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The Flying Culinary Circus From left to right: Tor Jørgen Kramprud Arnesen, Trond Svendgard Hans-Kristian Larsen, Mathias Spieler Bugge, Grilled Mackerel with Slices of Lemon, Summer Cabbage & Bacon, Boiled New Potatoes, and Sour Cream Culinary Salmon Burger” with Grilled Asparagus, Beef Tomatoes, Buffalo Mozzarella, Mixed Garden Salad, Parmesan Cheese and Tarragon Aioli

Los Angeles, CA, Aug 25, 2010 – The Flying Culinary Circus (TFCC), the first international chef group, want Americans to set aside the traditional hamburger and experiment with new flavors on the grill. The team of four chefs from Norway, travel the globe to cook and entertain at the world’s exclusive events and destinations.  The most popular food being requested of them right now is Norwegian seafood.  With summer here and the Labor Day holiday just around the corner, the chefs have some great tips and unique recipes that will liven up any dinner party and make summer grilling with seafood fun for everyone.

Experiment with New Ingredients
According to the fish and seafood expert in The Flying Culinary Circus, Trond Svendgård, one top trend that they are noticing at events worldwide is a demand in Norwegian seafood. “Dropping the traditional burgers and steaks, and using seafood such as crayfish, scallops, halibut, salmon, mackerel, and cod is a bold move, but it livens up a party,” says Trond. “Make something that your guests would not expect, and don’t be afraid to experiment with new ingredients and flavors you have never used before. Instead of making a traditional hamburger, try making ‘the world’s best Salmon burger’ with grilled asparagus, tarragon aioli, tomatoes and a fresh garden salad.” Also, try switching and changing out ingredients in recipes that you think will taste well together. “There are no rules when you are cooking. The most important thing is to taste everything several times to make sure you get the results you want.”

Pamper your palate
To make a great meal, Chef Mathias Spieler Bugge recommends sourcing the best products and ingredients possible. “It’s important to use seafood of high quality, and then make sure you don’t over cook it. Grilling on a barbeque at the right temperature is key. For a whole piece of fish, or a thick piece, you need to keep it at a lower temperature to avoid burning the fish. Brush the seafood with a neutral oil, and grill the seafood to perfection. It should have a nice caramelized outside without getting dry and over cooked.”

Marinade the seafood after grilling instead of before
Most cooks marinade their meats and fish before putting them on the barbeque.  However, it is much easier to grill, and avoid burning the seafood if you marinade it after. Just before serving the fish, chop some parsley and garlic, mix with freshly squeezed lemon juice and olive oil, add salt and pepper, and then pour or brush the marinade on top of the seafood.

Charcoal vs Propane barbeques
While propane gas grills are very popular, the Chefs actually recommend using a traditional charcoal barbeque. “You get a lot more taste, and the time it takes to fire up the BBQ will make sure all the guests are really hungry. The best seasoning in the world is hunger,” says Chef Trond.

Good things come to those that wait
It’s important to remember to be patient when you’re at the helm of the barbeque. And, if you are using a barbeque with traditional coal or wood, make sure you wait until it’s at the right temperature to begin cooking.  A good idea is to have some games or a quiz prepared to entertain your guests while waiting.

Pair it up
As far as pairings go, here are a few examples of vegetables that go well with any of TFCC’s Norwegian seafood recipes: Grilled green asparagus, summer cabbage cooked with a little bit of water and butter, boiled new potatoes, sautéed spinach, sautéed cauliflower, and glazed baby carrots.  A cold bottle of white wine also goes well with the seafood.

Planning makes perfect
Planning ahead for your barbeque party will relieve some of the stress the day of the party.  Also, it gives you time to shop and find the best deals on quality seafood, such as Norwegian seafood.

Of course, don’t forget to have fun!
The Chefs want to encourage cooks to have as much fun as possible while they are at the barbeque. “Summer grilling is already fun, so all you have to do is invite all the people you like and have a great meal. You can even include your guests in the cooking too.  Happy people make happy food,” says Mathias.

Below are two easy-to-make grilling recipes from The Flying Culinary Circus:
Grilled Mackerel with Slices of Lemon, Summer Cabbage & Bacon, Boiled New Potatoes, and Sour Cream.
Ingredients:
2 whole mackerels (or approximately 2 pounds and 6 oz)
1 lemon
1 spring/summer cabbage
¼ pound smoked pork bacon
2 oz or ¼ cup good butter
1 pound, 5 oz of new potatoes
1 box sour cream
Salt & pepper
Method:

• Slice/cut the cabbage and bacon into thin strips. Pack cabbage and bacon inside aluminum -foil with good butter, salt, pepper and a little bit of water
• Boil the new potatoes in salted water until ready
• Put the aluminum-foil with cabbage and bacon on the barbeque. Cook until the cabbage is cooked. The length time on the grill depends on the thickness of the cabbage.
• Brush the mackerel with neutral oil, and season with salt and pepper inside the belly. Grill the mackerel on both sides of the fish until it looks ready. Don’t overcook the fish, but take it off the barbeque before you think it is ready and check that it is thoroughly cooked. Small pieces of fish cook much quicker than bigger pieces, so try to take note of the thickness.
• Serve with sour cream

Culinary Salmon Burger” with Grilled Asparagus, Beef Tomatoes, Buffalo Mozzarella, Mixed Garden Salad, Parmesan Cheese and Tarragon Aioli
Ingredients:
1 ½ pound filet of Norwegian salmon without skin
16 green asparagus
2 beef tomatoes
Mixed garden salad
2 oz parmesan cheese
6 oz mozzarella
4 burger buns
Salt & pepper
Aioli:
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp mustard
1 tsp vinegar
¾ cup neutral oil (sunflower)
1 lemon
Fresh tarragon
Method:

• Start making the aioli by mixing the egg yolk, mustard and vinegar in a small bowl with an aluminum whisk. Pour little by little of the oil into the bowl while whisking until you have used all the oil. Season with salt, pepper, chopped tarragon and fresh lemon juice. (If you don’t want to make your own aioli, you can buy sour cream and season with salt, pepper, freshly squeezed lemon juice and chopped tarragon)
• Slice tomatoes and season with olive oil, salt and pepper
• Grate parmesan cheese
• Clean the salad
• Slice the buffalo mozzarella
• Cut the salmon filet in four pieces and brush with a little bit of neutral oil. Season with salt and pepper. Put the fish on the barbeque, and leave it on one side until it is almost cooked through. Turn the filets to the other side, and cook it for 30 seconds on the other side. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the fish.
• Grill the burger buns for 20 seconds on each side and let your guests put together their own “Flying Culinary Salmon Burger” with additional toppings of their choice.

For more information on the Flying Culinary Circus, please go to www.fccircus.com or go to their electronic press kit at http://www.ballantinespr.com/FCC/.
To interview The Flying Culinary Chefs, please contact:

Erika Maya
Ballantines PR
erika@ballantinespr.com
Tel: +1.310.454.3080
Mob: +1.310.850.0309
www.ballantinespr.com

From left to right:
Mathias Spieler Bugge,
Tor Jørgen Kramprud Arnesen,
Hans-Kristian Larsen,
Trond Svendgard

Skreifiske

Salmon cages in Loppa

Sashimi

Coffee Connoisseurs Bring About The Luxury Coffee Renaissance

Sanani, the Original Mocha Coffee, makes its triumphant return to America

Dallas, Texas, June 29, 2010 –As coffee giants such as Starbucks continue to add varieties to their already abundant catalog, the world of coffee continues to expand. It seems a new brand or blend is introduced daily, and the options are becoming overwhelming to the regular cup-a-joe consumer. Amidst all of this clutter, one major trend has begun to emerge – the rise of the luxury coffee class.

Even in this economy, expensive coffees are still becoming more highly sought after. While McDonalds is making a killing selling their $0.99 cups of coffee, there are still those who seek a more gourmet experience. Those with discerning palates fancy themselves to be coffee connoisseurs – an idea that has been lost through the centuries and is just now beginning to resurface. Centuries ago, French enlightenment thinkers such as Voltaire & Rousseau, and later Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were some of the early coffee elitists. Voltaire was even known to drink around 40 cups of coffee per day!

Finally in the 21st century, it’s again becoming acceptable to treat fine coffees like you would fine wines. Enjoy a cup of single-origin, fair-trade brew after a gourmet meal, and spend up to $10 on a single cup. It’s worth the price. These beans come from specific regions and are prized for their unique characteristics. What consumers buy into is the quality and, in most cases, the story behind the cup.

Take Sanani Coffee, a single-origin original Mocha coffee straight from the arid region of Yemen where coffee was born. Up until the seventeenth century, the Middle East was the only place coffee was actually grown and cultivated. Tariq Ausaf discovered this fact and recognized the value in re-introducing the original mocha bean to America – and thus Sanani was born.

“We’ve successfully captured the sophisticated flavor that put Mocha on the map centuries ago, and when you consider the fact that a part of the American Constitution was contemplated over this very same coffee, it’s like drinking a rich flavorful cup of history,” Ausaf says.

This original mocha bean was the first to be introduced to the Parisian elite in 1669 by the visiting Turkish ambassador to France. And this very coffee led to the opening of the first truly French coffee house, Café Procope.

Sanani’s beans are still cultivated and processed in the exact same way they were centuries ago. No chemicals or pesticides are used in its cultivation, and due to the primitive growing process this coffee finds itself way ahead of the organic race in its organic purity – not by choice, but by chance. It’s the intrinsic value of quality like this that makes price merely a number.

Other world-class beans making a name for themselves are: St. Helena Coffee, which Napoleon Bonaparte became a fan of during his exile to the island where the coffee is exclusively grown, Hacienda La Esmeralda’s Geisha coffee which is grown only in the shade of Panama’s Guava trees, and the infamous Kopi Luwak which gets its flavor from being eaten and excreted by a civet.

“As for enjoying luxury coffees” Ausaf explains, “there is nothing like starting your day with an extraordinary cup of delicious coffee and enjoying the privilege of uncommon choices.”

Sanani, the Original Mocha coffee retails for $24 for an 8.8 oz box and can be purchased at www.sanani.com

If you would like to interview Tariq Ausaf or receive press materials for Sanani, please contact:

Jenn Deese
Ballantines PR
Tel: 310 454 3080
Cell: 314 660 4643
Fax: 310 943 1978
www.ballantinespr.com