Top Chef Masters - S1E8 Postmortem

Weeeeeeeeoooooooo, that was close!

I'm not sure how you get defensive about doing store-bought ice cream as the centerpiece of your dish. And I'm more confused by the argument that he didn't have a recipe and wanted to get it right. Nobody told him he had to do ice cream. It was just a bad choice made especially bad by the fact that he probably had the easiest course to veganize. Do something fun with fruit. Why confuse things with a lousy ice cream substitute?

Related random thought, why have we never seen any contestants cracking something open in the store to taste it? Your budget here is $300, it's the centerpiece of your dish... just taste it! Worst-case scenario, you just spent $5 saving yourself from putting something lousy on your plate. Seems like a no-brainer to me.

And incidentally, Rayner makes me like him more and more every day. Rake Smith over the coals for store-bought rice cream while simultaneously sticking up for the sanctity of pasta secca? We're totally simpatico, buddy. The whole "fresh pasta is better" trope is one of my huge pet peeves, too.

Keller keeps rocking, Bayless does his thing, Lo has an off night (she'll be back), and Chiarello busts out a big winner. The next elimination could be brutal.

And for anybody who didn't keep watching through the credits, it looks like a season in the spotlight and reality show fame haven't done much to mellow Dale Talde. I always liked the guy, but I have a hard time believing Chiarello did anything to merit that kind of blowup. Guess we'll see. Gotta start warming up for Top Chef, anyway -- which, by the way, has been moved up to August 19th for those who might have missed it. Looks like we'll have a TCM finale / TC premiere extravaganza! And me traveling in San Francisco that day. Anybody in the bay area want to host a viewing party?

Discuss!

Comments

[Lon]

Finally someone cooks vegetarian and makes it look and taste good. Too often non-meat cooks seem to think that all they have to do is throw a few things together and it will be good, i.e. one of the chefs in the first season. Cooking good vegetarian food requires a through knowledge of the foods and how to prepare and especially how to season them.

Speaking as one of "those" I am always insulted when people seem to think meat has to be included for a meal to be interesting and colorful and tasty. Natural foods have many colors and many flavors and it takes as much talent and technique, and maybe even more, to cook "veggie" well as it does to cook meat well. This is not to downgrade those who eat meat; I just get tired of vegetarians being treated as second-class.

Great show from my viewpoint. It's nice to portray vegetarian as good tasting and its great to see great chefs shine who usually don't cook that technique. A great chef is a great chef.

[Gilmore]

Great episode. Bye bye Art. He seemed as nervous as could be when he presented his dish. Glad it bombed and saved Anita on an off episode.
I just love how they help each other - Bayless giving advice in the grocery store, Chiarello helping Keller prepare the tomatoes, several helping Chiarello with the collapsing table, etc.
In the preview, Dale looks like he needs to be locked up. I wonder if the challenge is to cook with rebellious and undisciplined sous chefs? Maybe they brought back all of the hot heads to try and rattle the masters?

[Dave F]

Just for the record, I've had those eggplants several times at Annisa (although Lo did mention they were slightly different at the restaurant -- my guess is that she uses soy sauce at Annisa). The eggplants are on the oily side; I've never been a fan of denuding ingredients of the characteristics that make them special.

[Vega]

"Maybe they brought back all of the hot heads to try and rattle the masters?"

Can't be, I saw Blais. Blais is all about class, Lisa aside.

[Shelly]

One of the best cookbooks I ever bought was a vegan/vegetarian book recommended by a friend. It really taught me a lot about flavors and adding depth in ways I not considered. It also taught me that meat is just another ingredient, but isn't necessary for a great meal.

Even vegan plus gluten intolerance wouldn't be that bad after having cooked from that book for a few years and thought of a number of dishes. But then, I'm only cooking for my husband and me, and not having to wow people with something original. I wish I could have tried the dishes they all made. Except the dessert, which looked foul.

There's so much else he could have done for dessert, with nuts and grains and fruits and chocolate.

I don't know what happens next week, but whatever caused Dale to lose his temper, his loss of it looks completely unprofessional. It seems to me that's the difference between a master and someone who only thinks he's a master.

[rab01]

For next week, the sous chefs have a bizarrely huge range of abilities -- at one end of the spectrum, you could get Blais; at the other end, you could be stuck with Betty as your assistant (ugh).

As for Dale, I liked him during his season but I can't believe there is ANYTHING that could have happened in less than 2 days that would justify that tone of voice from him.

[Brent]

The preview makes me not want to watch next week. We've had the pleasure of watching professionals, great chefs, working well together almost completely absent any of the drama and histrionics (and mostly the profanity) of the regular Top Chef. And then some of those regular Top Cheftestants show up and what do you get? Drama and histrionics. Bravo should challenge these Masters, it shouldn't ambush or waylay them.

On the other hand, Chiarello has demonstrated a lack of awareness in some instances - that limp wrist comment to Art Smith could set someone off; his flirting with comely females; and he does sometimes take an arrogant tone.

I checked Dale's Facebook page and a couple comments were from fellow Filipinos applauding him - they took offense at Chiarello's "young man" patter. Looking young and therefore being treated and talked to in that matter is apparently a point of soreness with Filipinos? Who knew. (Not Chiarello, we can surmise.)

Dale's attitude in Top 4 some sometimes seemed understandable (as when dealing with Lisa), and he also displayed an ability to work well with others when he respected them and felt respected by them (as with Blais).

Tough to try to interpret a few seconds of a preview. Just found it disturbing after the camaraderie we've seen in Masters so far.

[Brent]

By the way, ran across an article about Blais published a month or so ago by a North Carolina newspaper in which he talks about going on a 21-day Vegan diet, no sugar, no gluten. Coincidental given last night's theme.

Here's the end (he's talking about cooking for his little girl):

“You would have thought I was cooking for Obama,” Blais muses. “I poached this asparagus and I made this cooked egg-yolk Hollandaise to go with it. I really put a lot of effort into these three spears of asparagus. She puts it on her tongue and then, exit. It's like no way. Doesn't work.”

But Blais tried again, this time introducing the asparagus with vinegar. Kids are great at getting you to rethink food, he says.

“With Riley, she'll eat anything with sugar on it but we're like, OK, we can't do that. We can't just lather everything up in simple syrup. But then we found out she likes vinegar, she likes acid, which, quite honestly, salt, sugar and acid make up what really great food is. So as a chef I've really been learning about palates a lot and it's been totally inspiring.”

All of that is much of the reason he did the 21-day vegan, sugar fast. It's a chance to think about food differently and to challenge yourself, Blais says. It's kind of like method acting.

“It's good to put yourself in those shoes,” Blais says. “As I grew up through the ranks I've seen way too many chefs, that when a vegetarian request comes through the kitchen or when a server says, hey, can you do this without gluten or can you do this without sugar, there's this ego.

“Really, at the end of the day who the hell are we, we're just guys who like cooking food. And a chef's goal should be to make people happy.”

[Naomi]

I'm praying the outburst is fake and there's more to the clip than meets the eye. Please oh please let that be true....

[kat]

"Related random thought, why have we never seen any contestants cracking something open in the store to taste it?"

But didn't we see that last night? Chiarello, I think, opened a package of tomatoes and tasted one.

[kat]

And oh, I have a great chocolate and coconut milk sorbet recipe that would have gone great with those strawberries and brittle. Not that hard.

[babyarm]

The "outburst" they seem to show was shot from two different angles and just replayed, but MC seems to push the line a bit and Dale is not much to be pushed on. So who knows.

Lo got a free pass it would seem. There didn't seem to be one component of that dish that was edible. Art at least had a dairy-less brittle which in and of itself was impressive. (how?!?) That should have been the featured component, not some slop from a box.

[Shelly]

I was curious about the peanut brittle and found this:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/peanut-brittle/Detail.aspx

which just uses peanuts, sugar, corn syrup, baking soda, and water.

[jse91]

I thought it was a great episode. It seems like I might be in the minority, but I really like Chiarello. He comes across to me as funny [I loved his bit about taking away everything he likes to cook] and charming and helpful - almost as awesome as Rick Bayless. And it seems like his cooking is holding up.

I couldn't help thinking during the episode last night that TCM is a awesome statement to anyone who thinks that drama and conflict and unruliness are the path to good tv. I love watching these chefs help one another. Like when Bayless showed Chiarello the squash and Chiarello helped Keller finish his prep. I literally thought how nice it was to see this kind of class and professionalism, I enjoy this so much more than rudeness.

And then I watched next week's preview. Oh well, it was lovely while it lasted.

[Jesse]

I'd be down to host something, If I can. Let me know.

- Jesse

[Brent]

Just watched the 90-second Elimination Challenge preview clip for next week. It revealed how each chef and each of the sous chefs (the former cheftestants) were paired up. Pretty interesting.

Would it be considered a spoiler if I commented about that selection process from the preview clip? I assume many readers would rather go into the episode "cold," so not sure I should offer any reactions ...

[Bill]

It appears Dale throws a temper tantrum, once again suggesting he hasn't progressed past the terrible two's.
The term "young man" is offensive in the Philippines, really? Even if that's true, why should anyone care what's offensive in the Philippines unless they're going there?
Grow up and deal with it.
I was happy to see Anita dodge a bullet, hopefully she'll bounce back.

[jse91]

Does anyone remember why Zooey D. doesn't eat soy. I just remembered that part and I don't think I have ever heard of anyone who didn't eat soy, certainly not a vegan. Was it an allergy?

[Skillet Doux]

"Does anyone remember why Zooey D. doesn't eat soy. I just remembered that part and I don't think I have ever heard of anyone who didn't eat soy, certainly not a vegan. Was it an allergy?"

Though less popular a scapegoat than HFCS, I believe soy is similarly identified by many as a catch-all reason for everything that ails ya. Don't know if that was Deschanel's rationale (hey, good band name), but it seems likely.

[Susan]

I found myself on the edge of my chair when it came down to Anita and Art. I was rooting for Anita so was happy she grabbed a break.
Rereading some of the comments from last episode, I agree Art's leash was getting shorter. The eggtastrophe last week seemed to indicate a lack of imagination or maybe a better way is to say a lack of understanding of what will appeal to the audience. Same with the ice cream slop. I immediately thought SORBET and fruit and chocolate and I am simple foodie. I never cooked for Oprah or Obama...
Oh well. I too liked Dale and hope we are seeing a tiny moment.

[Richard Blais]

I don't know what is going to air next week. And I don't remember much of the moment highlighted last night as I had my head down working. I also can't say Dale's reaction was justified. But I will say respect is a two way street, regardless of age, or rank, or title in a kitchen.

There are a number of top chef competitors that can run stride for stride, or even outpace a good portion of the "masters". Both in skill and professionalism.

I learned from one of my mentors, and have copied, to address everyone in my kitchen as chef. My dishwashers are chefs. They aren't young men.

I don't flirt with every pretty woman on my staff and address them as sweetie, or hun. Theyr'e chefs too. Even if they are servers, bartenders, hosts.

Great chefs don't need to address their team members as apprentices, or cooks. Rank and file is often just simply determined by physical actions, movements, and presence in a kitchen.

They don't need their jackets embroidered with executive, or master. And they don't need to point to all of their television work, or product lines to prove that they are indeed amazing talents.

There was an extreme air of disrespect floating around those few days.

[aaalex]

wow. well, that's a bomb in an email from "richard blais", if it is richard blais ...

i wonder if he'd care to name the chefs he feels can run with or outpace keller or bayless? (i'm not being sarcastic, i'm just very very interested.)

also, to play devil's advocate, i wonder how calling everyone in the kitchen "chef" isn't a little hypocritical? a kitchen needs a head. if we've seen anything (over and over) on top chef, it's that those who aren't willing to lead when they are in positions of leadership suffer. ultimately, the "chef" is the one whose reputation, food, and expertise are on the line, night after night. if you're washing dishes, you don't have quite so much at stake. that's not to say you should be kicked around, but you don't have the responsibility of a chef and you're not paid as a chef would be. in a pinch or a tough situation, authority has to be asserted. isn't it harder to do that if everyone believes they're on the same level as the chef? obviously, it's the insecure who need to assert their dominance even when there's no high pressure situation. (marco pierre white would be horrible to work for or even with, i'd bet.) but i'm thinking there's a very practical reason for a hierarchy in the kitchen. if a sous-chef, for instance, started messing with your recipes or grew lax with his/her technique, wouldn't it be better to have the authority to bring them immediately into line?

not trying to belittle your rationale "richard blais", but there's something a little thoughtless about your defense of dale's behaviour, or, better, your outright condemnation of michael chiarello.

[Kathy]

While, I certainly agree that a kitchen, as well as any business, needs, nay must, have a hierarchy in order to survive. Not to step on anyone's toes, I'm not sure that the intent of the prior post was to say that everyone was to be address as "chef". Merely that the respect you show to the "lowest" employee on the totem pole, should be equal to the highest Chef. Yes, respect is earned, not bestowed. But common curtesy is a trait that should be displayed to everyone, regardless of rank.

[Brent]

Blais ... wow. Interesting stuff. Disheartening, too.

More interesting stuff -- comments from Bayless' blog post today (http://root4rick.com/):

"Though he has the least professional training of the lot, (Art) can really cook (and bake) a wide variety of delicious dishes! Everyone always wanted to eat any leftovers on Art’s station. ... Until the vegan challenge..."

"There was more drama: Hubert mis-read a label and almost served gluten-containing crackers (I happened to glance at the label just before he started plating.) on that beautiful starter he made."

"That table collapse was worse than the camera caught: Michael actually lost plates off the back of the table."

"And a few choice words were muttered when they announced who the judges for the burger competition
were announced. The real competition was “who can best channel your inner frat boy.” Needless to say poor Anita was at a serious disadvantage. That “hamburger” dish she made, by the way, was brilliant."

[jse91]

Brent - Disheartening is the perfect word.

I am a huge fan of Richard Blais - Hands down the classiest cheftestant EVER. so I will to accept the criticism of Chiarello. But please oh please do not disillusion me about Bayless or Keller or Lo. I was so enjoying Top and Classy Chef.

[Richard Blais]

Aaalex, I think you missed the point. Please read
the post again. Perhaps I didn't express myself correctly.

I'm not defendeding Dales actions. I think in fact he should be tested
for performance enhancers. And I'm not calling any specific chef into question.
Although the chef I refer to as a mentor is Thomas
Keller. You can argue his philosophies if you would like. But they worked for me.
I was a chef at the French Laundry, even though I was a human vegetable chopper.
And it continues to work for me now, on the other side of the fence.

As for top chef competitors running with Masters. Isn't that proven each
week when they compete in an identical challenge as regular contestants did ?

They succeed and fail at much the same rate I'd say.

[kit]

I am hoping hoping hoping that the "fridge fight" is one of those instances of overselling that previews often are, and that the episode is not nearly a yellfest as it appears to be. And I really hope we get to spend some time watching some of our favorite cheftestants from the regular season interact with the masters in a more collaborative sense. The finale episode where they feature top-caliber chefs as sous-chefs for the finalists is always one of my favorite episodes, precisely for those gems of interaction. Who can forget Blais showing Ripert the liquid nitrogen trick ;)

[Skillet Doux]

FYI, folks, I just exchanged a nice E-mail with Richard and can confirm that the comments are his.

[aaalex]

thanks for the answer, richard.

okay ... i read your entry more carefully. you did say you couldn't defend dale's behaviour, but you went on to say that respect is a two-way street which does rather imply that the respect going on might NOT have been two way. like it or not, that puts chiarello's attitude into question, doesn't it? (that might be my reading, but i don't think i'm way out of line.) then you go on to pointedly say your dishwashers aren't "young men" when one of the issues was dale being addressed as "young man". again, that kind of points to chiarello. finally, one of the things you mention is that great chefs don't have to point to their "television work" to prove they're talented. chiarello does the most television, so i took that as three (admittedly sly) references to chiarello. i'd be willing to bet, based on your first email, that you weren't impressed with chiarello and that you were, covertly, sticking up for dale. if i'm wrong, forgive the misinterpretation.

i still think you went a little over the top with your assertion that everone deserves to be called "chef", though. it's very cool to discover hubert keller calls everyone "chef". he's my favourite of the competitors. but i'm willing to bet he has a way to let everyone know where they are in the hierarchy and to whom they're responsible. (i'm sure you do too, and i wonder if there haven't been occasions when you've regretted your behaviour with those under you.) and it may be - we haven't seen the episode yet, so there's no way for us to know - chiarello didn't have time or inclination to handle dale with the courtesy he should have. if so, that shows another facet of keller's mastery, but if dale is at fault, he may not have deserved chiarello's respect in this particular, artificial and made-for-TV situation.

i take your point about the technical merits of some of the chef competitors on the regular top chef. hung could probably whip many a master's ass at the mise en place. what i was interested in was your feeling about whose FOOD is up there with the masters'. if it's not embarrassing to say so, it would be nice to have your opinion, if only because you're someone who has tasted most everyone's food, i imagine.

[Skillet Doux]

" it's very cool to discover hubert keller calls everyone "chef". he's my favourite of the competitors."

Wrong Keller :-)

(Maybe Hubert does too, I don't know, but he was referring to Thomas.)

[aaalex]

oops and darn. THOMAS keller at french laundry! and i can't even pretend they're related.

[Dave_P]

Richard Blaise has posted here before, right? Cool to see you here (again?), btw.

Interesting take on the "masters" from former contestants. Last year, I met Andrew from S4 and he pretty much had the same feeling on a lot of the guest judges, as in, who are these guys to critique our work? Most of them aren't much ahead of us in terms of experience or skills. There were exceptions, like Eric Ripert, but many of the guests, and frankly the masters this season, are probably viewed in similar lights by many of the former contestants. I get a similar vibe from reading Harold's blog too. Not saying I necessarily agree with that view, but I certainly see where they're coming from.

On to the show. Last night's episode was great, though not quite as awesome as the 1st round of the championships. The QF was especially annoying to see who the judges were... well, I don't know the middle guy, but Spike the ***hat and the guy who got famous for performing a dubious experiment and filming it. Really felt bad for Anita there (and I haven't even read Bayless' blog yet), and cringed at their remarks of Keller's burger as well. Granted, I didn't taste it myself, but I'm gonna side w/Keller's palette and execution over the QF judges here.

The EC was also a bit more frustrating in that the chefs were limited, but not so much that they couldn't still produce some brilliance. Anita was definitely off her game--she even admitted up front that she was tired from the night before (so they're filming back-to-back days, which has to be exhausting--wonder if they chuckle every time Choi says, "I'll see you all next week"?). I'm very, very grateful for Art Smith choosing to buy rice ice cream from WF and pretty much serving it mixed w/some chopped strawberries. If he'd just served his brittle, Anita would likely have gone home instead in which would've been the biggest travesty since...

Hey, speaking of Dale T! :) Wow, I have no idea what to make of that clip. I stuck up for Dale a lot during S4 on the various TC msg boards, and I'll reserve judgement for after viewing the episode, but damn, that looks very bad for the guy. I'm sorta dreading next week now.

--
Dave

[Kathy]

"Chef is actually the shortened form of the French term, “chef de cuisine,” which is defined quite simply as the “head of the kitchen,” and refers precisely to a professional cook who manages all facets of a professional kitchen."

Quoted from
http://www.tigersandstrawberries.com/2009/02/13/what-is-a-chef/

Whether true or fact, I don't know. My forays into the kitchen have all been personal and not professional. Just a quick interesting slant on the whole "call everyone in the kitchen chef".

[rab01]

Dom, thank you for confirming so quickly that the comments were indeed from Richard Blais. (Hi Richard! Can anything be done to convince you to open a restaurant in New York? Or even be the consulting chef for one?)

Brent, you said it perfectly. It's disheartening that the respect we see the Masters show towards each other may not extend to their treatment of other chefs in the kitchen.

As for the regular contestants being able to run with the Masters, I think that's pretty darn clear. Even Collichio has said in interviews that when he was younger he could have handled Top Chef but that he's not sure he still has the skills to do it. Also, we can see it from the show itself -- the Masters are never challenged to the degree that the regular constestants were/are. There have been no mid-challenge surprises. The time constraints are generally more generous. There are no overnight challenges such as Wedding Wars. Don't get me wrong, I really, really like this show and am enjoying it more than the regular Top Chef because it is allowing the chefs an opportunity to shine. But it is only the easiest of Top Chef challenges -- never the worst. I'll retract that only if the Show ever requires these chefs to cater a cocktail party for a total of $300 or to cater a block party using ingredients borrowed from the neighbors' pantries (and require them to do all the cooking hours ahead of time and then use sterno to reheat it).

[Brent]

"As for the regular contestants being able to run with the Masters, I think that's pretty darn clear."

To this, and to Blais' original assertion, I would wholeheartedly agree ... about the BEST cheftestants. Blais, Hung, Stephanie, etc. (and probably including DaleT). But each Top Chef season, a lot of chaff has to separated out. Chefs and cooks who are a million times better than me, but out of their class compared to the best contestants on the series that year, and certainly compared to the likes of Keller (either one of them) and Lo.

Gayle Simmons said as much, as quoted by the English judge in his blog. Something along the lines of (speaking to the English judge): "You guys have it easy on Top Chef Masters. You wouldn't believe some of the crap we've had to taste on the regular show."

[Hillary]

While I'll miss Art, the judges made a good call not to send Anita home. She is a fierce competitor that definitely had an off night (she even warned us with the lack of sleep).

It's definitely going to be a TOUGH call to see who wins this thing...the remaining chefs are extremely qualified. My money is on Hubert or Rick. Even though Michael and Anita have won episodes...haha, only time will tell!

[Richard Blais]

I think it's fair to say that Dale T is a friend.
Albeit not one I talk with regulary.

And I do forsee a bit of "Casey gate" here.

That would be unfair to Dale, as it was to Casey.

Different chefs have different personalities, and
it would just be wrong to think that some of these masters
don't bring their own, possibly negative,management styles to the table.

Show me a good chef, and Ill show you a few people
who think their A holes.

That goes
for myself, Dale, Chiarello, bayless, Kellers, Colichios, etc.

Hope I didn't ruin anyones day !

[Bill]

I don't think Michael Jordan could hang in the NBA these days but do you think it's possible that Kobe might ask him for pointers and show him respect as elder statesman and not be offended if he referred to him as young man?
What's with this hypersensitivity among young chefs? You have to earn your way up in every profession.

[aaalex]

@ Richard Blais
"Hope I didn't ruin anyones day !"

au contraire, richard. it's great to have your input. and it's gracious of you to offer your opinion. the thing i find startling about "top chef" and "top chef masters" is the constant proof we get that these shows are avidly watched by everyone in the food industry, from the anita los on down. it's as if this reality-tv show has become as important as, say, reviews or good magazine features. it's also very intriguing that top chef is a place where those of us who aren't professionals can learn how to judge professionals: their service, their menus, etc. i can't think of a finer use for "reality tv".

the one thing that would make me anticipate "top chef season 6" even more is if jay rayner were one of the permanent judges. (i'm keeping my fingers crossed for his inclusion in season 7 or hoping that "masters season 2" comes back right after TC6.)

[Brent]

Here's what Michael Chiarello posted on his blog back on July 8:

"Why I did Top Chef Masters at all? Lots of people ask that question, why would I go on a “reality” show after winning an Emmy for hosting Easy Entertaining? Well, I guess its one part “I loved the concept of the show;” and one part “I wanted to win money for Clinic Ole in Napa Valley;” and three parts “I can’t resist a good competition.” But boy, the stories I can tell about the making of this show… you’ll have to pry it out of me, that is, when I can finally talk about it. A surreal experience, to say the least."

[Clarita]

I wandered over here to see if you have any thoughts about the new TC competitors, based on their online bios. I LOVE your blog! Thanks for taking the time! And congratulations on your baby!

[Darin]

I have a massive crush on the brunette with the tattoos sitting next to the guest of honor. Just saying. Also Rick was awesome as usual by trying to elevate his competitors dishes as much as he could. Did Art smith sound super nervous and out of breath to anyone else? Does anyone else dread that Chiarello is going home next week? What else could "Casey gate" mean? I am super bummed now. SAY IT AIN"T SO BLAIS! FOR THE CHILDREN!

[Gilmore]

R. Blais brought back the memory - I never heard of Art Smith until he judged an episode in season 4. I did not like him then - thought he was semi-nasty (not Bourdain funny) in his comments where other judges were constructive. I ihave to watch that episode again to see what he did that I just plain did not like.

Wow - the eliminations are going to be ridiculously tough unless the challenges continue to put one or more chefs outside of their comfort zone.

I think I could watch an hour episode each week of the Chefs where all they do is shop, cook and and help each other - both in the kitchen and in the market. Bayless seems to be the go to guy on ingredients, cheese, etc.

I think many earlier episodes show the chefs trying food - opening up strawberry containers and tasting (Lachlan), tasting the fish, etc.

[Darin]

After watching the episode multiple times I have to say that Art has worked his way onto my good book. His ability to be awestruck and humble while staying true to himself was great. I agree that he drops names like he is playing plinko but I totally wish he was my girlfriend's gay best friend. His reaction to the dietary restrictions was hilarious. He bugged me at first but I am a total fan now. Also good for him that he proved to himself (and the rest of us) that untrained chefs with talent and passion can hold their own among the superstars. Maybe not for too long but it was truly inspiring. Now if only I could afford/get a table at his restaurant.

[aaalex]

i agree with darin about art smith. i liked him a lot, this episode. he was amusing and, relatively sedate. more: i think he was a little hard done by. i agree with the poster above who said nothing on anita lo's vegan dish looked good while art smith's dessert had a very popular almond brittle (jay rayner said he stole someone else's) and james oseland made a point of showing he had finished all of art's dish. i found it hard to square those comments with the scores that were given by the judges. (also, the guests gave lo's dish a lower mark than they did art smith's) it wasn't an outrage or anything, but it felt like lo's dish was less appetizing.

[babyarm]

jay raner said he stole someone else's ice cream, not brittle.

[Skillet Doux]

"jay raner said he stole someone else's ice cream, not brittle."

Nope. It was the brittle:

Rayner: "For me the brittle was the high point. I liked it. In fact, I stole a couple of other people's brittle."

[Skillet Doux]

Aaalex...

It's true, there was an awful lot of critical stuff about both dishes. But I'm thinking the difference was a matter of two things:

1) Though the edit showed very little discussion of the positives of Lo's dish, when they gave their scores, all three praised her flavors. Clearly, they felt there were problems with presentation and the oil in the eggplant, but though it was downplayed in the edit, it appears they mostly enjoyed the flavors (though Rayner commented that he got a bit of that eggplant astringency).

2) Smith bought the ice cream. He bought it! I think they tried to be diplomatic about it, but as a critic, I have to think that's almost insulting. Rayner looked positively shocked when Smith revealed that. You're here to cook. What are you doing buying ice cream, especially when it's the centerpiece of your dish?

So in the end, it boils down to a question of whether it's better to cook and fail or buy and fail. When you look at it that way -- and I bet that's how they did -- it's not hard to see how they scored Smith lower. If I'm sitting on that panel (sadly, I'm not) and I think there are good and bad things about both dishes, unless Smith's is a lot better, there's no way I'm scoring him higher on that basis alone.

Also worth mentioning that while the guests scored Smith higher, as somebody who's cooked for ten (amateur) cooking competitions, I can tell you that non-critic / non-chef judges always score dessert higher. ALWAYS. Usually by a lot. A mediocre dessert will outscore a good entree every time. There have been times that I wanted to ditch dessert and do only savory courses, but I crunched the numbers based on our past competitions and concluded that it would be nearly impossible to win. For our Iron Chef, over ten events (84 savory dishes, 20 desserts), savory dishes have averaged 7.63 and desserts have averaged 8.29. For a competition where seven out of the ten results have been decided by less than three-tenths of a point, that's enormous.

People love dessert, even when it has problems.

[KinderJ]

Wow, don't check in for a few days...

Great to have you posting here Blais, always fun to hear the insider's perspective!

As regards to the titles used in a kitchen, I worked for some time as a paralegal at a midsized law firm here in Boston. Everyone addressed each other, from the named partners to the interns, by their first name. The new guys sometimes called the attorneys 'Attorney XXXXX,' but they generally picked up on the culture pretty quickly. The thing was, this had not evolved out of some touchy feelie consultant drafted morale builder. What started it was that the partners had no time and less patience for screwing around, and found all the formality and game playing tiresome. So they did it in. Worked great. Everyone knew who their respective boss was, everyone got the job done.

So, you know, if the kitchen at the French Laundry wants everyone to be Chef, and since it seems to be working for them, then 'Chef' away.

On the posts contrasting the regular run Top Chef seasons with Masters, did anyone else catch the NY Times article on the deliberate sleep deprivation and alcohol provision on reality TV shows? The show they cited was Hell's Kitchen, but I would be very curious to know the schedule on TC.

This last episode brought the article to mind for two reasons. 1. Lo was visibly exhausted, and that had a massive impact on her performance. 2. All the other episodes were one shots, if you will, over and done with in a day or two. Now they are on the Marathon format. Is sleep deprivation going to be a growing factor? Perhaps leading to shouting matches with your Sous?

This is all sheer speculation, but if anyone has the inside scoop, I would love to hear about it.

[aaalex]

domenic

yeah, i take your point(s). art smith bought "rice dream", tasted it and thought it tasted odd. then, rather than ditch it and go with something else, he tried to improve the rice cream by adding a strawberry ripple. he made the wrong decision. it didn't seem the guests or the judges were too put off by the rice cream. (that's fascinating bit of information, by the way, about desserts scoring higher in most competitions. makes you wonder why stefan didn't win last year, but it sounds right, to me anyway.) and, as i mentioned, i didn't think the final call was outrageous, but it did make me think about the impression given by the editing versus the actual judging.

your reaction to the "boughten" rice cream (i'm from southern ontario. "boughten" was what we said for the opposite of "homemade") brings up a subject that was brought up on the show. rick bayless mentioned, while talking to chiarello, that he thought the question of whether or not the quinoa pasta was boughten was "stupid". chiarello answered with something like "yeah, if so-and-so makes a better sausage than i do, why shouldn't i use his?". i think, at judges table, art smith was using the same logic to defend his decision to go with the "rice dream" rice cream. he admitted he didn't know how to make rice cream, so he went with the boughten variety. i'm not sure that should have been held against him any more than the store bought quinoa pasta should have been held against chiarello. or, conversely, maybe chiarello should have been docked a few points for not making his own pasta. i understand your point about pasta secca being perfectly valid and maybe even superior to some homemade pastas but it feels, maybe because of the force of your argument, a little as if art smith were being punished while chiarello were being given a pass.

it all comes down to flavour, obviously. the quinoa pasta was, evidently, a great hit. and, flavour-wise, a good strawberry sorbet probably would have won it for smith. the question is, though: if art smith had managed to make that boughten rice cream taste good, do you think they would have held it against him? or do you think they would have given him a pass? also: if he'd made it taste great and he'd gotten higher marks, would you have felt anita lo had been cheated?

it's an interesting question, for me, because of course, on top chef, the contestants regularly have to use boughten things and create with them. the first time the chefs were asked to do something with vending machine food, i kind of wondered what that had to do with cooking. but maybe the USE you make of boughten things should count for something. i mean, any man or woman who could make "rice dream" taste good should probably be given the title on the spot.

[Skillet Doux]

"i'm not sure that should have been held against him any more than the store bought quinoa pasta should have been held against chiarello. or, conversely, maybe chiarello should have been docked a few points for not making his own pasta. i understand yo ur point about pasta secca being perfectly valid and maybe even superior to some homemade pastas but it feels, maybe because of the force of your argument, a little as if art smith were being punished while chiarello were being given a pass."

Here I vehemently (but respectfully!) disagree, and that's exactly what Rayner was trying to get at. With dry pasta, it's not just a matter of somebody else being able to do it better, it's a matter of not being able to do it in a restaurant at all. Modern pasta secca is a factory product. You wouldn't expect an Italian restaurant -- even a great one -- to make their own any more than you'd expect them to press their own olive oil or produce and age their own parmigiano reggiano. They're specialty products that, to do in a restaurant setting, would be an absurd undertaking for a substandard product. Ice cream, on the other hand, is EASY. The only reason to buy in ice cream is as a kitchen shortcut that almost always (certainly when the bought product is coming out of a grocery store freezer) sacrificing quality for convenience.

If you go to a fine dining restaurant, you don't expect that they're making their own dry pasta, olive oil, parmesan or wine, but you DO expect that they're making their own ice cream. Whether or not one feels Smith should have been penalized for it (I do, but it's a topic for debate), there's a WORLD of difference. Reducing it down to "they're both bought in" is a gross oversimplification.

The force of my argument is because the old "fresh pasta is better" trope -- from those who think they're being discerning but in actuality are simply being ignorant -- is one of my major, long-standing pet peeves. For that reason, the suggestion that buying ice cream and buying dry pasta are analogous is, to me, incredibly frustrating.

Don't worry... it's not you, it's me. And it's an old, old sore point :-)

[aaalex]

domenic

vivid answer. and as this is a sore point, allow me to agree with you entirely, wholeheartedly and respectfully, at least until all the sharp implements are out of the room. i think it's an interesting argument, though. i happen to like homemade pasta quite a lot. (partly, i suspect, because i love the process of making it. i find it mindless, relaxing and the end result generally pleases.) you're referring to pasta secca, though. so, you mean dried pasta. you mean: restaurants don't make their own dried pasta and, if they did, it would be inferior to the boughten kind. but, on the other hand, fine restaurants often do make fresh pasta to order. and if they use a machine, it's as easy as making ice cream. (a side note: i was impressed as hell when one of the chefs made fresh, duck egg pasta with one hand!) nor is, in my experience, fresh pasta necessarily inferior to dried pasta, even if it's not always superior.

my question is: couldn't chiarello have made fresh/wet quinoa pasta by hand? there was likely a pasta maker in the kitchen, no? he was not penalized for using boughten pasta secca when he could have made fresh quinoa pasta (if whole foods have a quinoa flour). art smith certainly COULD have made rice cream in an ice cream maker, but he was likely worried about consistency if he didn't know how rice milk reacts versus how cream does. i think this may have been part of his point. he went with rice dream because he wasn't sure. a mistake, as it happens.

i'm not at all trying to change your opinion, domenic, but in the context of a competition, when you're judging technique, the problem with boughten foods is that the chef hasn't had a hand in creating them. chiarello didn't make that pasta. he boiled it. art smith didn't make that rice cream. he bought it. in the REAL world, you may be right. restaurants should make their own ice cream. in a competition, though, if you insist that a chef NOT buy ice cream, because it's easy to make, you should probably insist that the chef make fresh pasta. it's just as easy to make. UNLESS you think fresh and dried pastas are two such separate things that they can't be meaningfully compared. in which case, you're absolutely right. chiarello did the proper thing by buying quinoa spaghetti.

[Skillet Doux]

"UNLESS you think fresh and dried pastas are two such separate things that they can't be meaningfully compared. in which case, you're absolutely right. chiarello did the proper thing by buying quinoa spaghetti."

^ This. Exactly.

It's not a question of what a chef can or can't make or what's superior or inferior. They're just completely different beasts with completely different characteristics. I'm trying to think of a good analogue here and it just isn't coming.

There are some pasta dishes for which fresh is a better choice. There are some pasta dishes for which dry is a better choice. And there are some for which you could go either way, but they'll be very different dishes. If you're trying to make the best possible dish, the choice to go with fresh or dry isn't a matter of cost, convenience, time, etc. It's a question of which will work better for the dish you're trying to make, and the answer could be either! Because they are so different, and because they handle different types of sauces very differently, pasta secca can be (and very frequently is) a conscious culinary choice that is made purely in the best interests of the dish.

Using a bad store-bought ice cream, on the other hand, is NEVER done in the best interests of the dish. You do it to save time, you do it to save money, or you do it because you don't know how to make it. But you never do it because that's the way to make the best possible dish. It's always a sacrifice.

That's the difference :-)

[aaalex]

hmm ... i understand exactly where you're coming from. thanks. your point calls up a question, though: was the salsa verde best served by a dried pasta? if so, why? (no trap intended, just curious about your reasoning.)

also, in art smith's defense: he didn't buy a "bad store-bought ice cream". he bought a product he thought was good and discovered it wasn't. he didn't buy "rice dream" thinking it was a short cut. i don't think he was being lazy. i think he genuinely thought he could work with it (this segment of tc masters must be the worst publicity possible for "rice dream"). if he had managed to get any sort of decent flavour out of it, his scores might have been different. i mean: you can't condemn him out of hand for trying to work with the "rice dream". (well, yes, you can, but i don't think it's fair) he hadn't shown himself, in previous episodes, to be shoddy or lazy or second rate. not as schooled as the others, yes, but not someone who doesn't want to make the best possible dish.

[KinderJ]

I think it gets back to something that we discussed in the latter rounds of last season's TC. I am thinking specifically of Fabio's roast chicken. The moral I got from that is, regardless of simplicity or commonality, if a dish is done -Perfectly-, then it can win. Art was so locked in on ice cream, or had so little confidence in his sorbet's, that he neglected this point. Had he made an exquisite strawberry sorbet and paired it with that brittle... well, who can say. What you can be pretty sure of is that a store bought 'rice dream' (hideous name)you have never tried before will not marry perfectly with your dish. Chiarello had used that sort of pasta before (something about his daughter? am I confusing things here?) and knew how to marry it to his sauce. It might not have been perfect, but he had a much firmer grasp on his ingredients than Art did. Any flaws or problems with the pasta, he was able to correct in the sauce. Well, to a point anyway. He won, so I would say that he got his hands on good pasta. Art had crappy pho-cream, and all he could do was ripple. Sad, but he was far and away the weakest competitor left.

[aaalex]

i'd have to check, kinder j, but i think it was rick bayless whose daughter had the dietary restrictions. not sure chiarello had ever used the quinoa pasta before. it clumped up when he boiled it and he had to separate the strands individually.

i was sad to see art smith go. that's why i'm defending him. but you're probably right about him being the weakest competitor left. on the other hand, both of anita lo's efforts this week were pretty poor looking (remember the cheese soup with mini hamburgers floating in it like ... well, like droppings?) so, i wasn't convinced he was, outright, the least interesting chef this week.

[KinderJ]

My memory is for crap. I do remember Bayless talking about his daughter's dietary restrictions, but I thought Chiorello has some similar story. You're probably right, and he just took the chance on the pasta.

As for Anita, as I mentioned in a previous post, I wonder about sleep deprivation. It does not seem to be a problem for the other competitors, but they could simply be handling it better.

I thought her take on the Quickfire was interesting and cerebral, but in sort of the same way that I would find the complete works of Shakespeare on a postage stamp interesting. I'm interested,I'm curious, but I don't think I will derive much pleasure from it. But hey, from the sound of it, it tastes good. She seems profoundly intelligent and creative, and my inner nerd digs her Looking Glass thinking. I guess if you were pulling for Art, I was pulling for Anita. I do think she needs to sharpen up for next week. Barring any sort of accident or absurd under performance, it's anybody's game right now.

[Shelly]

I think it's worth pointing out that Art Smith's recipe online at Bravo, here:

http://www.bravotv.com/foodies/recipes/strawberry-champagne-soup

shows that his brittle contained butter. Perhaps that was a factor that they didn't want publicized so as to not upset those who had eaten the food. If the judges knew, then he should have automatically been the one eliminated.

[Gilmore]

| I was sad to see art smith go. that's why i'm defending him. but you're probably right -| about him being the weakest competitor left. on the other hand, both of anita lo's ---| efforts this week were pretty poor looking (remember the cheese soup with mini | hamburgers floating in it like ... well, like droppings?) so, i wasn't convinced he was, | outright, the least interesting chef this week.

On Rick Bayless' blog - http://www.root4rick.com/ - he says that they were not too keen on the judges for the quickfire, and about Anita Lo's dish -
"That “hamburger” dish she made, by the way, was brilliant."

[aaalex]

kinder j

"Barring any sort of accident or absurd under performance, it's anybody's game right now."

i agree.
with the regular top chef, i'm usually rooting for someone to go while hoping my favourite stays. with tc masters, i have to say, i don't really want ANY of the chefs to go. bayless, keller, lo, chiarello. any of them would make a worthy winner. i'll be watching the last two judges tables like watching a horror movie. (of course, next week might change all that. the preview with dale t. really reminded me of an episode of the regular top chef, which probably means someone will get the "villain edit". sadly.)

[jse91]

I am really surprised that the recipe was but on the website if there was butter in it. That seems like a huge misstep. Didn't one of the judges talk about brittle without butter? Wow, if he used butter that is a huge error. Or do you suppose he told them it wasn't vegan, which is why there were extras laying around for the judge to snag. Very odd and surprising.

[KinderJ]

Aaalex,

Just checked out that Root4Rick blog and it turns out that you were right- Ciarello had never cooked that sort of pasta before.

[Lee C]

RE: Soy restriction. Soy can interfere with Thyroid replacement hormones, so anyone taking synthroid should avoid soy.

Lee

[Skillet Doux]

"anyone taking synthroid should avoid soy"

I don't wish to get off on a medical tangent, but I do feel compelled to add that while there are known connections between soy consumption and thyroid activity and some believe it wise for certain patients on hormone replacement to avoid excessive amounts of soy, the blanket suggestion that those on synthroid should avoid soy has its proponents, but it is neither supported by study nor part of the medical mainstream.

Of course, the dietary habits of Hollywood starlets rarely have anything to do with the medical mainstream.

[Shelly]

Soy does affect the effectiveness of Coumadin (anti-coagulant) because of the high amounts of Vitamin K (used in blood clotting) in it. People on the med don't have to avoid it, but they do have to keep their intake at a fairly constant level, because their doses are all personalized and based upon their normal diet.

Of course, I doubt this is the problem that the young woman had, since she was eating all sorts of greens that were also high in K. But soy does need to be watched by some people for this reason at least.

[Danny]

Domenic, I understand your points about store-bought dry pasta. That being said, on regular TC if a cheftestant made a dish where the dominant component was store-bought pasta they would get heavily chastised by the judges.

I do think that Art made a terrible mistake in using store-bought rice dream (yuck) when, as others have pointed out, dessert would seem to be the easiest course to make with Zoey's laundry list of restrictions (bet she doesn't get invited to people's houses for dinner very often and poor Craft Services on movie sets with her around).

[Gilmore]

Art Smith said that the brittle recipe he used was a family recipe - mother and grandmother. I am guessing he does not want to give it away and the one on the web site is not the one he served in the episode.

[jh]

"That being said, on regular TC if a cheftestant made a dish where the dominant component was store-bought pasta they would get heavily chastised by the judges."

While that might be the case, as the last season of Top Chef highlighted, perfect execution often trumps anything else. I also feel that if the cheftestant were able to defend him or herself as well as Chiarello on top of a fantastically prepared dish, then he or she might be given a pass. Having Rayner as a judge might also help...

[Skillet Doux]

"hmm ... i understand exactly where you're coming from. thanks. your point calls up a question, though: was the salsa verde best served by a dried pasta? if so, why? (no trap intended, just curious about your reasoning.)"

Without having cooked it, looking at the recipe I'm thinking I'd choose dry (though I think it could probably go either way). A loose (I stress loose) rule of thumb is that dry is better for oily sauces (like this one), fresh is better for creamy or buttery sauces, and tomato can go either way. Fresh is more absorbent than dry, and absorbing a little butter or cream is generally desirable, while absorbing too much oil generally isn't. But it's the same thing as selecting a shape -- there isn't necessarily any rhyme or reason to it. Sometimes one just FEELS right.

"That being said, on regular TC if a cheftestant made a dish where the dominant component was store-bought pasta they would get heavily chastised by the judges."

Maybe so, maybe not. If it's a condimento that really is well-suited to dry and the contestant stands up for that choice, I bet Tom and Gail are just fine with it. I could be wrong.

FWIW, my totally non-comprehensive search turned up one dry pasta dish (not counting the frozen Bertolli nonsense). Season 1, Episode 3, Tiffani did a dry cappelini as one of two primary elements in a quickfire. She won.

[aaalex]

domenic

i don't know how much i want to extend this arcane discussion about dried pasta, but maybe you (or anyone else) could talk about it a little more. if you're serious about pasta secca and convinced that it is the more appropriate choice in certain circumstances, there's still the matter of quality. not all pasta seccas are created equal, any more than all fresh pastas are. around these parts, ie. toronto, de cecco is the brand i like. are there particularly good brands in the US?

also, using a dried pasta CAN be a matter of convenience, in certain circumstances. for instance, orecchiette is/are a veritable time-consuming, pain in the ass to do by hand though, following your guidelines, you should hand make if you're using orecchiette with a creamy sauce. most cooks would opt for the dried. would most chefs?

i wonder if a third point isn't about the sauce itself or, rather, about the meal. sometimes it's all about the pasta. a good, paper-thin, handmade pasta can be so appealing you want to use the sauce as a pretext for eating the pasta. but sometimes it's about the sauce. in which case, the pasta is just there to hold it and not get in the way, so almost any good quality dried pasta would do. this would have less to do with the nature of the sauce (creamy, oily or tomato) than with what the chef's highlighting.

i'm guessing that a fresh pasta might have worked just as well with chiarello's salsa verde, but making a quinoa spaghetti by hand would have been a pain in the butt. so ... not sure, in this instance, chiarello wasn't jut using what was on hand for convenience sake, rather than as a planned part of his meal. (after all, he didn't know the pasta. it wsa his first time using it.)

[jw]

Boy - go out of town for a week and look what I miss...lol

Just watched the episode, and a couple of comments:
1. Chiarello had some explanation about his wife and the pasta - that she used to buy all sorts of pasta, except the wheat.

2. Dry pasta prejudice is one of my pet peeves, too. Don't get me started on that artificially soft crap that they market as "fresh" in the refrigerated section...

3. Re Richard Blais's comment that the regular cheftestants can run with the masters. Yeah, probably SOME can. And probably, in some cases, they have some advantage having worked on a line more recently. BUT, in terms of results, I have to disagree. He said that the success/failure ratio has been about the same, and I absolutely don't agree with that. Watching the episode, I was just thinking that they have nowhere near the number of really bad dishes on TCM as it has on regular TC. Case in point, the worst dish of the night, Art Smith's unfortunate dessert, seemed just kind of blah, not truly awful, judging from the diners' responses and James Oseland's cleaning his plate, and Jay Raynor's brittle praise. Compare that to Padma spitting out that lemon concoction last season....

I'm just saying that, percentage-wise, even in the final rounds, there are a lot fewer out-and-out failures in the Masters. And I don't think it's just the easier challenges.

[spella]

On fresh pasta vs. dry pasta, from one who should know:

"The shapes Italian pasta takes are varied beyond counting, but the categories an Italian cook works with are basically two: factory-made, dried, flour and water macaroni pasta, and homemade, so-called "fresh" egg and flour pasta. There is not the slightest justification for preferring homemade pasta to the factory-made. Those who do deprive themselves of some of the most flavorful dishes in the Italian repertory. One pasta is not better than the other, they are simply different: different in the way they are made, in their texture and consistency, in the shapes to which they lend themselves, in the sauces with which they are most compatible. They are seldom interchangeable, but in terms of absolute quality, they are fully equal." -- Marcella Hazan, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.

[Skillet Doux]

Ahhh, Marcella... I always did like her :-)

[aaalex]

uhm... calling in marcella hazan is a little like calling in jesus at a wedding. so, not much more to say on this point.
still wondering about good american brands, though.

[Bart]

So, I missed the last couple of episodes and got to catch up them thanks to Bravo's infrequent (*ahem*) Top Chef marathons.

1. I bet, given all the time in the day and the proper ingredients, Art Smith would cook a great dinner for us. His food looks GOOD. Say what you will about the man and his inexperience, but I bet he'd make a dynamite, unpretentious and memorable dinner. That being said, I think he was the weakest of the Master's, and his elimination didn't surprise me.

2. I LIKE Chiarello. And people have called me "young man" in the past - my usual response is to call those people "grandpa" (or "grandma"). I bet if Dale had done the same, Chiarello would have laughed and thought it was all in good fun. But hey, I wasn't there. Maybe Chiarello said something else. We'll have to wait and see.

3. I'm still unnerved by how similar Rick Bayless and Rick Moonen look. Thank God they both didn't make it to the finals. I really, really like Bayless.

4. My pick for the final 3? Keller, Bayless, Lo. Dale's outburst does not bode well for Chiarello's dish. I'd like to see Keller, Bayless and Chiarello - but we've all seen how tension in the kitchen can affect a person's dish. Here's hoping that isn't the case this time around.

[kit]

Bart says: "Dale's outburst does not bode well for Chiarello's dish."

My impression from watching the preview from the Bravo website (labeled "Fridge Fight" or somesuch nonsense) is that Dale is actually assigned to someone else, not Chiarello. They get into a fight regarding the sharing of fridge space, which seems to make sense only if Dale is assigned to a different team than Chiarello's.

I think there's also a preview showing which regular seasoner gets assigned to which master, but I haven't seen it and some days I just don't have the patience for mucking about with that awful thing Bravo passes off as a website.

[Bart]

Kit: If that's the case, and Dale and Chiarello aren't on the same team...then my final three are:

Keller; Bayless; Chiarello

Sorry, Anita.

And yes. I agree - the Bravo site...needs some work.

[Gilmore]

I think Chiarello likes to bust chops and he may end up getting Dale's goat. I doubt that Dale will upset Chiarello. Can't wait to see the action.

[Naomi]

I've been thoroughly enjoying these comments. Thanks, everyone :-)

I hate that Dale's outburst from the preview actually has me dreading this week's episode. It's been so nice to be free of drama and just watch the creative process.

I also wanted to comment on a point a few folks have made that Anita didn't have anything good on her plate while Art at least had the brittle (and apparantly yummy strawberries). Anita did get praise for the cashew sauce. I know there wasn't very much of it and it surely wasn't enough to save the dish but just wanted to clarify that she did indeed have something on the plate that they liked.

[Shelly]

I'm late coming back to these comments, but I wanted to share what I've found about vegan quinoa pasta. It is a specialty product that cannot be made without drying.

While quinoa pasta can be made fresh, it can't be made by substituting quinoa flour into a standard pasta recipe. Quinoa flour must be blended with at least one other kind of flour or it won't work. The proportions are naturally important, so making it requires foreknowledge of a recipe. The fresh pasta also requires eggs, so while the fresh is vegetarian, it is not vegan.

However, the dried versions on the market are vegan, made only with flours and water. Those have to be dried in order for them to be made (I talked to the main company making them). Because of that, Chiarello had no choice but to use dried, pre-made.