Kate's Cuisine » Coffee Break

Beware of Poisoned Blackberries!

kate — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 11:29:30 +0000

It’s Poisoned Blackberry day! We are celebrating this day around my house with – guess what? Lots and lots of blackberries! I am lucky enough to have a grandmother that has bushes and bushes of blackberries every single year. And every single year, I’ve just unloaded all the blackberries out of my freezer when it’s time for the new crop to come in and I get to fill my freezer back up. It’s good news for me, who loves free food and loves to find new recipes (if you had asked me 3 years ago for a blackberry recipe, I would have been at a loss – now I have tons of them!) And it’s also great news for my older daughter, who has recently discovered that to her, blackberries fall second only to the mighty strawberry. My daughter loves blackberries and is perfectly content to have a big bowl of them – no sugar, no nothing – just about whenever she can. But I try to keep her away from the poisoned ones.

So just what the heck is Poisoned Blackberry Day anyway?

The reason for the day actually has a couple of theories behind it. The first, English, legend says that after the Devil was kicked out of Heaven on October 11 (I’ve been a Christian my entire life and have never heard any significance attached to this date,) he sought revenge by spitting – and some other, ickier legends even say peeing - on the blackberries! This made them unfit to eat and therefore, they were known to be poisoned blackberries.

There is another, perhaps more reasonable, explanation as to what Poisoned Blackberry Day is all about. This one dates back to the 1700s and it doesn’t have anything to do with the Devil or his bathroom functions. This theory states that during that time, blackberries were thought to cause more deaths than any other fruit that comes off a vine or a bush. Ever since, dozens of people have gone roaming the countryside on Poisoned Blackberry Day to hunt for the lethal blackberries that kill immediately upon consumption.

I have no idea whether there’s any merit to be given to either of these theories. But I do know that it’s Poisoned Blackberry Day. And that’s one more reason to take some berries out of the freezer, and figure out something new to do with them!

Cool Bananas!

kate — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 13:52:25 +0000

It’s International Banana Day! And while we may just take it as a day to indulge in the potassium-filled goodness, there is an actual reason for the day. It all began in Fulton, Illinois….

The United States didn’t have refrigerated railroad cars until 1880, when the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad constructed the first. This invention meant that even those who lived in Seattle, New York, Detroit, and all the northern states (and even us up here in Canada) could enjoy tropical fruit like lemons, oranges, and of course – mainly bananas.

Soon, the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad moved the redistribution centre for bananas to Fulton, because it was such a central point between New Orleans and Canada. The United Fruit Co. (which is now the Chiquita company), soon started shipping bananas, by boat, from South America to New Orleans. From there, the bananas would be taken to the Fulton Ice Plant. There they’d be laid on top of blocks of ice (each one weighed 162 pounds!) before they were taken further North and redistributed to different parts of the country and Canada.

Fulton soon came to be known as “The Banana Capital of the World,” and at one point, more than 70% of the United States’ bananas passed through Fulton. To celebrate the wonderful fruit and all that it brought to the region, Fulton started holding the International Banana Festival every year beginning in the late 1800s. Sometime (it’s thought in the early 1900s,) there was a particularly eager little girl by the name of Carolyn Allen Dunavant. When Carolyn was in the 8th grade in Fulton, Kentucky she wrote a letter to NBC news anchor, Chet Huntly, telling him about the festival and inviting him to come check it out. Huntly accepted the invite, and headed over to Fulton to see what all the banana fuss was about.

Chet Huntly wasn’t the only one who wanted to come check it out, either. The national exposure soon brought other local and national celebrities including Ms. America, Ms. Kentucky, Ms. Tennessee, Ms. Dairy Princess, governors, senators, congressmen, and the United States State Department. Officials from Columbia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, and other countries from where the bananas came also came to the festival to take part in the fun.

The Festival has gone through a lot of changes over the years. When it first began, young teenagers from South America would come weeks before the festival started. They would share their own experiences with American teenagers and teach them not only about the wonderful bananas they were now enjoying, but also all other aspects of South American life and culture. Much later, in the 1990s, the Festival was actually stopped for a short period; but it wasn’t long before town officials realized the importance of the Festival and everything it symbolized, and started it back up again.

The Festival has been back up and running for several years and has everything from carnival rides and games, a parade, and of course, plenty of bananas to go around! The biggest attraction is always the 1-ton banana pudding, which is thought to be the biggest in the world. The pudding is marched through the parade at the beginning of the Festival, and then distributed to all those who attend the Festival. Many states have now also caught Banana Fever and now run their own Banana Festivals on different dates throughout the year.

But it all goes back to Fulton, Illinois, and today is the day – it’s the International Banana Festival! So if you’re in the area, slap on some yellow, get in the spirit, and head out to the festival! It’s a great day to celebrate bananas!

Funky Chicken Facts

kate — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:46:25 +0000

Yesterday was a day of celebrating sweetness, as September 1 kicked off National Honey Month. But, September isn’t just a month to celebrate honey – it’s also the month of the chicken! Yep, September is National Chicken Month!

This month wasn’t just chosen willy-nilly, or had the “Chicken Month” label slapped on it with little thought at all. Nope, September is National Chicken Month for a reason. The National Chicken Council (we’re talking the U.S. here but I’m going to adopt Chicken Month for us Canucks too,) noticed that September generally saw a decline in chicken sales, as people flicked off their barbecues for the last time and put out the flame until next year. (I guess chicken’s a popular-enough barbecue item that some won’t eat it any other way.) So, to keep the chick’s popularity up and to give us reason to celebrate (and eat) it, they’ve given us National Chicken Month. And to kick it all off, I’m going to give you some funky chicken facts:

More chickens live on Earth than people.
Chickens can run as fast as 9 miles an hour.
The chicken capital of the world is Gainesville, Georgia, USA. Here it is illegal to eat chicken with a fork and yes, they have arrested someone for committing the crime.
A hen lays about 300 eggs every year.
A mother hen turns her eggs about 50 times every day. She has to do this so that the yoke inside does not get stuck to the inside of the shell.
Chickens have a slightly higher body temperature than humans; theirs sits at about 102 or 103 degrees Fahrenheit.
A chicken’s heart rate lies somewhere around 280 – 315 times every minute.
Chickens can fly for very brief periods of time. They are not capable of sustained flight.
It takes a hen about 24 – 26 hours to lay one egg.
After the hen lays the egg, it then takes about 21 days to hatch.
An egg starts developing into a chicken when it reaches 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Canadians and Americans each eat about 8 billion chickens every year.
Think chickens only lay white or brown eggs? They can lay eggs of just about any colour – even pink and blue!
If you have a fear of chickens, you have a case of alektorophobia.

So there ya have it! Just a few funky facts, and a few good reasons, why the National Chicken Council thinks that we should spend this month celebrating the chicken! Oh and by the way, the NCC aren’t the only ones who have dedicated this month to the chick – PETA has also come out with their own version of Chicken Month. They call their campaign “Give a Cluck – Chuck the Chicken!”

What’s That, Honey?

kate — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 13:31:17 +0000

We may spread it on a piece of toast in the morning, or add it to our favourite sauces without thinking twice, but what is honey really? Sweet nectar of the Earth is what it is, and September is here to celebrate it – it’s National Honey Month! Of course I’ll be posting wonderful honey recipes and interesting facts along the way but we’ll start with a look at this wonderful ingredient, just what it is, and all the wonderful things it can do for you!

If you have a bottle of honey in your cupboard, it’s most likely pure honey – with no added ingredients, sugar, or preservatives. Honey doesn’t actually need preservatives because the natural acid pH level prevents bacteria from ever growing in it. The worst it will do is start to crystallize as the sugar breaks down, but it’s always safe to eat. And honey doesn’t need any added sugar either because it’s so naturally sweet and delicious!

Honey really is just honey. After the bees buzz around their flowers gathering the nectar, they take it back to the hive and put it onto the honeycomb, where it’s aired out and vented so that it can ripen and eventually turn into honey. Beekeepers then remove the filled cells of comb and drain the honey out of them. Of course the entire process is a bit more complex than that, but that’s basically how it breaks down. But let’s not make just mere mention of the honeybee that makes it all possible – they play the most important role of all and they work incredibly hard to bring us all that honey. In fact, it can take up to 60,000 bees in a beehive and over 55,000 miles of travel just to make a single pound of honey!

So what about all those different colours and varieties you see in the store? Dark honey, light honey, cremed honey, liquid honey, and hundreds of different kinds of each! Well, it’s all in where the bees buzz. The colour of the honey is solely based on the nectar of the flower that was used to make the honey. So while clovers, the most popular flower used for making honey, has a light golden colour, honey from buckwheat flowers might be a bit darker. That’s not to say that colour doesn’t affect the taste. Generally lighter honeys have a much milder taste while dark honeys have a bold and intense flavour.

And in addition to colour, you’ll have a few more choices than that when you find yourself standing in the grocery aisle looking at all the different kinds of honey. One of those choices will be the form your honey comes in; there are four main types.

Even though you’re most likely buying pure honey every time you buy it, if you want to be a true honey-purist you can use comb honey. Comb honey has been taken directly out of the hive and placed in a jar. The honey has not been taken off the cells of the comb, and it’s in the most natural state as stored by the bees. Another type of honey, chunk honey, is made by placing large pieces of the honeycomb into a jar and then pouring liquid honey over top.

Liquid honey is the type of honey that many of us have in our kitchens – it pours out of the bottle in a smooth, golden (or amber) stream, adding instant natural sweetness to anything it touches. It’s great for cooking and baking, or just drizzling. Cremed honey is much thicker than liquid honey and many prefer it to liquid honey. I especially love spreading a thick layer of it over top of toast! Cremed honey is still pure honey; it’s made up of one part granulated honey that’s been blended with nine parts liquid honey and then stored at a specific temperature until it hardens.

Honey is more than just a natural sweetener and a natural wonder though – it also has many healing properties! Honey is known to be a great antiseptic for wounds; provide energy to athletes before, during and after rigorous training; and it’s also known to be a natural cough suppressant. In addition to all of these honey benefits, the sticky substance is also known to bring a host of beauty benefits along with it.

So take a few moments this month to celebrate honey – it’s got natural goodness on so many levels! And remember, the next time you take that honey out of your cupboard, that you’re about to use some of the best stuff on earth!

Happy Honey Month everyone!

“To Marry”

kate — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 01:48:58 +0000

I’ve thought about adding this post about my favourite cooking term for some time now and being an official newlywed, I feel that it couldn’t be a more appropriate time. As much as I love cooking, there’s not often that I get excited about a specific term just because I love the word, but there’s something about the cooking term “to marry” that’s just so plain nice.

“To marry” a dish means to put all the ingredients together and then let it sit for a little while, usually anywhere from 15 minutes to several hours. Allowing the ingredients to sit like this allows the ingredients to hang out together for a bit and blend together to eventually make a dish that tastes perfect. You can mix all the ingredients together and then use them right away. But it won’t taste the same as when you let them all really work together to make that something special; and the chances are that it won’t taste nearly as good. Because on their own, those ingredients are good. But together, they’re spectacular.

Of course, not all recipes will need you to give the ingredients time “to marry,” so don’t get all carried away with the term and start making everything you cook sit together before doing anything with it. In some cases of course, the ingredients were meant to stand alone. But the next time you see that a recipe calls for ingredients “to marry” – mix it up, wrap it up, set it aside and think about what a nice thing you’re doing for your food.

The Differences Between Olive Oils

kate — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 00:46:53 +0000

It’s something so simple that many of us use on on a daily basis. While it serves such a practical purpose, olive oil also adds tremendous flavour to anything it touches, and the quality and the type you use will greatly determine how your finished dish tastes at the end. I’ve often wondered what the difference is in olive oils, always choosing extra-virgin just because I know it’s “the best.” But why, and will it really make a big difference when you’re cooking with it?

An olive oil can be called “virgin” if there were only mechanical measures taken to extract the oil from the olive. Olive oil is produced by crushing the oil out of the olive. The crushing or the pressing is what’s considered to be the mechanical measure so if that’s all that’s involved, an olive oil can rightfully be called “virgin.” If any heat has been applied to the olives, or radiation, or solvents, then it cannot be called virgin olive oil. It is still however, olive oil. So if you see a label that just says, “Olive Oil” some other measure than just pressing it or crushing it has been used.

There are a few additional requirements, in addition to only mechanical measures being used, that an olive oil must meet to be deemed “extra” virgin olive oil. The main one is that the oil can have no more than 1% oleic acid, which is the major fatty acid in olive oil. Because there’s less of this fatty acid, extra virgin olive oil is much lighter than other olive oils, which makes it perfect for things like salad dressing. Other qualities of the olive oil will be analyzed to see if the olive oil can be called “extra virgin.” Some of these are colour, aroma, and of course, flavour.

There are other olive oils that are called “light” or “mild.” These oils are not virgin, and so some other element besides just the pressing came into play to extract the oil from the olives. Aside from that, the regular olive oil that’s used is of lesser quality and has often been refined several times. While you’ll still receive some of the flavour that you’d expect from olive oil, you’ll also find that it has a much milder taste and the colour is also much lighter. However, because it still has much of the fatty acid, this oil will taste and feel much heavier.

So there are actually differences in the different types of olive oil and the type you choose might depend on what you’re going to cook with it, or what your own personal preference is. I generally try to buy extra-virgin olive oil but it is of course, the priciest of the olive oils and so other times I’ll choose another type. I do find that the taste varies greatly between different manufacturers though so, check some out from a few different brands to see which one you like the best.

MasterChef: Week 7

kate — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:48:21 +0000

This week in MasterChef was a very sad one for me. All of them end up being sad, really. I’m at a point now in the competition where I truly like everyone, and I think all of them are very, very talented chefs. Except for Lee. He’s a pooper in my opinion.

The episode started of course, with the Mystery Box. Underneath was a venison tenderloin and a bunch of other ingredients, including red wine (“of course” said Gordo, so I think we’re supposed to get from that that you’re supposed to drink red wine with venison.) As the cooks went to work, you could see that some were having problems. Mike ran all over the place (again) and the judges were confused as to why Whitney was smothering her beautiful protein with thick gravy. In the end, it turns out, Gordo loved the gravy, even though he didn’t think he would. The winner of course, was allowed to choose the main ingredient for the next challenge, and that privilege went to Sheetal, who won her first individual challenge. Yay for Sheetal! There’s something so sweet about that girl that I just love.

Taken back into the pantry where the potential main ingredients were waiting, Sheetal is told by Gordo that the theme for that challenge is desserts. He then unveils “the most amazing selection of honey”, and “the most amazing selection of berries” and “the most amazing selection of vanilla.” Good thing that Gordo decided to go with cooking as a career and not writing or editing – that was a lot of “amazing” stuff. Sheetal chose vanilla and quickly admitted that Whitney was her biggest competition because she’s the “dessert queen.”

Gordo goes back to the rest of the chefs and tells them that Sheetal chose vanilla. And that, of course, the cook with the worst dish is going to be eliminated. Again, there were problems. Mike once again ran around not really looking like he knew what he was doing, and Sheetal’s dish unfortunately was not even ready when it was time to present it to the judges. But when it came down to it, Mike’s running around did him no good. His dish looked bad, it apparently tasted bad, and it got him sent home. That really is too bad. I loved, loved, loved Mike and for the first couple of weeks thought that he might be the one to take it. I guess that just proves that you have to do more than just move like a chef – which is what Gordo said about him at his audition. So, Mike with the hat has gone and it’s time to move on.

With only the final five left, Gordo then tells them about their next challenge. They’ll go out on a boat, catch a fish, and then cook it. But of course, that’s not all. They’ll each present their dish to three of the biggest food critics in the country. The critics will score them on their dishes and the two with the lowest scores will face off head to head in the Pressure Cooker. The chefs go hard at work preparing their fish, each with a very different take on it. Then they one by one present their dish to the critics who taste it, talk about it, and eventually score it. At the end of the challenge, Dave Miller is as surprised as anyone that he won the competition. Unfortunately, the two with the lowest scores were also two major favourites – Whitney and Sharone. Really, any way this ends now is going to be bad for me. Those are my two personal favourite cooks that are left and I’ll be sad to see either of them.

Gordo tells them once they’re back in the MasterChef kitchen that they’ll be making chocolate souffle. They have 90 minutes and can make as many as they’d like but can only present the judges with one. Jarone works for the whole 90 minutes, making many different souffles. Whitney however, only makes one and hopes for the best. And apparently, that’s all she needed to do. After tasting both, the judges tell Sharone that the only thing his dish missed was three more minutes in the oven. It was a bit undercooked and Whitney’s was absolutely perfect, so she gets to stay. Yay for Whitney, not so good for Sharone.

The judges did give Sharone a very nice good-bye speech, and Joe even told Sharone that he’ll always have a job at Joe’s restaurant, should he want it. Which is very nice, especially from a judge who I’ve sort of thought was a turd all season. So, sad to see Sharone go but I think I’m rooting for either Whitney or Dave at this point. I’m amazed that I like Dave at all, he was so cocky and irritating during his audition I was pretty sure I’d be praying for him to leave every week. But he’s turned into a real talent and I’ve grown to really like him. And Whitney – what can you say about sweet southern belle Whitney? She’s cute, she’s sweet, and she can cook like the devil! Really though, as long as obnoxious and arrogant Lee doesn’t win, I’ll be happy.

MasterChef: Week 6

kate — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 03:44:37 +0000

Wednesday’s episode of MasterChef held some predictable eliminations and one that left me wondering if ol’ Gordo was all there or if maybe he had had a pint or two before filming the show. It started with Gordon officially announcing that this was a new game. It was no longer about home cooks. It was about people who had the passion, the drive, the talent, and the skill to become MasterChef, and that they all needed to step up their game. Some did, while others buried theirs.

Lee came out to be the shining light in the entire thing and to be honest, I don’t think anyone noticed Lee before. In the first challenge they had to prepare a wonderful dish using one live crab. Lee made something that blew the judges away although I can’t honestly remember what that was. I do remember however, all the judges telling the other cooks to come up and taste it because that’s exactly what they’re looking for. They all scurry over, eager to please the judges by acting civil but Sharome hangs back and refuses to eat Lee’s food. And the pissing contest has begun. Less was then allowed to pick, among a selection, the next ingredient that the cooks would have to prepare. The theme was romance and Lee chose passion fruit. Not something I would have chosen, but Lee was enjoying his time and so be it.

The best two quotes of the season, I think, came from this episode and specifically, this first hour of it. The first was when Sharome was preparing his gourmet vacuumed-then-boiled-meat dish when he was having trouble with the vacuum machine. Gordon came up and asked him what the problem was and Sharome replied, “I’m trying to make this dish but this damned machine is more complicated than any woman I’ve ever met.” HA! I’m growing to like Sharome more and more.

The second quote came from Jake. After presenting the judges with his dish that he said “oozed romance” and “was incredibly sexy”, the judges tore him apart and told him that he had missed the point. On side camera, Jake says, “I don’t know, I thought the dish was very good and very romantic. Maybe Gordon likes it rough.” Again, HA! Also loving Jake.

At the end of the challenge, it’s Slim who eventually gets tossed out for preparing what looked like something you’d serve at a 6-year-olds birthday party. Not only does she get slaughtered for how she prepared the dish, what she made, and how she presented the dish, Judge Baldy also threw her entire dish in the garbage and told her that he wasn’t “eating that crap.” It’s becoming clear that she’s about to go home and the judges give her one last lifeline by asking her if she would do anything different with the dish. She replies that she would add less ginger to the sauce but no, basically she’d keep it exactly the same. Crikey! If you weren’t going home before…..yep, Slim got the boot. On to the second hour.

The second hour actually seemed to have less challenges but more eliminations. The big challenge started with the group being divided into two teams, and Lee getting to choose his team – because he’s still on his mighty Lee reign. He doesn’t pick Sharome because the pissing contest is ongoing and that’s when things get political between the two. The teams are picked and they’re all told that they will be cooking for a wedding tonight. They’re each cooking for certain guests and whoever wins won’t face the pressure cooker. Lee automatically puts Tracy, who’s unfortunately on his team, on salad because Tracy is weak (let’s face it, we all know it), and salad seems like a pretty easy deal. Nope, she screwed that up too and had a complete breakdown. Moving on.

During the wedding challenge, each team did pretty well. They each had their mishaps and screw-ups but ultimately, the blue team lose simply because they had a harder time with appetizers than the red team did. This knocks Lee down a peg but he still seems to think that the judges are going to love whatever he puts on a plate – even if it’s garbage. The rest of Lee’s team – Tracy, Jake and Mike to face the Pressure Cooker along with Lee.

The Pressure Cooker this week is preparing one pasta dish: one fresh pasta of their choice; and one fresh sauce of their choice. They have to make it all from scratch, and they have an hour. Again, scurrying and panicking and in the end, the judges taste all of the dishes. They know that two people are going home, so everyone’s got a 50/50 chance of leaving. First to be knocked off, Tracy. Like I said, we all knew it and she’s shown weakness over the last few challenges. Not a shocker. Then Mike is sent to safety (thankfully, I really like him too) and two surprising contestants stand before the judges – Lee and Jake – probably two of the strongest, I would think. The judges think the same, and say that they are very disappointed to see both of them there.

In the end, Jake’s dish just wasn’t good enough and I don’t think the judges were impressed with the attitude that he showed during the Pressure Cooker. They did tell him though, to stay away from construction and to always keep cooking, and I agree. I love Jake, and I’m sorry to see him go. He does have amazing talent and I truly hope that he pursues it and who knows, maybe we’ll see him on the Food Network someday.

The judges are quite done yet though. With Lee standing before them, they tear him apart for being cocky enough to think that he can put raw garlic in something and still expect them to qualify it as being good. He gets the lashing that he needs and I think we’ll see a much humbler Lee next week. And now that Jake’s gone, I’m rooting for Sharome. I do like Lee’s food usually but since Lee and Sharome have decided to be archenemies, I suppose I must take sides. I really like Whitney but I think ultimately her age will get her, and Mike is showing tons of potential too, although he’s shown issues during the last few challenges as well. And, Dave. I can’t believe I’m going to say this but I’m actually really starting to like Dave. He does show crazy passion and if he keeps it real, he’s a very likable guy. Who knows? Maybe the guy who tried to make bouillabaisse in an hour really will take it all.

MasterChef: Week 5

kate — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:13:26 +0000

Is it just me or does it seem as though MasterChef is going by really quickly? Here we are at Week 5 already, and at the end of this week, there are only ten cooks remaining to compete for the title of being the first American MasterChef. Not to mention the fact that Gordon Ramsay is eliminating people, giving people advantages, and offering them a chance at exemptions – all at the drop of a hat. But, as the competition gets further along, it’s quite clear to see that while Ramsay may have started out this adventure looking for home cooks, he’s now looking for someone who can become a Master Chef.

The contestants come into the MasterChef kitchen and stand before a Mystery Box. A box that contains an ingredient that they must use in the dish that they prepare. Gordon asks them all what they would like to be in the box and there are ideas thrown around such as seafood, which was Jake’s dream. Tracy declares enthusiastically that she hopes it’s flour and butter and sugar because she wants to bake! Words she would soon regret. Then of course, Gordon hands out the actual assignment. They have 45 minutes, and they are to make the perfect cupcake. Dramatically, a huge sheet behind them drops and every single fruit, nut, chocolate, candy, and any other cupcake ingredient you could imagine sits on huge display. The judges will only eat the 3 most delicious-looking cupcakes, and the winner will gain a big advantage in the next challenge. The clock starts, and the cooks get started.

The judges stand off to the side mumbling about what they’re looking for in the perfect cupcake. Gordon wants something “light and refreshing”, and it’s not surprising that the twinkle in his eye, Whitney, is making that exact thing. The camera spans over some cupcakes that are looking utterly scrumptious, and some others that are well, interesting to look at anyway. Tracy, Master Baker in the back, meanwhile, is having a complete breakdown. Her cupcakes aren’t cooking or cooling quickly enough, they’re not finished, a complete mess, and she’s completely embarrassed her late mother. Or so she tells us. Then, time is up and the judges are about to pick the three that they want to taste.

Who do they pick? Jake, because he’s the twinkle in Gordon’s other eye, Whitney, and Sharone, who’s never made cupcakes before, yet has created a most artistic looking cupcake with swirls and hazelnuts and pistachios. Who wins? Of course. The dude who presents art when he’s never made a single cupcake. What’s his prize? Well, Gordon ushers him behind a curtain to show him three covered dishes. After showing him those, out from behind yet another curtain walks celebrity chef from Iron Chef America is Cat Cora. She’s made all the dishes that are about to be revealed to Sharone and they walk through each of them. Sharone’s advantage that he won is to choose the dish that the other cooks will be preparing – and they must make it exactly like Cat Cora’s. Sharone chooses the halibut dish with the delicate cream sauce and the bundle of veg on top. Then of course, Gordon also announces that Sharone will be cooking it as well. He has another challenge though. If he can make it better than Cat Cora’s, he will advance to the final four in the competition, no questions asked. So again, the cooking starts.

The judges wander around looking at tasty looking halibut and give advice to those who seem to be struggling with the dish. In the end, it was Faruq who had the worst dish, and I was heartbroken. Partly because he seemed so proud of it and was so confident, and mostly because I was just really rooting for Faruq and was hoping that he would do quite well. Ah, that was not to be the case. Oh and for those who even thought that Sharone could make a better Cat Cora halibut dish than Cat Cora, he can’t. So, moving on, we have another hour and another painful elimination.

The first challenge divides the group into two different teams – Team Red and Team Blue, borrowed undoubtedly from Gordon’s other show Hell’s Kitchen. Jake made the best halibut in the last round and so he got to choose his own team: Whitney, Tracy, Lee, and Tony, the thought to be “super cooks” of MasterChef. So, what will the teams be doing? Making burgers. But not just any burgers. They have to make the best burger in America. Or at least a better burger than the other team. And they have to make a lot of them. Why? Because their judges are truckers. Lots and lots of truckers. The truckers will vote on which burger they think is best, and the team with the most votes wins. After voting, the super cooks were left dumbstruck as the Red Team won. So what’s the prize? Well, not going into the Pressure Cooker where someone is now going to get eliminated.

The Pressure Cooker challenge has 25 ingredients lined up and each cook has to come in one by one and identify as many ingredients as possible. The cook who identifies the least amount of ingredients will be sent home. So, after some dramatization and a lot of rosemary-smelling, it turns out that it’s Tony who can only identify 9 ingredients – which is a little embarrassing, by the way. So Tony was sent off and I didn’t have too many feelings either way about it. But I was still getting over losing Faruq.

MasterChef: Week 3

kate — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 20:05:41 +0000

This week in MasterChef, the show started with the 30 potential MasterChefs that made it through the first auditions and earned the right to wear the apron. These 30 were first given the challenge of chopping onions, after Chef Ramsay showed them all how to properly slice and dice an onion. Some of the onions were nice, thin, and consistent, while others clearly didn’t pay any attention, leaving almost whole onions in their bowls, which got them an on-the-spot elimination. The challenge went on for over ninety minutes and at the end, two were left – Hollie, and Faruq, the guy who made the Mac N’ Cheese during his audition and forgot to add salt. He did make it through, while Hollie was sent home.

After this challenge, the contestants weren’t done. They then had the challenge of making one dish, in half an hour, that starred, as Gordon Ramsay put it, “one single, stunning egg.” The egg was to be the star of the show and the dish had to be tasty. There were some winners, and some clear losers. And some had good dishes but were sent home because of things such as poor presentation. After this round, there were several of my favorites left, such as Faruq, but there were lots of people that I don’t like too, such as the guy who made Bouillabaisse during his audition. At the end, fourteen contestants were left.

The show was very good and showed a lot of promise. I was very happy that the auditions were over, as that got old pretty quickly. And, even though we did see the contestants participating in challenges for the first time, it’s not the last of the firsts we’ll see for the show. Next week we’re told that the cooks will enter the MasterChef kitchen for the first time, and it looks like they’re going to have to stand up to a lot of heat! I can’t wait to see who makes it through and what Gordon Ramsay has in store for them next!