'll find authentic recipes for such classics as Quiche
Lorraine (featured below), and Classic Gruyère Soufflé, but you'll
also find some creative inspiration as with his Pear & Cinnamon
Omelet or Pistachio Crème Brûlée, and many others. The full-color
photography generously placed throughout the book is a beautiful
complement to the recipes. You'll find this book an enticing,
magnificent homage to the humble
egg.
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Three
Tasty Egg Recipes
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Recipes excerpted from Eggs by
Michel Roux. Copyright 2005. Published by John Wiley & Sons,
Inc., Hoboken NJ. Reprinted with permission of the publisher. All
rights reserved.
Scrambled Eggs
Masala
 Making scrambled eggs will never be
quite the same once you try this variation. A few simple additions
to a basic mixture of eggs and milk turn everyday fare into an
extraordinary moment. There's something about the flavors of the
onion and cilantro that bring out the best of the eggs in this
scrambled dish.
Click here to view the full,
illustrated recipe.
Click here for a printable
version of the recipe. (PDF format)
Spanish
Tortilla with Chorizo
 In Italy this would be called a
frittata, here the chorizo characterizes the dish and shifts it to a
different country of origin, Spain. Over an inch in height, and
bursting with flavor, this is a hearty egg dish that would fit
equally as well at the brunch buffet or as the featured entrée in a
rustic supper. Seconds were had by all!
Click here to view the full,
illustrated recipe.
Click here for a printable
version of the recipe. (PDF format)
Quiche
Lorraine
 For a while, we all over did it on
quiche. But, it's time to rediscover what makes quiche so popular.
This classic recipe for Quiche Lorraine has all of the original
richness included, and what a difference it makes in the results!
Each bite invited savoring and deliberate enjoyment. Serve with a
garden salad for the perfect lunch or supper.
Click here to view the full,
illustrated recipe.
Click here for a printable
version of the recipe. (PDF
format)
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In the pantheon
of nearly perfect foods, eggs are at the top of the list! Loaded
with nutrition, inexpensive, low in calories, and quick to fix, eggs
are an extraordinary food source. Uniquely packaged, eggs are a
staple in everyone's refrigerator. In this issue we entertain you
with some fast facts about eggs, explain how to make the perfect
omelet, and describe a few other favorites. We finish with some
scrumptious recipes that will have you rediscovering this
eggs-traordinary ingredient!
