Now might not seem like the time to become a culinary whizz, but just because a hurricane is barrelling towards us doesn't mean we have to revert to our student days.

Back then it was fine to survive on crackers and spam. After all money was better spent on nightlife... and books.

But now, the thought of meal after meal of Chef Boyardee is, well, unpalatable.

So it was time to do what all home cooks in crisis do, turn to the Internet. Just my luck, Daphne Nikolopoulos, author of 'The Storm Gourmet', has survived several serious storms in Florida and done it with panache.

Yesterday, she wished Bermuda luck and explained that she knew what it is like to be forced to rely on tinned goods for days on end.

"The book was borne of frustration, really," she said. "I was in two back-to-back storms in 2004 and another in 2005, when we lost power for 14 days and were completely unprepared.

"With nothing on hand other than peanut butter, cans of tuna and protein bars, I started to experiment with things in the pantry, and came up with "no cook" versions of some of my favourite recipes, such as Salade Nicoise and Tiramisu. To this day, these are two of my favourite recipes! I make them even when we do have power."

Here are some of the delicious meals from 'The Storm Gourmet', some require a small camping stove while others require no cooking at all.

Ms Nikolopoulos advises home chefs to buy tinned protein labelled premium of white meat if they can afford it as the quality is higher and the food less processed.

Almost-instant –black bean chilli –— serves four

2 15.5-ounce cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1 16-ounce jar salsa (hot or mild)

2 to 3 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon dehydrated minced onion

1 8-ounce can corn, drained

1 cup water, or as needed

Combine ingredients in a saucepan, reserving half the corn. Cover and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally. Add as much water as needed to create a sauce and to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring frequently until heated through, about 15 minutes. Garnish with the remaining corn.

Salade Nicoise– — serves four

2 (6-ounce) cans light tuna in extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

2 (14.5-ounce) cans sliced white potatoes

1 (14.5 ounce) can French green beans

1 cup marinated artichokes, quartered

1 tablespoon capers

¼ cup pitted and halved Kalamata or other black olives

Anchovies (optional)

Salt and pepper

Dressing

7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 ½ tablespoons prepared Dijon mustard

Pinch salt

¼ teaspoon cracked pepper

In a small bowl, toss tuna with lemon juice. Set aside.

In a large salad bowl, combine potatoes, beans, artichokes, capers, olives and anchovies. Season with salt and pepper and toss well. Add tuna. In a screw-top jar, combine dressing ingredients. Shake vigorously until creamy and frothy. Pour over salad and serve.

Curried chicken –— serves two

14 ounces (2 packages) premium chicken breast, drained

½ cup canned sliced water chestnuts, drained

? cup canned pineapple titbits, drained

2 tablespoons raisins

? cup slivered almonds

1 ½ teaspoons curry powder

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons table cream

Pepper

Place chicken, pineapple, water chestnuts, raisins and almonds in a medium-sized bowl and toss together. Season with pepper.

In a screw-top jar, combine cream, lemon juice, soy sauce and curry powder and shake vigorously.

Pour over chicken mixture and toss to coat.

Consolation couscous — serves four

2 cups water or vegetable broth (canned or packaged, or from cubes)

1 cup couscous

1 tablespoon dehydrated minced onion

1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 15-ounce can mixed vegetables, drained

½ cup chopped pecans or slivered almonds

¼ cup golden or regular raisins

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in the couscous and the onion. Cover, turn off the heat, and let the mixture sit for 10 minutes.

Stir in the chickpeas, vegetables, pecans and raisins. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Tiramisu

The name means "pick me up" in Italian, probably because of the quantity of coffee and sugar.

4 tbsp instant coffee

4 tbsp sugar

12 oz water

2 tbsp Kahlua coffee liqueur

3 oz (approximately 25) ladyfingers

2 cups canned table cream

¾ cup unsifted confectioners sugar

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

¼ cup cocoa powder, sifted

¼ cup confectioners sugar, sifted

In a martini shaker, combine sugar, water, and coffee and shake vigorously. Taste mixture to ensure it is strong and sweet. Add Kahlua and stir. Pour into spouted container, omitting froth. Line the bottom of a 9 x 9 pan with ladyfingers in a tight arrangement (ladyfingers should be touching, but not overlapping, each other).

Pour coffee mixture over ladyfingers, taking care to soak each completely. In a bowl, combine cream and vanilla until blended. With a wire whisk, stir in sugar gradually until mixture is smooth.

Spoon mixture over biscuits. Top with sifted cocoa, then sifted sugar. Let sit at least one hour before serving.