Wednesday 8 June 2011

Chopped Top Iron Chef - Oakridge, Season 1, Episode 6 - Warren vs.James - Yes We CAN!

This weeks we have Warren going head-to-head with James for the second time.  Eric was the secret shopper, the Cheftestants are provided with the following ingredients which are mostly canned and prepared foods.



Canned Spam
Canned Whole kernel Corn
Canned Swift Cooked ham 
Canned Chipotle Peppers Imitation Crab Meat fresh
Canned Artichoke Hearts
Canned Red Kidney Beans
Canned Black Beans
Canned Chick Peas
Canned Lentils
Heinz BBQ sauce
Canned Wild pink salmon
Vienna Sausage
Canned Oven roasted unsalted Almonds
Canned Unico sliced ripe olives
Canned sliced potatoes
Canned Hereford corned beef
Canned sliced mushrooms
Canned Thai kitchen coconut milk
Mr. Noodles instant noodles mushroom flavour
Egg roll wraps 
Fresh Tarragon
French Dill
Fresh Sage
fresh cabbage
French Bread  

The Chefs draw knives to determine who will choose the protein first, Warren wins and takes the Polish sausage and the canned ham.  James then takes the imitation crab and the canned salmon.  Time is then taken to plan their dishes.  Warren is preparing Chili and James decides to do a seafood chowder.

Halfway through the competition the Chefs are asked to go over their ingredient lists to ensure that they are using at least half of the mandatory ingredients.  Both Chefs fall short and must add items from the list.


The final dishes are presented:






Chef Warren presents a sausage, ham and multi-bean Chili with Polenta fries topped with a tomato relish and a buttered Crostini.


Chef James serves a creamy Seafood Chowder with clams, shrimp, scallops and salmon topped with roasted almonds accompanied with a Biscuit stuffed with a Cabbage Slaw.

The judging begins and after much deliberation the results are in...

Presentation - Warren

Creativity - Warren

Taste - Warren

So once again Warren takes the win and is named Iron Chef because he has competed three times and is undefeated.  

James, however, wins best dish with his Chowder.  The Judges felt that there were some problems with the execution of James overall meal, the way he plated the biscuit on top of his Chowder cost him valuable points.  If he had served it differently, there may have been a different outcome.

Next week's challenge to be determined.








Tuesday 31 May 2011

Chopped Top Iron Chef - Oakridge, Season 1, Episode 5 - Eric vs. Warren - PASTA PALOOZA

OMG! What fun!  Ron as the "shopper" stepped up the competition and declared this episode as a HOMEMADE PASTA CHALLENGE.  The Cheftestants must make a dish featuring fresh pasta, a difficult task as the Chefs have never made homemade pasta before - let the games begin!




The other secret ingredients were:




Capers
Potatoes
Spinach
Lemons
Limes
Mushroom
Cheddar cheese
Smoked Gouda
Butter lettuce
Four kinds of tomato sauce
Eggs
Flour
Oil
Pesto
Green onions
Pillsbury gladly rolls
Butter
Flax bread
Spicy hot peppers
Shrimp
Ground beef
Spolumbo spicy Italian sausage
Bacon
Baby calms
Craft singles
Milk
Cream
Sour Cream



The Cheftestants will be using a KitchenAid Mixer and are provided with 2 different pasta recipes.  


After some initial prep Eric begins the pasta making process with some assistance from Ron.  The first recipe proves to be less than ideal, but the second recipe (with some tweaking) works fine.  We learn that making pasta is FUN!  Eric and Warren discuss their plans so not to duplicate dishes.

Warren decides on Spaghetti and Meat Balls.  Here is Warren in action:



Eric is going with a baked lasagna with both white and spinach pasta with a light sausage bechamel sauce.  

Here is Eric presenting his spinach pasta with Warren and James looking on.  Here is a hint for anyone ever making fresh pasta - FLOUR!  After you have your raw pasta made, keep it well floured or it will stick together as Eric learned the hard way, he had to redo his pasta at the last minute, but it still came out pretty good.  We also learned that fresh pasta is very forgiving!


James, a judge this week, decides he will use some of the ingredients to create a dessert.  He comes up with an innovative recipe for Key Lime Tarts using potatoes. (Potatoes?!?!)  More on that later....

The time flies by and things really heat up in preparation for plating...

bubble, bubble, toil and trouble....
service with a smile....




The Judges, Richard and James, awaiting the final product in the dining room.
The final dishes are presented.  Chef Warren presents homemade spaghetti and meatballs in a zesty tomato sauce with a light colorful salad and cheesy garlic bread.


Chef Eric serves his bi-colored lasagna with a sausage bechamel sauce accompanied by a crostini with caper-pesto tapenade and garlic shrimp.



Tasting begins and everyone is happy with how the main ingredient, PASTA, turned out.  Both dishes are successful and tasty.  The judges will have their work cut out for them.  The overall favorite dish of the night is Eric's lasagna, but now the formal results:

Creativity:  Eric
Presentation:  Warren
Taste: Warren

So Warren takes the win.  CONGRATULATIONS!!!!


Here are the current standings:



                        Wins            Losses



Ron                   1                     2
Warren              2                     0
James               1                     1
Richard             0                     1
Eric                   1                     1 

Now back to James' dessert...



The Key Lime Tarts with meringue look fabulous, but unfortunately they did not deliver in taste.  The texture of the filling was not ideal and lime flavor a bit over powering.  But we do appreciate the effort, desserts are difficult and we may have to do a desserts only episode in the future.  Until you cook again James, you are back on "Redemption Kitchen Island".


Favorite dish recipe - Bi-color Lasagna:

Ingredients:

PASTA -
4 cups flour
4 eggs
1 cup water
1 cup spinach (pureed and drained)

BECHEMEL SAUCE -
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup flour
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
nutmeg
pepper
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

SAUSAGE FILLING -
4 hot sausage links
6 slices bacon
olive oil
garlic
onion
pepper
Tablespoon dry oregano
6 sun dried tomatoes

OTHER -
1 cup spinach
4 scallions
1/2 cup canola oil
2 Tablespoons parmesan cheese

Directions:


Prepare the pasta in two batches.  In one add half the flour and two eggs to a KitchenAid Mixer with the paddle attachment.  Beat at medium speed adding water as needed for dough to become a ball.  For the second batch add the puree of spinach and water until dough becomes a ball.  Roll out the pasta into long lasagna sheets following KitchenAid directions.  Set pasta aside and flour liberally to keep it from sticking together.


For the bechamel sauce melt the butter and add the flour to make a roux and cook for a few minutes.  Add the milk and cream and whisk till smooth.  Add the pepper, nutmeg and parmesan cheese and set aside.


For the filling remove the sausage from its casing and saute with the bacon, garlic and onions.    Add the pepper and oregano. As you brown the mixture crumble the sausage into little pieces.  When the sausage is completely cooked (20 - 30 minutes on medium/high heat) put in a bowl, add chopped sun dried tomatoes and set aside.


bechamel sauce evenly on each layer.  Also make one layer with just bechamel sauce and fresh spinach.  When all the layering is complete top with remaining bechamel sauce and the parmesan cheese.  Bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 30 - 45 minutes or until the top layer is lightly browned.  Let the lasagna cool for 15 minutes and slice into desired serving sizes.


For the garnish, thinly slice the scallions and fry in oil until crispy.  Drain and then place on top of lasagna and sprinkle with additional parmesan cheese.  


Serve and enjoy. 



Next episode to be announced.

  

Thursday 26 May 2011

Top Chef Canada - Episode 7 Recap


Top Chef Canada continues to delight and surprise us each week.  With nine chefs remaining, representing Canada from coast to coast (although almost half the contestants are from Toronto), this season continues to deliver fun Quickfires and innovative Elimination Challenges.  This Canadian version seems to focus more on the food and less on drama and conflict - although there have been some biting talking-head interviews.

This weeks quest Judge is announced, it is Chef Michael Smith, a well known Food Network personality.


The Quickfire challenge is to make an innovative and interesting dish using Kellogg's All-Bran Cereal.

 My first thoughts were to use the All-Bran as a crust or a filler which most of the Chefs do.  The Least favorites were Patrick - a breaded scallop dish that was very complicated and kind of ugly.  Francois - made gnocchi that were dry.  Rob - burnt chicken wings.  The best were Darryl's crunchy shrimp, Andrea's dumplings, and Todd's East Coast cod balls that take the win.  Todd also wins immunity in the elimination challenge.  Todd continues to showcase his Newfoundland ingredients, so far he has used salt cod, moose meat and seal flipper - not items we all have in our pantry, I don't know if I would be rushing to his kitchen for these delicacies.

The Elimination Challenge is to cook something familiar with a twist.  The winning dishes will be featured on the menu at Milestones Restaurants across Canada.  The chefs draw knives to determine what course they will be serving, either a starter, an entree, or a dessert.



Each Chef gets 20 minutes and $250 to shop at Loblaws.  They then get 90 minutes to prep and they will actually prepare their dishes at a Milestones Restaurant and serve it to couples on a romantic date.

Starters:

TOP DISH:  Connie makes Pork Croquettes with Onion Rings and a Chili Pepper Aioli Dipping Sauce.

BOTTOM DISH:  Andrea makes Ravioli Stuffed with Black Garlic and Goat Cheese with Panchetta, Olives, Arrugala Puree and Basil Seedlings.


Todd prepares a Nori Wrapped Salmon with Marinated Rice, Slaw and a Plum Dipping Sauce

Mains:

TOP DISH:  Francois prepared a Roasted Sablefish with Seaweed Gnocchi with a Tamarind Jus.

Rob made a Grilled Ontario Sirloin with a Goat Cheese Pave, Parsley Gramolata, Broccoli Puree and Black Garlic Jus.

BOTTOM DISH:  Patrick made a Pink Peppercorn and Herb Roasted Pork Tenderloin with a Leek and Mushroom Saute, Turnip and Potato Gratin with a Honey Saffron Tomato Sauce.

Desserts:

TOP DISH:  Dustin makes his girlfriend's recipe of Strawberry Shortcake with Vanilla Whipped Cream.

BOTTOM DISH:  Dale does his take on a Pavlova with Cherries and Basil Cream.

Darryl prepares a Chocolate Fondant with Kalua, Coffe and Raspberry Coulis.

I don't know if the judges picked a top and bottom dish in each category or if it just came out that way.

Check out this link to see the top dishes on the Milestones' menu:

Milestones | Top Chef Menu

Of the three top dishes, Dustin wins with his sous chef/girlfriend's Strawberry Short Cake.  The worst of the worst was Patrick and he is sent to the kitchen to pack his knives.  His dishes seemed to always be overly complicated, lacked focus, and were messy.   I will miss Patrick, he was an American Bear in Canada - moving to Toronto to marry the man he loves.

There was a bit of a freak out in the kitchen this week, there were quite a few "F" Bombs thrown around.  I think the Editors at The Food Network wanted to show how intense it can get in the kitchen, especially with so many Chefs in an unfamiliar kitchen.

They also showed the chefs at their "chef pad", drinking and smoking and letting off steam.  They play the "What is your Porn Name Game" (I have also seem it played as What is your Drag Name Game).  You take the name of your first pet and the street you grew up on - so I would be Tippie Freeman!  Try it at home.

Next week is RESTAURANT WARS!  I think this will bring out the best and worst in the Cheftestants and when the real conflict comes out!

Wednesday 25 May 2011

Chopped Top Iron Chef Oakridge - Season 1, Episode 4 - Ron vs. Eric

This weeks episode was Ron vs Eric.  Richard did the shopping for the evening and brought a mixed batch of ingredients.


Ginger 
Sunchokes 
Okra 
Roma Tomatoes
Beef (Round Rouladen)
Parsnips
Basil
Back Bacon 
Chicken Thighs
Turkey Sausage 
Limes 
Wonton Wrappers 
Rice Vinegar 
Gherkins 
Arugula 
Watercress
Rizotto Rice
Shallots 

Ron and Eric found the ingredients to be a challenge resulting in considerable time being spent on menu planning (35 minutes). Once they got the grove on things really started to hum in the kitchen but it soon became obvious that these two were in a competition and there was no helping each other.   

Eric 
Focasia breaded chicken thighs served under a bed of herb salad and accompanied by a beet, parsnip, bacon and potato gratin.


Ron

Beef rouladen with a parsnip puree, spaetzle topped with turkey and bacon and in the middle a pan fried veggie wonton. 


These two meals where fantastic, the overall favourite for the night was Eric's focasia breaded chicken thighs served under a bed of herb salad and topped with some deep fried wonton chips. The Judges scored the dishes and here are the results:

Creativity: Eric
Presentation: Eric
Taste: Eric

The winner is ERIC.  Congrats

Next weeks competition will see Eric square off against Warren.

Standings:

                        Wins                Losses


Ron                   1                     2
Warren               1                    0
James                1                     1
Richard              0                     1
Eric                    1                    0

Special thanks to Stephanie and Chad who agreed to be our guest judges for the evening.


"The Plating Process"  










Saturday 21 May 2011

Re-cap of Top Chef Canada

Top Chef Canada’s 6th Episode aired last Monday and I wanted to give you guys an update on what’s been happening.  The Season began with 15 Contestants from all over Canada, one, Patrick,  is originally from Chicago but now lives in Toronto with his husband.  
Living in Calgary now, I of course have been rooting for the two Calgarians, unfortunately, Rebekah was sent home already.  But Connie who is the Co-Executive Chef and Co-Owner of CHARCUT Roast House in Calgary is a front runner - GO CONNIE!  We have dined at her restaurant, had the tasting menu with wine pairings and it was excellent.
Last week’s episode was called the French Feast.  The Quickfire is a Poutine Challenge.  Poutine originated in Quebec and can be found across Canada (it is even served at fast food restaurants like McDonald’s).  It is a dish consisting of french fries topped with fresh cheese curds, covered in brown gravy or sauce and sometimes additional ingredients.  The chefs are given 45 minutes.  
The least favorites were Dale from Vancouver, the judges feel he hasn’t eaten much Poutine, he used foie gras and it came out “mushy”.  Chris from Toronto made a fondue-like dish with the curds buried in the sauce, and Andrea also from Toronto made the mistake of blanching her potatoes, she also included Kobe beef and foie gras, it just seemed like too much.
The best were Todd from Newfoundland, he used Moose meat.  Darryl from Winnipeg opted to use a baked potato rather than fries and kept it simple and used the cheese curds well.  The “King” of Poutine is announced to be Francois.  He does a potato pancake with blue cheese and prosciutto with a Port Wine sauce. He gets immunity and an advantage in the elimination challenge.  He says “my Mama would be proud.”  Francois did seem to have an advantage being the only Chef from Quebec.
For the elimination challenge, the chefs draw knives to find out what classic French proteins they will use.  They are hazel nuts, frogs legs, skate, rack of lamb, lobster, rabbit, sweet breads, oysters, foie gras, and horse. (HORSE, who eats horse?) Francois gets to choose any protein as his advantage for winning the Quickfire - he takes frogs legs from Todd, much to Todd’s relief.  He also gets to develop the menu progression.  
The chefs get 20 minutes and $80 to shop at Loblaws.  The chefs gat 90 minutes to prep their dishes, 2 hours to cook their meal.
The four favorite dishes were:
Connie, she gets lobster and does a classic bisque with a lobster dumpling with a Chantilly Cream.  Looked very good.
Dustin (from Toronto) has rack of lamb, he presents a nice dish with very interesting sides.
Francois is very happy to have a French challenge, he did study in France.  He prepares curry dusted frog legs much to the delight of the judges.
Rob (from Toronto) wins with his sweet breads with a garlic puree and the judges loved it.
The middle was:
Dale, who has worked with guest judge Daniel Boulud, prepares oysters - 3 ways.  His ego, so far, exceeds his talent.
Patrick does a duet of rabbit, it is a much improved dish for him but a bit peppery.
The bottom dishes were:
Darryl’s skate appears to have a very heavy hand with the lemon.  He continues to be inconsistent.
Todd relieved to have Francois swap with him ends up with hazel nuts, he makes a classic Tarte Tatin, he uses store bought puff pastry and ice cream.  And he did not present it upside down as it should be.
Andrea is makes a horse meat tartar - does not sound very appetizing to me.  It fails due to temperature and bad choice of cracker.  One judge calls it a bore.
Chris makes a Torchon with the foie gras, which according to the chefs and judges, is impossible to make in the allotted time.  Darryl gives a lot of help with prep, but doesn’t give up too much info.  Chris stands by his dish but it fails and he is sent home.
So how does Top Chef Canada compare to it’s American counterpart?  Well so far there seems to be less drama between the contestants, which I like.  It is a cooking show, not a Housewives show.  So far there is no taking sides (no blonds vs. brunettes), there is no lying or backstabbing (a la Jill Zarin), there is not a self proclaimed kitchen etiquette expert (no Kitchen Countess), and no overt craziness (no space cadet Kelly).  (This was a nod to the IHJZ blog.)  There seems to be a lot of talent on this show and I look forward to see what is in store for us in future episodes.
Next weeks episode has the chefs developing a dish for Milestones (a Canadian chain restaurant), it appears that the competition is starting to cause a bit of stress for the Cheftestants.