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ARTFUL GARNISH
So what does the way preparing recipes have to do with garnish
and presentation, you ask? Absolutely everything. You will be
hard-pressed to find a professional Chef who doesn’t get excited about
make food look twice as good as it taste. So the very first step to
creating this universally appealing images of food is to share the
passion for the subject.
Everyone agrees that
appetizers must be beautiful to look at. There's a direct line from the
eyes to the stomach, if something looks tantalizing it is sure to be
tasted.
Like to sample a
few?
One of their most intoxicating effects
that make your stomach growl is how the look of a plate can enchant your eyes, which in
turn makes you salivate with hunger.
Don’t you agree an important part of food
preparation is the presentation?
Here try these:
Strawberry
Fans Here
Stuffed Pepper Cups Here
Bread Bowl Here
Pineapple Boat Here
Making food look
beautiful doesn't have to take a lot of money or for that matter, time.
A bit of imagination is all that's required.
. Cheese shavings or curls are a delicious and attractive touch to a green
salad.
Chocolate shavings, curls, and fans are dramatic on desserts and are
easy to create.
Fruits and vegetables can be made into decorative shapes and added to
platters or salads. Use small pastry cutters to cut out a variety of shapes.
Parsley
is an old standby that can be used with almost anything. For something
different, try sprigs of basil, mint, tarragon or other fresh herbs.
Garnish is as Garnish
Does
Garnishes can make or break the look you are
striving to create.
·
Overblown garnishes
that engulf the food they're meant to enhance are a big no-no!
·
As are any
garnishes that are not edible! You don't want to have to warn your
guests not to eat that beautiful flower that's atop their lemon tartlet.
·
The flavor of a
garnish also needs to complement the food that it is decorating! In
other words, do not garnish a sweet fruit dip with parsley leaves! Mint
or a sprinkle of nutmeg would be a much better choice.
·
As to what to use
as a garnish, look to the world of herbs and spices. Fresh herbs like
thyme, chives, lavender flowers and the ubiquitous parsley will add
beautiful and edible touches to your appetizer.
·
When it comes to
spices, just a sprinkle of paprika, curry powder or cinnamon is sure
enliven up items such as stuffed eggs, dips and spreads.
·
Other items that
make wonderful garnishes are citrus fruit zest, sprinklings of seeds
like cumin, caraway or black sesame, little curls of Parmesan cheese, or
tiny elegant fruits like raspberries or fresh currants.
·
Sweet appetizers
can look lovely with a dusting of confectioner's sugar or cocoa powder.
·
Just remember to
keep all the garnishes simple and extraordinary. Oftentimes a single
leaf of a bright green herb is all you'll need to make your creation wow
the eye.
Essential Garnishing Tips
When planning your
next dinner party, consider these tips on what to do--and what not to
do--with garnishes.
· Avoid a
color scheme cop-out--for example, adding a red tomato garnish to every
green dish--unless, of course, the taste combination makes sense, or you
are trying to make a Christmas tree out of your plate.
· Try not to
use the same garnish on every plate (e.g., cayenne pepper or
confectioner's sugar around the plate's edge), unless, again, it makes
gustatory sense.
· Don't
repeat garnishes on different plates within the same meal. In fact,
don't repeat the main ingredients of different plates within the same
meal.
· When
deciding on garnishes, your creativity and sensibility are your only
limitations. Don't get in a parsley rut (although it's a fine garnish
for the right situation), and use ingredients in the dish itself to
decorate the plate. This is the easiest and most sensible way to
garnish, because you know you can't go wrong with matching tastes.
·
Prepare the garnish in a way that best accents natural beauty and
patterns but doesn't disrupt the dish itself: crispy, curly bacon on a
bacon flan; a blanched savoy cabbage "rib" placed gently next to its
bumpy, buttery leaves; julienned lemon zest on a citrus tart.
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