Great Food On A Toothpick And Is A Possible Pea Purée Food Heist The Biggest Scandal In Top Chef History?

Top Chef DC - Power Lunch

We’re reminded that Kevin won last week. Yay! And I’m thinking how much I liked Andrea after last week’s episode, especially when I think she was a bit mistreated by the guest judge.

This week the chefs come into the kitchen and they’re greeted by Padma and a squeaky clean (looking, anyway) Republican Congressperson, Aaron Schock from Illinois. (Do you think he’ll make an appearance on Bravo’s other DC franchise?)

When Padma reveals him to be the youngest Congressperson serving (he’s 28), Amanda looks ready to pounce.

Aaron says when you first enter Congress you spend a lot of time on ethics. CLOSEUP ON ANGELO! As if he were the furthest thing from anything ethical. (I'm not saying I disagree, but he CAN cook!)

The Congressman continues that much of the ethics instruction is focused on food and what can and can’t be accepted from the paid lobbyists.

Padma continues with this explanation, “To make sure our elected representatives aren’t swayed by lavish meals, any food served to a member of congress must be served on a toothpick. Gourmet dishes have been whittled down to bite size.” This week’s Quickfire Challenge is to create a dish that fits on a toothpick.

Finally, something great, something that shows their chops as chefs and not foragers of the wild or kiddie day-care providers. This should be excellent.

The winner will receive…Angelo sticks his head out to better hear the prize…immunity…(SWEET, Angelo is thinking) AND $20,000. (Even sweeter.)

Andrea says she could really use that money to help pay the bills from her restaurant.

They RUN to the fridge to grab the proteins. Everything sounds so good. Why are they showing Stephen so much? Is he outta there? Ew, there’s a lot of Alex too. I do not like him.

I LOVE Tiffany’s idea of a pork roulade, Wensleydale cheese, prosciutto and an almond for good measure. If the idea is to pack as much yummy food on one toothpick, THAT’S a hearty bite.

I also think Andrea’s waffle with fried chicken and gravy sounds amazing! WOW! But if that’s not served hot, it could be a sad mushy bite.

Kevin

Grilled Pork & Mushroom Kabob With Sherry Vinegar

Congressman Schock: “Wow!”

Andrea

Cheddar Pecan Waffle With Buttermilk Fried Chicken And Maple White Gravy

No reaction.

Ed

Duo Of Tuna, Tuna Confit, Grilled Tuna With Avocado, Sweet And Sour Watermelon

Ed, with his hangdog look, says to us that he’s really trying to sell them on his dish. “Let’s see if it happens.” I actually appreciate that kind of self-deprecation.

Schock: “I do like Asia without the long plane flight...though.” WHY did he say “though”? Does he NOT like the dish?

Tiffany

Crispy Pork Roulade With Prosciutto, Dates And Red Pepper Coulis

Oh, I thought she was going to leave it as a big hunk of meat with a lot of stuff inside. (That’s a good thing.) Instead, she cuts it up into little rounds and skewers it on a toothpick. I might have liked it the other way better.

Schock: Thank you.

Amanda

Lamb Kebab With Heirloom Tomatoes & Salsa Verde

This little ballish thing is not attractive and it looks like something from the lamb, but not the kebab.

“Truth be told, lamb is one of my favorites. “ Girlish giggle from Amanda.

Kenny

Tandoori Spiced Sockeye Salmon & Shrimp With Mango Mojito Relish

THAT sounds sooooooooo good.

Schock: “Getting your liquor and your meat all in one toothpick is pretty clever. Congratulations.

Angelo

Cucumber Cup With Spiced Shrimp & Cashews

Angelo says he went old school and brought back the cucumber cup. (We saw him having problems with pineapple slices, so I guess at the last minute, he sculpted a cucumber cup.) I have a special place in my heart for cucumbers cut in interesting ways.

No reaction from the Congressman.

Stephen

Scallop & Beef With Crispy Potato, Béarnaise Sauce

That does look good.

The Congressman agrees: “Very good. Very meaty. That’s nice.” Stephen is thrilled his food got called meaty.

Alex

Scallops With Crispy Bacon, Strawberries & Basil Essence

EW to the dish and to Alex.

Both Schock and Padma look confused as they taste the dish.

Kelly

Scallops With Watermelon & Watermelon Vinaigrette.

I would have liked one more element in there, something crunchy. Jicama?

Great, says Schock. I’m not sure he really means it, though.

The losers:

Alex (Good! The Congressperson has some taste.) Ed. He liked the look more than the taste. Kelly’s lacked flavor. See? I KNEW his "Great" was halfhearted.

The winners and the Congressman’s comments:

Kevin. “You were the first item I tasted and I thought about it all the way through.” About Angelo’s dish: “WOW!” Kenny looks disgusted. Stephen – He liked that he got so much on the stick.

The winner is….Angelo

Kevin is miffed and says (to us) that Angelo keeps winning with “Chinese” food and if the judges are stuck on that, that’s their problem. Yeah, except that it’s HIS problem too.

On to the Elimination Challenge. They have to create a power lunch for regulars at the Palm restaurant. They draw knives to select their proteins. Two chefs get each protein, but they’re not competing head to head.

Alright now, let’s follow the beginning of the possible food heist carefully.

Oh wait, first I love it when Andrea says she doesn’t like the way swordfish eats, but that there’s no crying in the kitchen.

The lobsters are HUGE. BTW, so is the salmon.

Back to the food heist:

Alex says he has no idea what to do with his salmon. Ed is spending all his time breaking down the lobsters. They finish for the night.

Back at the house, Alex admits again he has NO idea what to do. The other chefs seem slightly incredulous. Alex says he “has these English peas, but they’re BLEEP” whatever that means. Andrea says, “You mean the same ones Ed got?” Alex says he doesn’t know what Ed got. Kenny says before Ed puréed them, they looked good.

Next we see Ed and Tiffany having a tête-à-tête. About what? About Ed’s peas. Hold on a second! I’m getting a funny feeling here. It’s a funny feeling like watching all those set-up situations on Cake Boss. Is that possible? Is this perhaps getting a bit too calculated like the Cake Boss? Maybe not scripted, but…suggested?

The chefs arrive at the Palm the next day to start cooking in their kitchen. The Executive VP of the Palm Restaurant Group, Bruce Bozzi greets them and tells them that Tom will be back in the kitchen tasting and the winner will get his or her face on the wall of the restaurant with all the other muckety-mucks. (My word, not his.)

Kelly says Amanda needs to go home, because she’s kind of a mess and disorganized. Amanda asks Kelly if she has any salt and Kelly says she only has enough for herself.

Alex says he’s making a pea purée first thing and if it works, he’s using it. We see him carrying a pot around stirring an already made pea purée. They’re all running around cooking.

Ed is hunting for his pea purée. He asks everyone. He asks Alex and Alex actually says he never used any peas. Tiffany chimes in (to us) that the only one with pea purée on his dish is Alex. Ed is mightily mad, but he has to come up with a substitute.

THAT is all we see in the kitchen. We don’t SEE Alex making or puréeing the pea purée. We also don’t see him STEALING the purée.

The diners arrive in the dining room. Art Smith, a really skinny Art Smith, is one of the judges.

Padma introduces the diners. They are tons of notables, Senator Mark Warner, Mika Brzezinski, Joe Scarborough, John Podesta, Bruce Bozzi, and from NBC - Kelly O’Donnell, Luke Russert and Savannah Guthrie.

Kelly and Amanda present their steak dishes first. If they’re not judging proteins against proteins, why are they being served together? The dishes are here.

They like Amanda’s meat off the bone. Kelly’s has too much salt, but Joe likes it better.

Tiffany and Amanda present their swordfish. Oh, the diners don’t like Andrea’s Vanilla Mustard Beurre Blanc. Padma actually doesn’t mind it. They seem to prefer Tiffany’s, except that her fish is overcooked.

Stephen and Alex are up next. When Alex tells them what’s in his dish, he says English Pea Purée particularly clearly, as if he’s emphasizing it. This has to be a setup. Then Art specifically says he loves the sweetness of the pea purée next to the salmon. They all like Alex’s. Stephen’s dish they find messy and heavy.

See? How can they NOT compare the dishes, when they’re tasting them at the same time?

Ed is rushing to finish serving his plates.

He and Angelo go next. They don’t like Angelo’s lobster froth, which doesn’t matter because he has immunity. They also think his lobster is overcooked. They like Ed’s presentation and the taste of his lobster and eggplant.

Kenny and Kevin go last with their lamb. I think they’re at a tremendous disadvantage, because there is no way the diners can appreciate those rich lamb dishes after tasting all that other stuff first. I always think the dishes at the beginning have a better chance, because the judges’ palates are fresher.

They like Kenny’s, but some wish there were some greens on the plate. They think Kevin’s meat is overcooked and his dish is very strong and VERY spicy. I actually love Kelly O’Donnell’s remark that the flavors are so strong and there was nowhere on the plate to go for a break. Really smart observation.

Okay, back to the scandal. Naturally (because the drama is greater), both Alex and Ed are in the top along with Tiffany.

Tiffany is sooo relieved when they tell her she’s in the top that she actually starts crying. She was soooo sure she was going to be on the bottom. Tom says the fish wasn’t dried out AT ALL. She is sooo thrilled.

Ed describes his huge lobsters as Volkswagens on the plate. Funny. Art says Ed didn’t show it on the plate that he felt challenged.

Alex says he was surprised to be in the top, because he couldn’t decide what to do. Then Art goes on and on and ON about the beautiful pea purée and how he could have eaten an entire bowl of it. Ed and Tiffany glare.

Art announces the winner. It’s ALEX. Ed is horrified. Tiffany is alarmed. This is looking more and more deliberate.

When Kenny learns who the winner is, he’s appalled that Alex won because of his pea purée. Kenny certainly thinks he pinched it and that there was no way Alex could have made it in the time he had.

They call in Kevin, Kelly and Andrea and tell them they're on the bottom.

Kevin’s dish was way too spicy. Art doesn’t think he put enough love on the plate.

Art thinks the same thing about Andrea, because she actually admitted not liking sword fish. Andrea does say that she has made this sauce in her restaurant a lot. Gail is kind of witchy and says if we wanted to taste your restaurant food, we could go to your restaurant. And her point is…?

Kelly’s was way too salty, which Amanda thinks is karma, because Kelly wouldn’t share her salt with her (Amanda).

And going home is…Kelly, I think it should be. And it’s…Andrea. What??? Puleez. I was just starting to like her. Drat. I like it when Andrea says I don’t need four people behind a table to tell me I can cook, because I already know I can. I like her and I would definitely go to her restaurant. The bad news? Amanda (and, of course, Alex) make it another week.

But this was a really great episode overall from a culinary point of view. There were no dirty tricks by the producers - like throwing a wrench in the works at the last minute. It was pretty straightforward, if you don’t count a possible food forgery by Alex. There were just a lot of great food combinations, techniques and flavors. It seems like it took 400 weeks to get here, but I liked the emphasis on the FOOD this week.

Note: I had to see what good ole Tom thought about the pea controversy. His thoughts are not totally satisfying and if he really was fed-up with the producers not alerting him to a possible culinary crime, he should have said it louder and longer.

Top Chef Masters - From An Enormous Hamburger To Rice Milk Ice Cream

The week has gotten away from me. But, MC, please know that I watched every single second of you last week on Top Chef. Here’s the proof:

They called Michael a maestro as they introduce all the chefs. I like that.

They come into the Top Chef kitchen greeted by a huge table, laden with hamburgers and French fries. Art is afraid they’ll have to cook from those actual ingredients.

The Quickfire is all about burgers, Kelly says, with her hair looking particularly thick and luxurious. Rick tells us that when he makes them for his family they never turn out. Hubert tells the group that he has a $5000 dollar Fleur Burger (with a wine pairing) on his menu. I hope that price tag includes the table it’s served on…AND the chair.

I have to say I didn’t like my Mikey joking with Hubert about his Frenchness and then saying (to us) in a fake French accent that Hubert has worked in more Michelin starred restaurants than Michael has eaten at. First of all, HE doesn’t have to feel at all inferior to Hubert and secondly, let’s face it, in the kitchen, being French is a huge advantage.

Kelly introduces the judges as Art says he smells a rat - a big one. The judges are Spike Mendelsohn from season 4 Top Chef and owner of the DC burger joint, Good Stuff Eatery, Sang Yoon of Father’s Office – voted best burger on The Today Show and Morgan Spurlock, maker of the fabulous Super Size Me documentary.

We’ll have to find out if it matters that Rick judged Spike in season 4. (Oh good, the judges don’t know whose burgers they’ll be tasting.) The chefs have one hour to create a burger and side dish. Anita says she’s tired. Michael says there’s a lot of pressure as he makes a 2½ lb burger(!) Rick is doing 3 different flavors of guacamole.

Art is making a hoe cake to go with the burger. Hubert is under pressure because he sells over a thousand burgers a day. Anita is doing something outside of the burger box…Hmmm, will she be the genius this week or the goat? Michael’s burger is HUGE!

Rick - Queso Fundido Burger With Trio Of Guacamole

Sang: “You had me at guacamole.” I feel the same way! Morgan likes the flavor and Sang (I think) says you don’t need three dishes of guacamole. Spike agrees. Rick is outraged because it doesn’t seem as if they know those are 3 DIFFERENT guacamoles. Morons!

Art - Cornmeal Hoecake Burger With Fried Green Tomatillos & Coleslaw

These chefs are AWESOME! Do you REALLY think they do this all in an hour? It’s really amazing. It would take me a half hour to walk over to the fridge, stand in front of it and look inside to see what I wanted to make.

Spike says Art’s is bursting with flavor. He says he wouldn’t change a thing and that this represents who the chef is and he loves it.

Michael - “Hamburgese Enorme” With Truffle Manchego Potato Chips

The judges laughingly call it an interactive burger, because they can cut off however much they want and serve it themselves. Morgan: “Great burger, pretty delicious.” Sang: It has “the flavor of a great steak”. Spike loves it too. Hold on! Is there any burger (anywhere!) that Spike wouldn’t love?

Anita - Cheddar Soup With Grilled Burger, Ketchup Crouton & Bacon Fried Onion Rings

Incredible! It takes longer than an hour just to SAY everything that Anita is making!

Ooh, trouble. As it’s put down and they see it’s not a standard burger, Morgan says, “Uh-oh!” Some of their not-so-great comments: “Burger shake.” “It’s like a wish burger. You WISH there was a burger.” “Boiled meat.” Sang says he appreciates creativity but “when you think of a burger, you think of something soul-satisfying.“ These fellows obviously did not get Anita’s higher level of thinking that went along with her cooking.

Hubert - Beef & Roquefort Cheeseburger With Caramelized Onions & Rustic Potatoes

Sang: “This is visually very appetizing.” Morgan: “Like a tower of fun.” I don’t remember any other judges having this much fun and getting into the challenge as much.

Sang likes the cheese, Morgan does too, but he thinks the cheese is overpowering the taste of the burger. Spike says it’s lacking in wow factor. Hubert suggests to his fellow chefs taking Spike up to the roof and Rick suggests pushing him off.

Hubert is disappointed by the comment, because he says people just LOVE that burger at the restaurant.

The scores:

Hubert 3 stars

Art 3½ stars

Anita 1½ stars

Michael 4 stars

Rick 4 stars

Rick is pleasantly surprised.

For the Elimination Challenge, they learn they’ll be catering a lunch party for Zooey Deschanel. Art says (again) I smell a rat. Zooey sends them a video message.

She tells them she’s a vegetarian and doesn’t eat meat, fish, eggs or dairy. The chefs yell out VEGAN! with the same gusto as if they were saying INFIDEL! THEN she says she’s gluten intolerant and eats no soy. Art: I WAS RIGHT! Vegan AND allergies!!! Quelle Horreur! They have to make a vegan lunch for 20 diners. Each chef has to make one dish.

Anita is at quite a disadvantage on account of her Quickfire low score. There is no way she can NOT go home, is there? They decide quickly and without dispute (THEY are such professionals) who is going to do which course.

Michael says to us this challenge is like thinking “of everything you love to cook and then just say no. No beef, no seafood, no dairy, no pasta. It’s off-putting to say the least.” Zooey DOES have magnificent looking skin.

Art isn’t comfortable making a vegan main course, so he decides to go with dessert. He BOUGHT a “beautiful” rice milk ice cream, which I guess he’ll serve with sticks or something (oh wait, sticks probably have too much bark on them). I don’t think that fake ice cream was a good choice.

Rick helps Michael out with some vegetable advice.

They have 2 hours to prep. Michael says he’s only done ONE other vegan meal in his life and it was for Hillary and he found out only just before that it was to be vegan.

They’re so clever. EVERYTHING sounds really good. Who needs dead flesh anyway?

Rick is worried (too!) that Art bought the rice ice cream. Art added some strawberry puree to it to try to rescue the flavor. I don’t see that being successful. I sure hope I’m wrong.

Michael helps Hubert to finish.

Zooey comes into the kitchen and thanks the chefs for cooking for her. Michael says she has to sing a few songs for them. (She’s sweet, but she doesn’t).

Folks arrive to lunch. All the Hollywood types are in black. Zooey says only her mom cooks for her.

Michael’s plates are about to fall off the table in the kitchen and Hubert helps him. Then as the waiters are serving Hubert’s plates with the little shooter glasses, they drop them and some break. Luckily, he had 2 extra. Dieu merci!

Hubert

White Gazpacho With Grapes And Vanilla Oil

Timbale Of Avocado & Asparagus, Roasted Beet Salad

That timbale is thing of beauty. These chefs are superhuman.

Zooey LOVES the soup. The diners, in general, don’t like the avocado. Gael said the beet salad was extraordinary.

Anita

Spicy Grilled Eggplant With Lentil Salad & Cashew Sauce

The eggplant looks like an overly grilled sausage (or something worse) and it looks dry. The cashew sauce, which could be fabulous, is just a smear on the plate. She DID manage to plate the lentil salad into a square.

Zooey says the eggplant is a little too spicy. Her peeps says it's too spicy as well.

Michael

Quinoa Pasta With Salsa Verde & Pine Nut Gremolata, Tomatoes & Crispy Basil Leaf

Does that sound too simple and with not enough elements? I hope they think it’s rockin’.

Michael comes out and is sooo charming. He really has such a winning smile and way about him. He’s such a complete package, by which I mean he has cooking chops AND charm.

Zooey really likes the pasta. It's just like coming home her mother and she say at about the same time. Gael says it’s her first time having quinoa pasta and she loves it. James says he cooked it well – as dente. Zooey wants to hug him. ME too! Michael is definitely staying this week. I can relax now.

Rick

Sweet Corn Tamales With Chili-Braised Black Beans, Braised Greens & Glazed Mushrooms

Zooey: “These are probably the best tamales I’ve ever had.” Gael: “So many things to taste.” “So nicely spiced,” Zooey says. “Really lovely”, she continues.

Art

Strawberry & Champagne Soup, Strawberry Rice Ice Cream & Almond Brittle

Zooey says she loves ice cream, but she says she’s had better vegan ice cream and then everyone starts dumping on the ice cream. ART! We all told you! Jay says he should have gone for sorbet. Zooey said the whole dinner was lovely.

Hubert says all five of them should win.

Michael says Rick reminds him of the professor on Gilligan’s Island. Art says he’s such a perfectionist. Rick admits he is absolutely meticulous.

At Critics Table:

Of Hubert, Gael says there was a kind of gasp of appreciation and that she was wildly in love with the gazpacho. “The avocado in the middle felt like a lull,” Jay says.

James is surprised that Anita’s eggplant had not been fried. She doesn’t give an inch. She says she soaked it in oil overnight. Jay says the people at the table criticized that the two main ingredients weren’t brought together and that the cashew cream wasn’t enough to do it.

Anita says almost sullenly that it’s subjective. I think she isn’t too interested when you don’t get her food. Gael says the plate was sad looking. Anita says she didn’t want to overcomplicate the dish. Is it becoming clearer that she’s going home? It is to me.

James says admiringly that Michael seems very confident. (Well, most hot men ARE!) Michael says Italian food doesn’t have to rely on meat. The critics like his dish a lot. Jay asks him about buying the pasta instead of making it. You can tell MC thinks they’re insane for questioning that, because in Italy chefs always buy hard pasta from the artisan who made it.

Rick says traditional Mexican food has a lot of vegetable dishes in it. Jay (or was it James?) says it was a true delight. Jay says his only problem was that it was a bit ungainly.

Art wanted something delicious, but not overcomplicated. Gael says the rice ice cream was disappointing. Art agrees. Jay asks him about it. He says he bought it. Jay says, “YOU BOUGHT IT? He says he asked Michael about buying the pasta, so he has to ask Art about dealing with a possibly inferior store-bought product.

Art gets really testy: “I’m not going to make something I don’t know how to make without a recipe. Of course, I know how to make ice cream. I know how to make sorbet.” Then James, wanting to placate him, says he’s amazed he made brittle without butter.

The chefs are excused to the kitchen. They drink.

Gael says she loved seeing the excitement of THE VEGANS. Every time Gael says “the vegans”, it sounds like she’s saying “the aliens”. Funny. Jay loves the explosion of color.

Jay says Hubert did amazing things with those beets. “Anita didn’t shine today, “Jay says. Gael says the cashew puree was cool and sweet. James was not impressed with the eggplant. Jay says, "There was a failure of execution.” Anita is definitely on the firing squad.

Jay says he forgot he was eating a vegan dish, when he had Michael’s pasta. James says it was delicious, although he didn’t like that it was store-bought. Jay says there was nothing wrong with it.

Rick says their questioning the pasta is not smart.

They loved Rick’s dish, even though James says it needed to be pulled together.

Gael thought Art’s dish was messy and the rice ice cream was a failure.

The results: Hubert, Michael and Rick have the highest scores.

Hubert

Quickfire 3

Diners 4

James 4

Gael 4 1/2

Jay 3 1/2

Total 19

Michael

Quickfire 4

Diners 4.5

James 4

Gael 5 Michael blows her a kiss…of course he does.

Jay 4.5

Total 22

Rick

Quickfire 4

Diners 3.5

James 3.5

Gael 4

Jay 4

Total 19

Michael is this week’s winner. Yay!!! His charity will get another $10,000. They can all return to the kitchen

Anita

Quickfire 1.5

Diners 2.5

James 2.5

Gael 3.5

Jay 3

Total 13

SHE must be going home, because of her low Quickfire score.

ART

Quickfire 3.5

Diners 3

James 1.5

Gael 2

Jay 2.5

Total 12.5

OMG, ART is going home! What just happened?!! That really stinks. Kelly seems really sorry to tell him he has to pack up his knives. That really stinks. Really…

This is going to be interesting. Next week, my boy, Dale, talks smack to Michael. How will a Dale-lover like me react to that?

Hubert Is Beautifully French; Rick Shows His Innocence; Art Overcooks An Egg; Michael Undercooks Lamb; One Female Chef Triumphs And One Doesn’t

Top Chef Masters

Art is cute. He’s been all over television this week. He was on Nightline and Campbell Brown. This is going to be really, really good.

Here we go, it’s on!!! They introduce the chefs. I have absolutely no memory of Suzanne Tract. I better read my old posts…oh, it can wait.

Rick says he was scared to death the first time he came to Top Chef. Now he feels a bit more comfortable.

Michael Chiarello (hello there, chef!) says it’s like your second day of school when you have your classes, you know who your professors are and you “get a small exhale”. (Funny, I’m panting just seeing you again.)

Kelly explains that the chef with the highest points will win another $10,000 for his or her charity. The one with the lowest score will be eliminated. Art says (to us) “I don’t wanna be eliminated. “

The Quickfire Challenge will be done in teams. Anita doesn’t like that idea, because she’s never worked with any of them before. But I think professional chefs probably play together nicer than us normal folk.

They pull knives and get either salt or pepper. Michael, Suzanne and Art are on the Pepper Team. Michael immediately reaches out and shakes Art’s hand. Rick, Anita and Hubert are on the Salt Team.

Kelly says their Quickfire is the Mis En Place relay race. Michael tells us what the term means – putting everything in it place. They will be given a series of ingredients to prep and whichever team finishes first wins. They show a clip and now I remember this challenge. My precious Dale’s team lost.

Hubert says none of them do prep anymore. Kelly says they need an experienced expert to determine the winner and Tom comes strolling out. They laugh. Art says to the camera, “Here comes Big Daddy himself, Tom Colicchio.”

The challenge is to open up 15 oysters, dice 5 onions, butcher 4 chicken and separate 5 eggs and beat the whites so stiff that they won’t tip out when the bowl is held upside down for 5 seconds. Wowee zowee!

They have one minute to decide who is doing what on their team. Obviously, one chef on each team will have to do 2 tasks. I’m guessing the women will be the workhorses (they’re also the youngest, I think)

Wrong! Art and Hubert are doing the 2 tasks.

Suzanne and Hubert compete head to head opening oysters. Michael is rooting Suzanne on. Michael says she’s like a Jedi. Hubert looks over and sees she’s ahead and he MOVES! They finish about the same time.

Art goes on to chop the onions, including getting plenty on the floor. Hubert is chopping the onions too. Art is crying (from the onions). Rick says he’s never seen anyone chop onions like Art has. Art finishes before Hubert.

Michael starts chopping his chicken into pieces and then Anita goes. Anita is FAST, but MC is close, really close. It’s a TIE.

It’s up to the eggs. Tom is cackling. Art says Rick is his nemesis because they’re both from Chicago. We learn the Rick used to teach pastry and he always separates his eggs by hand. He’s whisking away. Art gets some yolks in the whites. That can’t be good.

They’re whisking away. Art says “Rick Bayless was like Mr. KitchenAid!” Then he makes a whirling noise. The Salt Team wins after Rick holds his eggs over his head while Art is still beating away. Art’s whites probably would never have gotten stiff enough anyway. Art says he’s devastated. He feels like he let the team down.

The winning team gets 5 stars each before moving onto the next challenge. The losing team members get 4 stars.

Kelly says that in order for them to get to know each other better, they will each prepare their signature dish. That’s okay, but who cares if they get to know each other?

Rick, on the other hand, says just cooking for these other chefs will probably be the highlight of the entire experience for him. Art strolls over to Hubert and tells him he’s too serious and he can tell he’s doing something very French, French, French.

These are the dishes they’re making for their fellow chefs.

Hubert

Lobster & Truffle Cappuccino With Corn Madeleine

We hear about his early French childhood waking up to the smell of croissants…all in his charming Frensssccchhh accent.

Art

Seared Grouper With Hearts Of Palm, Trumpet Mushrooms & Meyer Lemon Zest

He gets a mention of the President and First Lady in there, saying this was their Valentine’s Day dinner.

Anita

Seared Scallops With Potato Purée & Bacon, Sea Urchin & Mustard Greens

Anita says she’s nervous cooking for other chefs, even more than food writers.

Michael

Fennel Balsamic Quail With Mosto Cotto Mostarda , Sautéed Greens & Roasted Apples

He talks about how the ingredients all come together when he’s on his land and he sees the quail and the grapes and the greens. And he tells us that he wishes he could have gone back to Italy with his mom to see the origin of so much of his (and her) cooking.

Suzanne

Chopped Sirloin With Green Peppercorn Sauce & Fried Egg

I have no doubt that this was delicious and, as I’ve mentioned before, I LOVE fried eggs on just about anything. But I can’t help thinking that the chopped sirloin reminds me of a Swanson TV dinner. The chopped sirloin was NEVER in the same league as the turkey dinner with those awesome mashed potatoes and that lovely sweet apple thing. (Or was it cranberries?)

Rick

Rack Of Lamb & Black Pasilla Chile With Mission Figs

We hear about Rick’s well-known travels through Mexico in search of their authentic cuisine and culture.

Ahhh, there IS a reason for all this. In the Elimination Challenge, they have to recreate a competitor’s signature dish. Hubert gets to choose first, because he was on the winning Quickfire team and went twice. He picks Anita (he liked the layers of flavors in her dish) and she has to do his dish. The rest of the chefs are paired up by which number is on the knife they select.

Michael doesn’t want to get Rick, because he feels his cooking is so complex. Of course, he does gets him. Art and Suzanne get each other. This should be fun.

They have 45 minutes and 300 dollars to cook and 2 hours to cook the next day. Kelly says they will be serving their dishes to 6 influential diners. You don’t think they’re serving the dishes to EACH OTHER, do you? That would be interesting. They shop. They cook.

Art is nervous because he’s only been in the restaurant business for a year and a half and he’s competing with VERY experienced chefs. Hubert and Anita seem to be the most intelligent about food. Anita apologizes to the lobster as she sacrifices it to the greater good. (Not according to the lobster, I guess, though). Art is funny, Michael is chatty, Anita and Suzanne keep their heads down and cook cook cook.

Suzanne is worried about the grouper and says that it can’t be undercooked. Art says his lamb has come out slightly undercooked, but he prefers that to the alternative. Suzanne is ready early.

Art goes first and sees that the guest diners are previous Top Chef Masters competitors. (I guess I was wrong about the current competitors judging their own food.) I’m trying to figure out if there’s a chef there from each week of the competition. That would mean that each current chef has someone that he or she beat. That would be fair. These are the diners: Michael Cimarusti, Christopher Lee, Ludo Lefebvre, Rick Moonen, Mark Peel and Elizabeth Falkner. Gael, James and Jay are there as well.

Art is cute. He’s nervous.

Art Reinventing Suzanne’s Dish

Ground Lamb Scotch Egg, Sweet Potato Fries & Tomato Tart

Someone says, “There’s a big old egg in there.” Elizabeth says the egg is overcooked. Michael:” To me, this is Art on a plate.” That’s funny that that doesn’t bother me as much as when Debbie said her dish was “Debbie on a plate". Eww. Gael:” He likes to put a little dessert on a plate. I love both the tomato tart and the biscuit.”

Rick Reinventing Michael’s Dish

Quail With Parsnip & Prosciutto Stuffing Over Wild Greens

Elizabeth and Rick Moonen remark that he stepped outside his “typecasting” by not adding chilies. Jay:” It’s taking the dish and giving you another way to look it.” Ludo: ”Eet’s balanced very well. Eet’s a great dish.”

Suzanne Reinventing Art’s Dish

Roast Grouper With Gnocchi, Peas, Bacon & Parsnips

Elizabeth: “My fish feels like it’s a little bit overcooked. The gnocchi is really cold too.” Uh-oh. I didn’t actually get that excited by that dish OR Suzanne. She says she’s a simple basic chef, but she also seemed a little lacking in energy or verve. Not that this is a personality contest, but her food seemed a little dull.

Kelly: “I’m wondering if it’s been sitting.” Elizabeth says when she cooked with her, she did finish early. James thinks the fish may have “once upon a time” been cooked brilliantly, but in the ensuing ten minutes “lost it”. She is sooo going home.

Hubert Reinventing Anita’s Dish

Seared Scallop With Cream Of Sea Urchin Over Fingerling Mashed Potatoes

Hubert has the cutest smile. RM: “These scallops are cooked perfectly.” Ludo: “In MY dish, I do not taste the sea urchin.”

Cutie Michael (sorry, I couldn’t help myself) Reinventing Rick’s Dish

Rack Of Lamb Stuffed With Fig Mostarda, Chickpeas & Fried Rosemary

He’s really chatty with the judges and diners and wants to go through his whole thought process. Michael Cimarusti:”I would have preferred it a little bit more cooked.” AND he thinks there’s a “seasoning deficit”. Christopher:”I think it’s great.” Ludo: “ Eet’s meeeesing a little BOMBE of flaveur.” RM:”This is to me is the BEGINNING of a great dish. Maybe it’s 70% of the way there.” They can’t possibly grade him lower than Suzanne, can they? No. definitely not.

Anita Reinventing Hubert’s Dish

Corn Chawanmushi, Champagne Gelée & Lobster Biscuit Sandwich

Elizabeth: “I love all her thinking in every single piece.” James nods strenuously in agreement. RM: “This is terrific.” Ludo: “What she did here eeeess totally different.”

We see a short bit with Art scurrying around the kitchen and the other chefs kind of clucking affectionately at how much they love him.

At Critics Table, James says Hubert’s scallop was VERY well cooked. Jay asks him if he though his sauce was sea urchin-y enough. Hubert says Pacific Sea Urchin is “quite a bit milder than the one they have in Europe”. Hmmm, I have to remember that.

Anita says she’s happy with her dish. Jay: You are one clever chef. She said she looked at the challenge as being about putting HER signature on it . James wants to know what her secret is for her light biscuits. She says her mother went to school in Tennessee. Gael: “You are SO full of surprises.” Is she talking about the biscuits or her cooking in general... or her mother?

Art says he felt compelled “to add some southerness” to his dish. He ground his own lamb and added fresh pork fat. James says the meat was a bit rare for him. Gael says she thought the egg was overcooked. Art says “Me and eggs, honey…LOTS of issues”…or words to that effect. They all laugh. “I’ve had so many issues I could LAY an egg!” Art’s smart to leave ‘em laughing, even if they don’t like his food.

Suzanne, not knowing how much they REALLY didn’t like her dish, says she thought she could have put a bit more sauce on it. James: “The dish was a bit cold for me.” It’s so funny how he’s putting all these qualifications on his comments. Instead of saying it was cold!, he says “a bit”, or it was “for me”, as if no one else would be bothered by the fact that it was totally cold. I guess he’s just being nice.

Suzanne admits that she plated her food too soon. Even Jay is gentle as he asks her if she felt the fish was cooked “as it should be”. She says grouper is a tough fish to get right. Finally, Jay comes right out and says,”There were some of us at the table who felt it was overdone.” She is definitely out of there.

Rick says he did his dish as an homage to Michael. How sweet. Gael loves it and she says, “How brave of you to go out of your comfort zone”. James: “It also shows this…fresh innocence, this fresh take on Italian cooking.” Rick is delighted. He says nobody has said fresh innocence in his presence for a really long time. More giggles.

Michael says Rick’s dish was a great dish to start from. Jay says, “You like your lamb rare, don’t you?” At least he didn’t say Baaaaaa.

Michael inquires if the lamb was TOO rare. James volunteers that his was too rare as well and that he didn’t get a sense of Rick in the dish. Michael says without Rick’s genius with chilies, he probably would have crushed the lamb flavor. “If I get voted out of the kitchen and I’m respecting my friend (Rick, he means) , then I go home a winner.” Yeah!

Jay: ”For THIS challenge, you cared more about what Rick thought than we did.” He hesitates only for a second before saying YES! More laughs.

The chefs go back to the kitchen. The critics discuss. They love Hubert’s dish. James doesn’t mind it didn’t taste strongly of sea urchin. Gael did. They LOVED Anita’s dish. Gael: “Every aspect was intellectual.” Jay was in awe of it.

They diss Art’s scotch egg, but love his fries.

About Suzanne, Jay says, “I don’t think it was as good a day at the office as it should have been.” James: “The fact that it was sooo cold really did kind of ruin it for me.” (Interesting. It KIND OF ruined it? Either it did or it didn’t. James is definitely hemming and hawing.)

Jay doesn’t think that Michael was comfortable with his dish. He says he’s one of the “most technically experienced cooks” they’ve come across. James says usually his lamb is wonderful. Jay does say his chickpeas were “spectacular”.

James loves Rick’s dish: It “was confident to the core.” Gael: ”It was beautifully balanced.” James also admires Rick’s “quiet respect of Michael’s original dish.“

The chefs are in the kitchen saying how afraid they all are of the critics’ comments. They come back out. Rick and Anita have the highest scores tonight.

Rick

Quickfire – 5 stars

Diners – 4 1/2 stars

Critics – James 5; Gael 4; Jay 4 1/2

Total – 23 stars

Anita

Quickfire – 5 stars

Diners – 4 1/2 stars

Critics – James 4 1/2; Gael 5; Jay 5

Total – 24 stars

Anita wins. The other chefs applaud. Art gives her a big hug. Rick and Anita are excused.

Michael

Quickfire – 4 stars

Diners – 3 stars

Critics – James 3 1/2; Gael 4; Jay 4

Total – 18½ stars

Hubert

Quickfire – 5 stars

Diners – 4 stars

Critics – James 4; Gael 4; Jay 4 1/2

Total – 21 ½ stars

Hubert can return to the kitchen and come back next week.

Art

Quickfire – 4 stars

Diners – 3 stars

Critics – James 2 1/2; Gael 3; Jay 2 1/2

Total – 15 stars

Michael’s score is higher than Art’s, so Michael is safe for next week. He leaves the room.

Suzanne

Quickfire – 4 stars

Diners – 3 stars

Critics – James 2 1/2; Gael 2 1/2; Jay 2 1/2

Total – 14 1/2 stars

Art is safe. Suzanne is sent home. Aww. The chefs all hug her. She says she would come back tomorrow and do the same dish…without the grouper.

What a great episode. It was about food and cooking and we got to watch great chefs doing what they do – cook masterfully.