Top Chef - 11/08 - SPOILERS!!

[SDMomChef]

So....what did you think?

I thought it was fun to see them have to create healthy dishes. Although, I thought the creativity was somewhat lacking - I mean - fruit skewers? How unoriginal.

The cheesecake by Elan looked fabulous - I need to see if that recipe is on-line.

Not sure what to make of Betty changing the recipe the second day - the rules seemed pretty clear to me. Of course, I like Betty, so I'm having a harder time with this.

I'm surprised they didn't vote anybody off!

[KristiB]

The cooking for kids schtick is getting old. Please make it stop!

If I ever see kids on the Iron Chef America panel... :mad:

I thought this was the worst episode ever.

They made such a big deal over the lychees a few weeks ago but Betty adding the sugar the next day was no biggie?

Phhttt. Normally love the show but last night turned me off.

But I'll keep watching. :p

[manetta]

The cooking for kids schtick is getting old. Please make it stop!

I thought this was the worst episode ever.

They made such a big deal over the lychees a few weeks ago but Betty adding the sugar the next day was no biggie?

Phhttt. Normally love the show but last night turned me off.

But I'll keep watching. :p


Not much room for creativity when you are cooking for a group of children It would have been a much more interesting challenge for an adult audience.

I like Betty, but you know what? I think she knew exactly what she was doing. I was really surprised she wasn't asked to pack her knives.

There are a few I definitely wouldn't be sorry to see eliminated this season. Cliff and Carlos are my favorites so far.

[mrswaz]

Without anyone going home, I feel cheated. It wasn't like all the dishes were so awesome that they couldn't pick a loser- they had several candidates that were tainted by potential cheating.

Did Betty cheat? Eh... I'm on the fence. She did add two tablespoons of sugar to the recipe as a whole, but she did make them smaller, so I think that she honestly thought she was compensating for the added sugar.

I'm still trying to wrap my mind around some of the choices. Chicken parmesan/veggie lasagna for kids? Coleslaw? Not what I would have thought of as kid food. I don't mind the cooking for kids challenges, I think it shows a different dimension to the chefs. I noticed though that no one complained this time around about who they were cooking for- they were so focused on the caloric criteria.

[SheRa]

i thought the vending machine part was funny - but WOAH that cheeto/snickers bar thing was naaaasty! it was great how elegant some of them made their dishes.

i hope future challenges let them go more exotic and complex to really show off their skills without limiting them quite so much.

[rosen]

Perhaps no elimination last night means that there could be 2 eliminated on an episode in the near future. :D BWHAHAHAH!!

I know the 2 I'd like to see gone!

[mrswaz]

Snagged this off of BravoTV

Berry Cheesecake

Ingredients:
1/2 cup organic granola
1 cup Flex 500 cereal
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon powdered gelatin
3 1/2 cups low-fat strawberry yogurt
2 8-ounce packages low-fat cream cheese
4 pints blackberries, for garnish
2 pints strawberries, for garnish
mint leaves, for garnish
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375F.
2. Put granola and cereal into a large freezer Ziploc bag. Gently crush with rolling pin to form a coarse mixture.
3. In a small bowl, lightly whip egg whites. Add cereal mixture and stir to combine. Transfer this mixture to 8-inch springform pan and spread evenly over bottom of pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
4. In a blender, mix together yogurt and gelatin. Add cream cheese and blend until mixture is smooth.
5. Pour yogurt mixture into springform pan and spread evenly over crust.
6. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 12 hours to set.
7. To serve: remove outer ring from pan and cut cheesecake into pieces. Garnish with fresh berries and mint leaves

[Jazzmatazz49]

I liked the quick fire a lot. I hated the rest of the show. Why are the judges suddenly turning a blind eye to infractions? I can also tell you that most kids hate chicken parmesan. When they serve it in the school cafeteria, the kids hold their noses when they smell the stinky cheese. Maybe the kids at the weight loss camp have more sophisticated tastes. Some kind of veggie burger would have been the other obvious choice besides pizza.

[tamawrite]

Yeah. Enough with the cooking for kids -- I too would have been more impressed by the same challenge for an adult audience.

Mike needs to go. Away. Now.

[tidee]

i think betty knew exactly what she was doing, but she did try to make allowances for it. i really like her and i hope she doesn't do anything liike that again.

some interesting quotes from lee ann's and gail's blog for this week written as they are filming the finale in hawaii. i think it's gonna be a good season. :)

lee ann wrote: What I find so interesting is that however important the rules were, there was always one of them either trying to find their way around the rules, or they were accusing each other of cheating. Not very sportsmanlike either way. You’ll see what I mean later on.

gail wrote: Now, of course, we will be watching them all more closely, interrogating them more thoroughly and paying better attention to every move they make. In a sense, this episode was a wake up call for all of us. But have no fear; the show only gets more interesting from here on in.

[Hammster]

I loved the quickfire challenge. It reminded me of the gas station store challenge from last year. Some great looking, and sounding, stuff came out of this year's quickfire.
I'm on the fence about Mike. He seems to have good skills, but just doesn't have a good attitude. And I really didn't need to know he sleeps with his wife's panties. :eek:
Onto the elimination. I think Betty really didn't think she was bending (or breaking) the rules. I thought the same thing about the rules. As long as the calorie count remained under 500, then adjustments could be made. I think the bigger infraction was the sudden appearance of all those squeeze bottles of olive oil. That had to push some dishes over the 500 calorie limit. And I believe they have all the people who used those bottles on tape as there were some scenes on the show showing the bottles being used. So, they definitely could have picked out an offender.
But, now everyone is on notice and I guess they will need to keep their noses clean the rest of the way.

I think there is an interesting thing going on this season. Many of the team members don't work as a team. And when it comes to judge's table, yeesh. I really respect Frank and Ilan as they always take the high road and won't throw anyone under the bus like some of the others seem to have an easy time doing.

[Canice]

...I noticed though that no one complained this time around about who they were cooking for- they were so focused on the caloric criteria.

Yea, but how 'bout the b!tchy one they sent home last week, who complained about having to serve ice-cream to "snotty-nosed kids" :rolleyes: .

I'd be surprised if Betty didn't know she was cheating - I've got to believe they're pretty explicite in laying out the rules. I remember Stephan doing something similar last season, using fresh basil leaves when they were told they could use items from the pantry, then claiming he had misunderstood.

I think that's right; it would have been a more interesting challenge to cook for adults, like the Junior League crowd last season.

[stacy7272]

This episode did feel a little anticlimactic with nobody going home.

I think that Betty did know what she was doing but since she was still staying within the boundaries of other rules she decided to press her luck.

I am surprised that so many people felt that one could not make a pizza to fit within the calorie guidelines. I'm sure most of us here at CL know that pizza is a great medium for low calories and fat.

I was so impressed with the diabetic hottie who knew the calorie count of his meal so closely. Very impressive!

[KristiB]

From the Camp Glucose website:

Camp Glucose California is a residential camp for boys and girls ages 8 to 18, as well as a day camp for children ages 4 to 18. Programs are tailored to meet specific age levels to ensure the best experience for the individual child.

The balance part of our program is for children living with type 1 and type 2 diabetes and need help with balance and management of this disease.

The fitness part of our program is for children who are overweight, we work together with your child to develop a program that they can live with and incorporate into everyday life.

We are the only camp that is completely run by medical staff, the dedication that our staff shows towards our campers is apparent with the skills the children apply to their lives once they go home.

Each child has a full assessment with our licensed and registered dietitian, a full plan will be tailor made for each child to use during camp and when they return home. Our medical staff will develop a plan for physical activity based on the needs of your child, group and individual counseling is available if needed and a behavior modification plan for each child to use in everyday life will be made.

We do not starve children to get dramatic results, nor do we throw them head first into a strenuous workout routine. Each child will receive a well balanced diet and work their way gradually to incorporate physical activity into their lives.

Smooth move Betty adding 2 tablespoons of sugar per cookie for diabetic children!

[Babs73]

I remember her saying that she added 2T of sugar to the entire recipe not 2T per cookie. In addition she mentioned removing several of the egg whites and making the cookies smaller to compensate. I believe it was an honest mistake and that she thought she was within the rules to modify the recipe as long as they were still under the 500 calorie limit. But, who knows what really went on with all the editing they do these days.....

[Jazzmatazz49]

Ideally, the dieticians would have been there the second day. Then any glitches, like the not so crispy meringues, could have been dealt with. It's almost like the judges were setting up the competition for problems. Or is it just me?

[mikesmom]

I remember her saying that she added 2T of sugar to the entire recipe not 2T per cookie. In addition she mentioned removing several of the egg whites and making the cookies smaller to compensate. I believe it was an honest mistake and that she thought she was within the rules to modify the recipe as long as they were still under the 500 calorie limit. But, who knows what really went on with all the editing they do these days.....

I agree completely. That's exactly how I remember it.

[KristiB]

I watched again-it was 2 tbs per cookie....

I guess if I knew it was called Camp Glucose and there were diabetic kids it would be a no-brainer to ease up on the sugar.