Cronuts – the Croissant-donut Hybrid Causing a Frenzy with New York Pastry Fans

The new delicacy was recently added to the shelves at Dominique Ansel Bakery. Because it’s part croissant and part doughnut, the pastry chef is, appropriately, calling it a cronut.

Each one of these pastries is made from pastry dough that’s been rolled, laminated, proofed, then fried like a doughnut and coated with flavoured sugar. But that’s not all: Cronuts-to-be are also filled with a not-so-sweet Tahitian vanilla cream, given a fresh coat of rose glaze, and sprinkled with rose sugar.

Inside of the fried cronut

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Steamed King Crab Nigiri Sushi

The Sushi

The Crab – Red King Crab

New Mayo Clinic Approach Could Lead to Blood Test to Diagnose Alzheimer’s in Earliest Stage

Blood offers promise as a way to detect Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest onset, Mayo Clinic researchers say. They envision a test that would detect distinct metabolic signatures in blood plasma that are synonymous with the disease — years before patients begin showing cognitive decline. Their study was recently published online in the journal PLOS ONE.

MULTIMEDIA ALERT: For audio and video of Dr. Trushina talking about the research, visit the Mayo Clinic News Network.

Researchers analyzed cerebrospinal fluid and plasma samples from 45 people in the Mayo Clinic Study on Aging and Mayo Clinic Alzheimer’s Disease Center (15 with no cognitive decline, 15 with mild cognitive impairment and 15 with Alzheimer’s disease). They detected significant changes in the cerebrospinal fluid and plasma in those with cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s. Most important, changes in plasma accurately reflected changes in the cerebrospinal fluid, validating blood as a reliable source for the biomarker development.

The team uses a relatively new technique called metabolomics, which measures the chemical fingerprints of metabolic pathways in the cell — sugars, lipids, nucleotides, amino acids and fatty acids — to detect the changes. Metabolomics assesses what is happening in the body at a given time and at a fine level of detail, giving scientists insight into the cellular processes that underlie a disease. In this case, the metabolomic profiles showed changes in metabolites related to mitochondrial function and energy metabolism, further confirming that altered mitochondrial energetics is at the root of the disease process.

The researchers hope that identified changes in the metabolic pathways could lead to the panel of biomarkers, which can eventually be used on a larger scale for early diagnosis, monitoring of Alzheimer’s progression, and evaluating therapeutic approaches, says co-author Eugenia Trushina, Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic pharmacologist.

“We want to use these biomarkers to diagnose the Alzheimer’s disease before symptoms appear — which can be decades before people start exhibiting memory loss,” Dr. Trushina says. “The earlier we can detect the disease, the better treatment options we will be able to offer.”

Source: Mayo Clinic

A Fusion Casserole of Pork Belly

Ingredients

600 g pork belly with skin
1 carrot
3 stalks celery
1 onion
1 shallot, cut into slices
1/2 cup port wine
1½ cups chicken broth
2 tsp oil

Seasoning

2 tbsp dark soy sauce

Sauce

3 tbsp OK sauce
dash white ground pepper
1/8 tsp sesame oil

Method

1. Blanch pork in boiling water. Remove and brush with seasoning while still hot. Set aside for 30 minutes. Cut pork into thick slices.
2. Deep-fry pork in hot oil until golden brown. Remove and drain. Blanch the pork in hot water again to remove most of the grease. Drain well.
3. Peel carrot and cut into chunks. Cut celery into sections and onion into pieces.
4. Heat 2 tsp oil in a pot. Sauté carrot and celery. Add sauce and cook for one minute.
5. Add pork and port wine. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Mix in chicken stock and bring to a boil again. Turn down heat to low and simmer until the meat is tender. Serve hot.

Source: Hong Kong magazine

Today’s Comic

Healthy Frying with Rapid Air Technology

Philips Airfryer

Using Rapid Air technology, the Airfryer circulates hot air around a metal mesh cooking basket, requiring little or no oil as it fries, bakes and grills. The starfish design on the bottom of the Airfryer facilitates air circulation, ensuring foods cook evenly.

Patented Rapid Air Technology

Fried Marinated Chicken Coated Lightly with Flour