Homer and well-known Alaska chefs Kirsten and Mandy Dixon are featured in the season premiere of “Moveable Feast With Fine Cooking.”

The show airs at 1:30 p.m. on KAKM/Alaska Public Media. 

In the episode, host Pete Evans travels to Homer to team up with mother-daughter duo, Kirsten and Mandy Dixon, to explore Alaska cuisine. The Dixons take Pete on an adventure to forage ingredients for their feast. Mandy prepares a wild foraged salad along with the signature Tutka Bay sling cocktail, while her mom, Kirsten, makes the main dish, fisherman’s stew with mussels, crab, scallops, tomato broth. 

The Dixons are well known for their culinary talents. Both Kirsten, who has been cooking in Alaska’s backcountry for more than 20 years, and Mandy are Le Cordon Bleu trained chefs who have cooked and studied with Julia Child and Thomas Keller. Mandy represented Alaska in 2014 during the 11th annual Great American Seafood Cook-Off in New Orleans.

Partners in Within the Wild Adventure Company, the Dixons own Tutka Bay Lodge and the Cooking School at Tutka Bay across Kachemak Bay, as well as La Baleine Café on the Homer Spit and Winterlake Lodge on the Iditarod Trail.

Produced by WGBH and Fine Cooking magazine, this season’s “Moveable Feast With Fine Cooking” includes 13 delicious stops on public television.

As Pete travels across the United States, he’s joined by some of the nation’s best chefs and food artisans as they source the finest local ingredients for each episode’s spontaneous and fast-paced feast. 

They share tips and exchange stories while creating a mouthwatering menu to share with family and friends. 

In addition to Homer, this season, “Moveable Feast with Fine Cooking” travels to such different venues as the Hawaiian Islands, a cattle ranch in Texas and an exotic fruit and spice park in Florida. Viewers will learn firsthand about the culinary richness each region has to offer and the inspiration behind what the chefs are cooking. 

“Fine Cooking magazine and Moveable Feast tap into a passion for cooking and offer inspiration to home cooks as they discover ingredients, techniques and tips,” says Kathy Kingsley, editorial director of Fine Cooking. “We’re very excited about this season. We’re cooking in some amazing locations with such talented chefs and artisans — and the food is outstanding.”

Alaskan King Crab Beignets with Aïoli

By Kirsten Dixon from ‘Moveable Feast with
Fine Cooking,’ which airs at 1:30 p.m.
Sunday on Alaska Public Media/KAKM. 

King crabs are most often eaten as steamed crab legs dipped in butter, but here they’re incorporated into a savory beignet, with a nori-laced aïoli for dipping.  

Ingredients for the seaweed aïoli

•1/3 cup mayonnaise 

•2 Tbs. chopped roasted seaweed, such as nori 

•2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil 

•2 tsp. sherry vinegar 

•2 tsp. Dijon mustard, preferably Maille 

•1 small shallot, minced 

•Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

Directions:

Make the aïoli.

Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Ingredients for the beignets

•8 cups canola oil, for frying 

•6 Tbs. unsalted butter 

•1 cup chicken broth 

•Kosher salt 

•1 cup bread flour 

•1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg 

•4 large eggs 

•1/2 lb. Alaskan king crabmeat, lightly rinsed and coarsely chopped (from about 1 lb. in-shell crab) 

•1/4 cup grated Gruyère cheese 

•1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese 

•1-1/2 Tbs. sliced fresh chives 

•Freshly ground black pepper 

•Mixed greens of choice, for serving 

Directions:

Make the beignets.

Pour the canola oil into a 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven or heavy-duty pot. Attach a deep-fry or candy thermometer to the side of the pot and heat the oil to 350°F. 

In a heavy-bottom 3-quart saucepan, combine the butter, chicken broth, and a pinch of salt. Bring the mixture to a boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the flour and nutmeg. Using a wooden spoon, stir until a smooth dough forms and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool. Transfer the mixture to a food processor. Pulse while adding 1 egg at a time, processing until they become incorporated into the dough, about 30 seconds each. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Fold in the crab, cheeses, and chives. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. 

Fry about 6 beignets at a time, dropping the dough into the pot using 2 tablespoons. Turn the beignets occasionally with a slotted spoon, until they are golden on all sides, about 4 minutes total. Drain on a rack set over paper towels and season with salt as soon as they are removed from the pot. 

Serve

On individual serving plates, arrange the beignets on a bed of mixed greens and serve the aïoli on the side.