Where Branson Eats

The case for eating seafood is a good one. Not only is it tasty but it is healthy too. King Crab recipes are imaginative and there are many superb ideas for appetizers, main courses or as tidbits to hand out at parties. Crab meat is an excellent source of protein and can be incorporated into a low fat diet.

There are two major resources for this kind of food, Norway and Alaska. Both regions will produce the finest quality King Crab recipe, especially when combined with other fresh ingredients. The crab meat is a good accompaniment to most salad ingredients and vegetables and can also be combined with other seafood. There are so many ways to enjoy King Crab recipes, in wrap sandwiches, quiche, dipping sauces, and dumplings.

The Norwegian King Crab has become very popular in up market restaurants in the US and the UK. Stocks are abundant and it is hoped that the demand for this food will grow as other fish species dwindle.

An example of a Norwegian dish is Norwegian Red King Crab with White Halibut. When frying the halibut and crab meat, add lemon juice, garlic, rosemary and butter. Parties go with a zing with mango cubes filled with crab meat with a layer of salmon roe. They are colorful as well as full of flavor. Kebabs with salad are great fun too. Fry the crab meat, and toss the lettuce in olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Skewer the crab, lettuce and onion and serve with croutons and an aioli dressing.

The Bering Sea is the source for the Alaskan King Crab recipes. Crab legs are split and the meat removed. Alaska King Crab Royal can be made by grilling the crab meat with onion, parsley, tarragon, lemon juice, butter or margarine and a dash from a hot pepper bottle. Alaska meets the Orient with the Alaska stir fry, using crab meat with garlic, onion, mushrooms, tomatoes and Chinese pea pods. Seafood soup is also popular and King Crab recipes make the soup course a welcome treat. Creamed Alaskan Crab and Spinach Soup uses chicken broth, and seasoning with pepper and ground nutmeg.

There is nothing like a nourishing seafood stew on a cold winter’s day. Alaskan Seafood Stew is a gorgeous blend of different kinds of fish and herbs. It calls for Alaskan King Crab or snow crab, halibut, cod, rockfish, pollock, Dungeness and Alaskan pink shrimp. All this is cooked with onion, thyme, pimiento and parsley in white wine.

Not all dishes and snacks need to have fresh crab, canned crab meat will sometimes be appropriate. In the Caribbean, King Crab Cakes are popular and are eaten hot and cold. The canned crab meat for this King Crab recipe is prepared with mashed potato, parsley, French mustard, mayonnaise, Worcester Sauce, butter, egg, breadcrumbs and seasoning.

You’re eating dessert. All of a sudden there’s some noise at a neighboring table. Some men argue. The argument turns to shoving. One man shoves the other to the floor. He jumps up with a knife that he thrusts into the other’s chest. Hold on, there may be more to this than meets the eye says a policeman who rushes in. The dead man was shot dead, the stabbing came after. Did a gun fire? Such is a dining experience during a murder mystery dinner.

Murder mystery shows are an old tradition. Combined with dinner theater, these shows are interactive and often held at smaller venues. It’s an evening of good food and good fun. The meal quickly becomes an intricate game. A variety of types of mysteries exist. The most basic involves interacting with the actors but not being asked to engage in solving the murder. A second form is one in which guests try to solve the case. These can become very complex.

These mysteries have become popular for parties, special occasions and even entire weekends and cruises. They’ve leaked into popular culture. It’s been in movies and on television. A group gathered at a spooky house die one by one in horrible ways. One comedic version is Murder by Death. In some shows a pretend mystery dinner turns into a real crime. In an episode of the detective show ‘Monk’ the lead character has been banned from a murder mystery weekend bed and breakfast because he solved the murder in three minutes, thus ruining the weekend and losing the establishment a lot of money.

Sometimes these mysteries happen at spooky locations. Some murder mystery theater groups say that real murders have happened in their facility. It’s probably faked, but still fun. People may not believe it, but they play along for the duration.

A murder mystery dinner can be fun. There are even versions specially made for children, and the whole family can participate.

Are you a vegan or raw food vegan trying to determine how you’re going to maintain and hopefully grow your social life? One of the biggest challenges can be dining out with friends and family. There’s no avoiding this–eating out socially is probably the most popular activity in our culture.

You can absolutely eat a delicious, nutritious, vegan, and even raw meal at any restaurant, whether it caters to your particular diet or not. The most important tip for maintaining this type of diet is thinking ahead and bringing type of supplemental snack with you!

Most likely you’re going to be ordering a salad at the restaurant. Perhaps it will be a chicken salad without the chicken, a shrimp salad without the shrimp, or an order or two of the simple house garden salad. If the restaurant offers an organic or local salad–even better for you!

By looking at the salads and entree side vegetables on the menu, you can actually put together your own salad. Don’t be afraid to ask for a “customized” salad for your lunch or dinner. You can always ask for a large salad with spinach or mixed greens as the base, with a couple of different diced raw vegetables or fruits on it. And to step up your salad a notch, you can ask for as many different colored vegetables as possible. To determine if the restaurant has avocados in their kitchen or not, scan the menu for guacamole or avocado as an extra or a side. Now you can request avocado to be added to your salad to make it extra satiating.

It’s best to be as kind and discrete as possible with your server and they will most likely do their very best to assist you. Your salad can be the most beautiful and artistic salad the restaurant has ever made! It might just have other customers turning their heads to ask where it was on the menu and complimenting you on your choice. As for salad dressing, safe bets are usually the restaurant’s vinaigrette, some lemon slices, or oil and vinegar.

In case your salad and vegetables does nut supply your body with the calories, fat, or protein that it’s used to, you may want to bring a long a supplemental snack. You may be very glad you did in case it will be hours before you get a chance to eat again. In your purse or jacket pocket, you could bring along some trail mix, dried fruit (can double as a dessert!), your favorite on-the-go snack bar, etc in a small plastic baggie.

Its very important for your vegan or raw food success to do whatever it takes for you to feel full and happy with your dinner so you feel comfortable enough to be in the present moment with your dinner party. The worst thing would be for you to be still hungry and thinking about food–missing out on all the conversation!

You could also supplement your salad with super-nutritious foods such as hemp seeds and sea veggies but be prepared, as this could definitely turn some heads. It depends on how comfortable you are around the party you’re with. There is a well-known raw foodist in Chicago who does this to her salads at cooked-food restaurants and swears by it. She knows it raises the vibration of the food before it reaches her mouth.

More tips for dining out at a regular restaurant on a vegan or raw-food diet:

Candied nuts and seeds often are added to salads and are coated with sugar so beware if you’re avoiding sugar or excess oil. Watch for cheese or dairy-based salad dressings that come automatically on the salad if you don’t ask for them to be held. A date or some dried fruit and a small piece of chocolate is a great idea to bring with you for your own personal after meal dessert, especially if everyone in your party will be ordering dessert after the meal. Plain steamed vegetables make a great side or entree to your salad if you’re not on a 100% raw food diet.

Others in your party may or may not notice what you’re doing. If you’re comfortable, confident, and nonchalant about what you’re doing, they probably wont notice. They’re more likely to notice and focus on you if you feel uncomfortable and embarrassed about it yourself. Others may be a bit interested in what you’re eating and will even comment on how good your food looks!

Try to have a simple definition planned and rehearsed about your diet that you can give others if and when they ask. The easiest line to give is “I’m just trying something new out right now,” or “This is just how I prefer to eat right now and I’m feeling the results already.” Whatever you say, try to say it in the most positive and confident way possible.

Yet another option asked out to eat with a large group of people is to eat before and simply tell everyone that you had a late lunch or breakfast. Most people understand why you won’t be ordering anything if you say this. This comes in handy if you’re still not comfortable dining out with others on your new diet. Just be sure to pack some sort of snack with you in case you’ll be out for a while and hunger does strike.

No matter what type of diet you adhere to, hopefully you will now to able to comfortably eat out at any sort of restaurant. Eating out may not be as enjoyable as it used to be when it comes to the food–because you are now eating much more nutritious meals at home but maintaining that social component is very important for your long term success of your diet. Maybe next time you’re friends want to meet up for a meal you could propose a new vegan or raw food restaurant that you’ve never been to before. They might have a change of heart on how delicious and beautiful these meals can be!