David Ross

Last night was an experiment-"Fried Calamari with Green Goddess Sauce." I experimented a bit with the breading on the Calamari. I used a mix of Corn Flake crumbs and cornstarch. While the breading turned out o.k., the calamari weren't as crunchcy as they are when I use my regular seasoned flour mixture. Next time I'm going to experiment with a panko mixture for the breading. My Mother used to buy Green Goddess Salad Dressing, I think Wishbone brand, when I was a kid in the 60's-70's. For some reason, a few years ago as I approached 50, I turned back to many of the foods of my youth. I searched and searched for Green Goddess and couldn't find a single bottle in any major market. I've found it in specialty markets, but it doesn't taste anything like what I remebered. A few years back I found a recipe online and I've been using it ever since. This time I added some extra "green" to the Green Goddess by adding some cilantro. I added a bit more tarragon vinegar than I prefer, but the extra tang in the dressing helped cut through the richness of the fried calamari and those butter-dipped breadsticks you see in the background. Enjoy.

This dish is a stunner! Very nice indeed. Can you share the Saffron Scallop Sauce with us?

No, no worries from this guy way out West. I've already been reading the dirty little details about the "Improv" episode on the Top Chef site, even though the actual show won't air in my market until 10pm Pacific Time. I couldn't wait. I've been viewing the plates. Looks interesting from what I've seen so far. I'll be interested to see how Richard pulled off Chocolate Ice Cream in a 30-minute Quickfire Challenge.

A little off topic here, but while I'm waiting for this week's "Improv" episode of Top Chef, (something about pastry and comedy in Chicago), I'll share a bit more on tailgating. Read up a few bars and you'll see my admission-I'm an Oregon State Beaver. That's almost embarassing to admit to a USC Trojan. At least it used to be when SC was regularly beating us by skads of points. A few years back, Oregon State went to Baton Rouge to play the #1 ranked LSU Tigers. It was predicted we would be embarassed and become the laughing stock of college football nation. We came within one barely missed field goal of upsetting the Tigers in overtime. One of my ultimate food dreams is to eat my way through a season-long tour of tailgate parties at some of the great American college football stadiums. Now onward to this week's episode. Comedy (as in Second City Chicago), and Sweets. I am sure we're in for some laughs.....I just don't know if we'll laugh at the chefs or with them.

Thank you for confirming my assumptions about how delicious a tailgate party can be. We eat pretty good out West in the Pac-10, but I doubt we can compare to the tailgate spreads at your 90,000+ seat stadium. Now if we hadn't missed those field goals a few years back down on the bayou.........

I suppose one could argue that a "tailgate" party has nothing whatsoever to do with sports-it's more of a gathering of people to eat, drink and soak up the party atmosphere that surrounds the event. But I think that there is a correlation between understanding the challenge and how you carry it out in the context of the food you present. I think Ryan's lack of interest in sports, and football in particular, showed he was totally unfamiliar with the concept of the tailgate party. That seems to me to be a direct link to the failures of the food he presented. But even if we give him a pass on that issue, he still didn't think, or care to think, about putting forth a decent dish. Had Ryan grasped the concept of a "tailgate" party, he might have turned a messy bread salad into a delicious marinated chicken with bread salad on a quality bread roll. Unique, flavorful and a nice small bite that fit within the context of a tailgate party challenge and a dish the guests would have expected from a Top Chef. I've been a football fan my entire life and I've been going to tailgate parties at college football games for going on 40 some years now. Based on my own experiences, a tailgate party can be much more than just your average backyward BBQ. Sure, a tailgate party is a mass of people who are just there for the food and booze-and some could care less about the football game. However, you could make a strong case for arguing that a tailgate party is actually a local food event that is a portrait of the foods from a particular region. It just happens to be a food event that is staged at a sports venue. I'm a graduate of Oregon State, a member of the Pac-10 Conference. Oregon State is located in the Willamette Valley, about an hour drive South of Portland. You'll regularly see regional foods served at a tailgate party during home football games in Corvallis-things like barbecued salmon, steamed dungeness crab and all sorts of local berries, like Marionberries and Loganberries, used in desserts. There's plenty of Budweiser and Hillshire Sausages to go around-but there's also a lot of seasonal, locally-produced foods. I've never been to a tailgate party down South, but I've seen lots of images of what y'all cook at an SEC, (Southeast Conference), tailgate party. Imagine the wonderful food you would see displayed at a tailgate party at a home game in Baton Rouge, the home of the LSU Tigers. My guess is that there would be lots of gumbos, jambalayas and maybe even some fried alligator nuggets. For some, a tailgate party is just an excuse to eat and drink to excess on a Saturday morning. But for others, it can be a wonderful experience to enjoy local dishes in a communal setting. Isn't it too bad that some of the "Top Chef's" didn't recognize that fact?

Last week, I gave Chef Colicchio a “bravo” for addressing the issues of the demeanor of the contestants and for recognizing the fact that he is listening to the comments and constructive criticisms from the viewers. Tom is my favorite judge on Top Chef. And his crew in Las Vegas cooks one mean piece of meat at “Craftsteak” at the MGM. If the “Roasted Hen of the Woods Mushrooms” are on the menu when you dine there, order them to accompany your prime-grade, grass-finished, seared steak. Delicious. But this week for the “Tailgate” episode, Chef Tom lost a few style points for bringing back that silly looking black beret. (Maybe he should have dipped into Spike’s supply of funky headwear for something new?) Wasn’t it last year that we first saw Tom wearing the beret? I think it was the “Airline Food,” episode. There they were, Tom and Bourdain, two cool middle-aged dudes sitting on a Continental 777 in a hangar in New Jersey. Maybe a basic hat with the “Schlitz Beer” logo would have fit in better at a Chicago Bears game. A minor point that made me smile. Thanks for the chuckle Chef. There were certainly more laughable scenes from this past week’s “Tailgate” episode. Mark and Spike decided to spend the evening before the challenge on a date in a bubble bath. One of the better lines of the evening was when Mark told Spike to “look at my bubbles.” As Antonia so brilliantly put it, “it looks like cheap porno.” Bubble baths and champagne are fun of course, but Mark might have put his time to better use by doing some homework and writing a script for how to pull-off chicken skewers and corn chowder at the tailgate party. Studying instead of bathing with Spike might have given Mark “cleaner” marks from the judges. Mark was a disaster at the barby-He didn’t appear to have enough chicken skewers prepped and ready to go on the grill fast enough to keep pace with the customers appetites. He gave away a much-needed towel to his friend Ryan at the next station-a towel he needed to clean up his own mess. I didn’t catch it, but listening to Padma describe Mark’s triple dipping his spoons-first in the chowder, then in his mouth, then back in the chowder-really made me groan. Mark’s weak attempt at the Tailgate Challenge put the spotlight on what may be his weakness in the future-an inability to plan, be organized and cook “clean.” Chef Tom put it in simple and frank terms at the judges’ table when he told Mark that “you better clean up your act man!” Nikki is a minor player on a Triple-D class ball club trying to compete in the major leagues against stars like Richard. Nikki made so many mistakes it’s hard to list them all. Settling for pre-made, basic recipe Italian Sausage was just one of the more noticeable errors in judgement. She chose to pair her “Sausage and Grilled Pepper Sandwich” with inconsequential grilled shrimp served with “homemade cocktail sauce.” She should have disregarded the shrimp and used the savings to her advantage by buying quality cuts of meat and blending her own spices to make a savory sausage. (Like the more talented Chef Richard did for his “Pate Melt with Spicy Mayonnaise and Pickled Cucumber”). Another glaring fault was Nikki’s error in not planning enough food for the number of guests she was told would pass by her station. One of my pet peeves is going to a bakery at 7am only to be told “we’re out of the maple bars, Sir.” That’s basically what Nikki told the football fans. What was that you said Nikki? You can’t really give me a whole sandwich because you “might not have enough.” Not good enough my dear. If you’re serving hungry Bears fans give them a full sandwich. (Oh yeah, and hold out 4 of the sandwiches-you might need them to serve to the judges). We are all in agreement that she absolutely has to go--and soon. Yet Nikki did make an attempt, however feeble it was, to meet the challenge of a “Tailgate” party. Lastly, there was our metro-sexual friend Ryan. Through his own admission, he doesn’t like sports and he’s never really been to a tailgate party. And it showed. A Top Chef would have to be really ignorant to present the three fussy dishes Ryan put on the back of the tailgate. Football fans don’t want to mess with having to nosh on a dainty little “Poached Pear” or cut through a messy “Bread Salad with Marinated Chicken.” Food you can feel, that you can hold with one hand while balancing a beer in the other hand, food with lots of flavor, that’s what the “daily special” should be at a tailgate party. I like the idea of a bread salad with chicken, but Ryan just wasn’t successful at presenting the dish within the context of a tailgate party. As the judges said, aside from the fact that Ryan didn’t even come close to meeting the challenges presented at a “Tailgate” party, his food “just wasn’t very good.” I think the judges were left with two very poor choices-keep Nikki, who at least attempted to make a first-down but went out of bounds before she got to the line-or eliminate Ryan for fumbling the ball in the end-zone. I’ve seen the previews for the upcoming episode-something about pastry and baking? Now this is really going to be a treat.

Don't let Marco Pierre White hear you say that. BTW, your Daily Racing Form analysis post was Grade I Stakes quality! ← Thanks for the advice-I'll pray that Chef Marco doesn't catch wind of my distaste for chicken bouillon cubes. I've heard some rumblings that he once had quite the temper. I wouldn't want him throwing cubes of bouillon at me.... ← Bouollion does not always mean cubes. There is boulllion out there that is more like a concentrate and is used in alot of better restaurants for speeding up prep. ← I followed Dale's instructions and used the chicken bouillon. The recipe on the site simply calls for "4T chicken bouillon." Since the recipe didn't specify what type/form to use, I used granulated chicken bouillon. The chicken bouillon didn't seem to have any flavor effect on the ribs. I'm still curious why Dale used it. ← I'm thinking more about this and R you are probably right on-maybe Dale used a concentrated, liquid type of bouillon to give the marinade for the ribs extra flavor? If that's the case it certainly makes more sense. Even if the recipe that Bravo posted on the site doesn't make sense.

Don't let Marco Pierre White hear you say that. BTW, your Daily Racing Form analysis post was Grade I Stakes quality! ← Thanks for the advice-I'll pray that Chef Marco doesn't catch wind of my distaste for chicken bouillon cubes. I've heard some rumblings that he once had quite the temper. I wouldn't want him throwing cubes of bouillon at me.... ← Bouollion does not always mean cubes. There is boulllion out there that is more like a concentrate and is used in alot of better restaurants for speeding up prep. ← I followed Dale's instructions and used the chicken bouillon. The recipe on the site simply calls for "4T chicken bouillon." Since the recipe didn't specify what type/form to use, I used granulated chicken bouillon. The chicken bouillon didn't seem to have any flavor effect on the ribs. I'm still curious why Dale used it.

Your plates are delicious-and I'm especially intrigued by the Purple Sprouting Broccolli. Is it grown locally or imported? I've never seen it in a market in the States. It simply sings Spring. Very nice.

Don't let Marco Pierre White hear you say that. BTW, your Daily Racing Form analysis post was Grade I Stakes quality! ← Thanks for the advice-I'll pray that Chef Marco doesn't catch wind of my distaste for chicken bouillon cubes. I've heard some rumblings that he once had quite the temper. I wouldn't want him throwing cubes of bouillon at me....

In general, I’ve enjoyed the Quickfire Challenges this year more than most of the Elimination Challenges. The Quickfire Challenges tend to be presented to the viewers as less important than the big, dramatic Elimination rounds. I agree with those who have commented that they are tired of seeing so many catered affairs as the theme of the Elimination Challenges. One can only take so many cold “blini” as it were. But for the most part, I have preferred watching the Quickfire Challenges because they test the skills of the individual Chefs under the extreme pressure of creating a dish in 30 minutes. This week’s Quickfire Challenge of pairing beer with food really showed us how creative and ambitious some of these Chefs can be. Sadly, for some, Spike in particular, we also saw how an unmotivated Chef’s attitude carries through to the uncreative dish that is presented to the judges. So let’s start with Spike’s dish of “Charcuterie Plate and Tapas of Clams.” Sure, I’d like a cold beer and some good salami. O.K., throw in a pot of clams steamed in beer and I might be satisfied if I was at a trendy little tapas bar. But do you think putting some salami on a wood block with two green olives, a couple of slices of cheese and a few grapes is creative enough for a Top Chef competition? No, it isn’t. Did Spike honestly think that steaming clams in a little beer broth would win this challenge? If he did think that he was mistaken. I can’t speak to other parts of the country, but I know that in the Northwest we are happily enjoying the products of a growing micro-brew industry. Some would argue that pairing beer with food is an emerging opportunity for chefs. I would agree. Spike would have been well-served if he had viewed beer in that same light-an opportunity to meet the challenge by creating a unique dish that accented the flavor of the chosen beer. Jennifer did just that and was rewarded with the win. While I was happy to see Jennifer come away with the win-and to boost her spirits after the departure of her dearly beloved Zoi-I have to question how Jen pulled off her dish of “Shrimp and Scallop Beignets with Fennel, Avocado and Pepper Purees.” I like Jen’s idea to take beer-battered fish to a new level, but how did she pull that off in 30 minutes? Isn’t that the time constraint for the Quickfire Challenge-30 minutes? If you read the ingredients in Jen’s recipe you would question how she could accomplish all the tasks she had to do and present the finished dish in such a short time-frame. Let’s see, there’s heating the oil in the deep-fryer, roasting the peppers for the sauce, mixing the batter for the beignets, and chopping up the shrimp and scallops. Maybe Bravo heated up the oil in the fryer ahead of time. In any case, Jen deserves congrats this week for creating a dish that fit like a glove with the theme of pairing beer with food. Nice job Jen. Now back on my rant this week about Bravo not paying attention to details on the Top Chef website. Take a look at the photo of Lisa’s dish from the Quickfire Challenge on the “Rate the Plate” page. The dish is described as “Bacon Cheeseburger with Potato Chips.” Huh?? Looks like two lamb chops to me. We see a drizzle of sauce, possibly made from the beer Lisa chose-Stella Artois. Now scroll two photos to the left, and there you’ll see the aforementioned cheeseburger and chips-with a bottle of Amber Bock beer in the background. But there’s no title for the dish and no credit to the Chef who made it. So who did what dish Bravo? Somebody at Bravo needs to really, really clean up the mistakes that are repeatedly being made on their site. Next up-a few comments about Nikki’s sausage faux pas, (and that lopsided muff of hair that seems to always appear on her head in the “on-camera” interview clips), and the return of the ridiculous French beret topping the head of the head judge.

Thanks. The wonderful Indian flavors of the spices really came through, but the texture of the outer coating of the meat was not good. While I give Dale recognition for his win, I've got some criticisms for Bravo. Remember when Tom told Mark at the judges table to "clean up his act...." a reference to Mark's messy habits (i.e., triple-dipping spoons in corn chowder)? Well, Tom should tell the suits at Bravo the same thing-to clean up the posted recipes and some of the mess they've left on the Top Chef site. I get the sense that Dale probably had the recipe for the ribs in his memory bank. My guess is that after he won the challenge, Bravo asked him for a written recipe. It appears that in a rush to get the winning dish posted, Bravo forgot to have someone review and edit the recipe. Had they done so, it would have included times for poaching the ribs and instructions for how long the ribs should have been marinated. Bravo should have taken the recipe a step further and broken down the ingredients so they would work for a home cook-not "12 sides of pork ribs" for 80 hungry football fans. I know there is a rush to get recipes of the dishes posted, but I'd rather wait for a recipe that is accurate than settle for a poorly written recipe that is posted a few minutes after the show airs. There's some other details that Bravo is missing on the website-like posting some photos on the "Rate the Plate" page-yet without a caption telling us the name of the dish and which Chef created it. Overlooking these small details on the Top Chef site makes it appear a bit amateurish and I'd expect more from the producers of one of the higher-rated cable reality shows.

Tonight I made Dale's winning "Tandoori Pork Ribs." They turned out fairly good but not outstanding. The ribs are a perfect "tailgate" food-the prep, the pre-poaching and marinating-can be done the day before the big game, and then the ribs can be grilled/smoked and finished at the party. The recipe that is posted on the site is not very well written for the average cook-it doesn't tell you how long to "poach" the ribs. People want specifics when they read a recipe: Dale's "Tandori Pork Ribs:" Toast all spices and combine with yogurt, bouillon and white soy; blend in blender. Poach ribs in water, vinegar, sugar, hot sauce, salt and pineapple skin. After ribs have been poached tender; let cool then mix in yogurt-bouillon marinade. Grill ribs, on medium flame brushed with marinade. Tandori Pork: 4T coriander 4T madras curry 9 pieces cardamom pods 2T mustard seeds 2T white pepper 4T chili powder 4T garam masala 3 quarts yogurt 4T chicken bouillon 1 cup white soy 12 sides pork ribs Water for poaching 1/2 cup vinegar Sugar to taste 2 quarts hot sauce 4T salt 1 piece pineapple skin I thought it was odd that Dale included "chicken bouillon" as an ingredient in the marinade. It would be interesting to ask Dale why he uses chicken bouillon. It's almost sacriligeous for a Top chef to use those little dirt clods in quality cooking. Not really knowing from the written recipe on the site how long the ribs should be "poached" and then marinated, I took my chances. I poached the ribs for about an hour. That seemed to be the right amount of time to get the meat tender yet not falling off the bone. The recipe didn't tell me how long the ribs should sit in the marinade--so I assumed, quite dangerously, that overnight would allow the meat to soak up the spices. I'm not a chemist, but the finished ribs didn't have the cripsy-crunchy crust I like in my ribs. My assumption is that the pork bathed in the yogurt too long, (and the acids in the yogurt attacked porky), resulting in the finished ribs having a bit of a gummy-pasty texture on the outside. I liked the fact that Dale prepared ribs in a Tandoori style rather than the usual Southern type ribs. The finished ribs had a spicy kick but weren't overpowering with heat. So, putting myself on the line for all of you, here is a photo of my attempt at a Top Chef winning dish. Now please be kind with your criticisms, I'm not a professional Top Chef.

Richard wasn't the only one working his meat this week. The husky-voiced Lisa was heard saying that she was "going to beat my meat"........ Aha, caught you for a moment. Lisa was whacking her skirt steak to apparently tenderize it so it wouldn't be tough when she slapped it on the grill. Honestly, I think she imagined Dale's head on the chopping block while she was senselessly beating the steak. She's still pissed at Dale for his crotch-grabbing outburst directed at her after the "Elements" show. She got even more angry at Dale when he "sort of" apologized to her this week, saying that Dale "could go F..... himself." No better way for a Chef to get revenge then to beat a rival's image with a rolling pin. Yeah baby.

This dish is based on a recipe from the Alain Ducasse cookbook "Flavors of France." Even though the recipe comes from Ducasse, it's pretty easy. The sauce is white beans, olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper. I changed it up last night and added some melted butter, roasted garlic, dried basil and dried oregano. I use only the tentacles of the calamari and flash-fry them in olive oil for just a few seconds to keep them tender. My fishmonger sells this beautiful Chilean Sea Bass. It's buttery and rich and has a thick skin that gets nice and crispy. I garnished the fish with a zuchinni salad-zuchinni cut in threads on this cheap plastic gizmo I got in Chinatown in San Francisco. It's one of my best kitchen tools. I tossed the zuchinni in lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh chives out of my garden. How those chives survived the worst winter in 50 years I do not know. And we have snow on the way tonight! Chilean Sea Bass with White Beans and Calamari, Zuchinni Salad:

Last night was Madras Curry Rubbed Chicken that I cooked on the rotisserie. I also rubbed the chicken with some cajun spices and paprika. I served the chicken with fries sprinkled with smoked paprika and Brussels sprouts that were sauteed with butter, olive oil and some crispy diced ham. Sounds like a lot of odd flavor combinations but they worked well together for what was a nice weeknight meal.

While we aren't quite yet at the mid-point of the season, I think we have seen the horse race settle into the clubhouse turn and in my mind there are some Chefs leading the race, some in the middle-of-the-pack and some trailers...... Leaders- Richard-out of the gate quick, took a bit of a mis-step last week, but should be up and running in the lead again. Andrew-Unsettled in the saddle but may have a lot of unrealized potential not yet seen. Tends to get easily "lathered," (sweaty and bothered). Stephanie-Quietly winning without a lot of fanfare, has shown deft skills that may surprise some in the backstretch. Middle of the Pack- Antonia-a sleeper that could put in a come from behind run. Lisa-another sleeper in the running. Showed a lot of "Fire" last week with an ingenious take on bacon with miso. Mark-quiet Aussie that hasn't really dazzled, not yet. Spike-probably more talk and sassy hat than substance, but could present some surprises. Dale-if he can keep his hands out of his pants, may finish strong. Trailing the Pack- Jennifer-nothing in the first five weeks to show she's able to run the distance. Nikki-really should probably be in a claiming race and not in a Grade I Handicap. Ryan-although the outward appearance is one of a race horse, probably not enought stamina to make it to the wire in the front group.

I think this would be an excellent challenge, maybe a Quickfire. Maybe give them a limited number of ingredients? Or maybe let them have the sky as the limit? I'd like to see it. (I LOVE soup... ) ← I think that's an excellent idea. I love that kind of test for a Chef. It would be sort of like the challenge the Chefs faced a few weeks back-to create an "upscale" version of a "taco"-a dish many of them looked upon as merely street-food.

I guess I just see the issue differently. A Chef could view the concept of presenting “soup” as the ultimate challenge-a test of their skills to prove the critics wrong that yes; in fact I can create a memorable dish out of what is often seen as mundane. At least that is how I might approach it-and I’d ask the same question of Chef Tsai to see how he views it. It’s an interesting debate for sure. But enough talk about soup, I do have a few parting shots/comments/questions about the “Elements.” Andrew and Richard enough already with the “faux” caviar and salmon. You can only dress up tapioca pearls in a limited number of guises, so give it a rest, now. And as everyone knows, there are other fish in the sea than just salmon. Next time you go fishing how ‘bout reeling in something other than salmon, salmon, salmon. Finally, whatever species of swimmer you guys choose to cook-absolutely, CLEAN THE SCALES off Mr. Fishy, please. Mark was really caught off guard at the judges table when Chef Colicchio pressed him on why he chose to accompany the aforementioned Salmon and Faux Caviar with a “Parsnip Vanilla Puree.” Poor guy sounded like he was really tongue-tied trying to give a credible answer for the odd flavor combination. Try as he did, he could only muster a sort of “uh, I thought it would go with ‘Confit’ of Salmon.” Oops Mark, your mates told us they cooked the salmon “sous vide.” I know, a minor point, but when one gets nervous (or questions a cooking technique that maybe they don't support), they tend to say silly things to justify the pairings in a dish. I’ve been rough on Zoi and she certainly left us last week with some memorable and contradictory statements last week before she made her exit- I never saw Zoi actually taste the mushroom salad that would accompany the team’s beef carpaccio, a hint that Zoi may not have tasted or seasoned the dish before it went out. But Zoi said she DID taste the dish. She said that “I like bold flavors,” (like too much rosemary?), and that “I like highly seasoned” food. But it strikes one as odd that a Chef who makes those kinds of statements turns out food that is roundly criticized for being “bland”-one of the more tame comments from the judges. I personally would like all the Chefs to shine and put their best dishes forward. There’s always a bit of a sense of sadness when Padma asks a Chef to pack their knives and leave the kitchen. But it’s also an opportunity for a young Chef to learn and grow. If they understand and accept that. One of Zoi’s last statements speaks volumes as to what was one of the biggest hurdles she faced in the Top Chef race. Whether it was a lack of seasoning, choosing the wrong dish or not standing firm in her convictions when faced with the skepticism of her teammates-she never seemed to be able to accept responsibility for her own failures. “I’m totally fine with what I did. THEY didn’t get it.” That unfortunately is not an attitude that will serve one well in the real world. A Top Chef has to be aware of the fact that they aren’t just cooking for themselves. There are others to please, customers for example, who may just want a little salt on their beef.

I think they were worried about being called out for doing "just" a bowl of soup: founded or not, there is the impression that soup is easy. I suspect they figured that there was no way they were going to wow the judges with a soup. And honestly, despite Chef Tom's claim to the contrary, I would not be surprised if they had gotten zinged for "taking the easy route" unless it was one hell of a good soup. Of course one can make great soups: but is a soup going to win in a head-to-head battle? Not so sure... ← Maybe....but I have a sense that the judges would have been pleasantly surprised had they been presented a bowl of "soup" and they just might have praised the Chef's efforts. Restraint and simplicity can be quite alluring-especially with food. Would a lush soup have beaten Team "Fire's" dish of "Grilled Shrimp, Miso-Bacon and Pickled Chili Salad?" Maybe not, that was a killer dish. But you never know.......

I think Antonia should jump into a bowl of hot soup! Because she had immunity for winning the Quickfire Challenge, I personally think she should have stood back and played a supporting role to Spike and Zoi by letting them drive the creation of the dish. Take one for the Gipper. Call me a loyalist for the team if you will, but I would have supported my fellow Chefs by giving them the best opportunity to shine if I had the immunity. (As you have all mentioned in such graceful terms on these pages-all the support in the world would probably not have helped poor little Zoi survive). Now-will someone please present Zoi with a nicely wrapped salt and pepper mill for her birthday? Sign the card with "Our deepest sympathies that you were eliminated from Top Chef. This small gift from your friends at eGullet is a token of our hope that you will properly season your pasta salad in the future. Best Wishes." Antonia scoffed at the idea that spooning squash soup into 80 bowls was laughable for an upscale fundraiser banquet and that such a pedestrian dish would never win an Elimination Challenge. Hogwash. Listen up, Ming Tsai was right when he said that "soup can be quality" and one measure of a good Chef can be found in a delicious bowl of soup. How could soup ever compete with Team Earth's "Beef Carpaccio with Mushroom Salad and Sunchoke Aioli?" This is how...... If it's hard for this team to understand or agree on how "luxurious" a first course soup can be, let me relate a dish that is frequently on the menu at Guy Savoy- arguably one of the finer French chefs of the day-at his restaurant in Las Vegas: "Soupe d'Artichaut a la Truffe Noire" "Brioche Feuillettee aux Champignons et Buerre de Truffe" I'll translate for Antonia, Spike and Zoi: "Artichoke and Black Truffle Soup, Toasted Mushroom Brioche with Black Truffle Butter." My, my, isn't it curious how "simple" soup can be as Ming Tsai would say. Isn't this the perfect expression of the element of "Earth"-artichokes, mushrooms and black truffles? I've had the pleasure of eating this dish at Guy Savoy and it is as elegant and sumptuous as it sounds-yet the ingredients so simple and pure. And it's "just" a bowl of soup.

Thank you for providing the list. Anyone know which Chef scored the lowest?

I'm not so sure the Top Chef "Blind Taste Test" Quickfire Challenge has much relevance in terms of who the ultimate winner will be-and apparently the producer's must have felt the same way. They barely gave air time to displaying all 15 ingredients involved in the taste test. Can one of you name all 15 for me? I sure can't. And I can't see any mention of the ingredients presented in the Quickfire Challenge posted on the Top Chef site. This is the only mention I can find: "Before the chefs got to any cooking in this episode, they had to prove their palate skills. Blindfolded, the chefs had to taste items and tell Padma and Guest Judge Ming Tsai which was of higher quality. While a couple chefs came close, Antonia's palate prevailed." I liked Antonia's approach to the Challenge as if it was a blind-tasting of Pinot Noir-a little taste, a little swish, a sip of water. I think cleansing her palate between tastings might have been the reason she won the challenge by correctly selecting 12 of the 15 items. (I still don't know what all 15 "tastes" were and I sure would like to know which 3 items Antonia got wrong. Kills me not knowing).

Kim, wonderful blog so far and thank you for honoring my humble little salad. You done it proud. Looks delicious, as does the entire dinner.