Iron Chef Competitions

From 2001 - 2011, Vivian and I battled in Iron Chef competitions to the entertainment of our friends. Viv won....well...all of them. Except the last, where we tied.

Battle Royale: Egg, Cherry, Chocolate, Pineapple, Beef Tenderloin, & red onion

2001, New Year's - Playing fairly loosely with the Iron Chef rules, due to having only the one kitchen and no apparent sense of self-preservation, we were allowed two days to prepare, but only one hour to complete, plate, and serve each challenge. There were six challenges, so everyone got a turn on the tasting panel, and many folks got turns at playing Chairman Kaga.

Battle Egg

    • Vivian - Eggs Benedict, over toast and ham.

    • Daniel - Frittata Carbonara

Battle Beef Tenderloin

    • Vivian - Steak tartare, and a steak with brandy-peppercorn sauce.

    • Daniel - Beef sushi rolls, and a garlic and beef-fat fried rice.

Battle Red Onion

    • Vivian - Baked onions with chestnut stuffing

    • Daniel - Onion soup gratinee

Battle Cherry

    • Vivian - Rum and cherry coke ice cream

    • Daniel - Chocolate fondue with maraschino cherries soaked in various liquors

Battle Chocolate

    • Vivian - Fudge "presents" with white chocolate and almond leaves

    • Daniel - Orangeboom crepes over a divided plate of chocolate and orange sauces.

Battle Pineapple

    • Vivian - Grilled pinapple with cayenne over pork chops

    • Daniel - Pineapple Foster

Verdict: Vivian, by 4 points (out of 300)

Battle Grape, 2005-11-18

Chairman Tyler (for his birthday), when asked what he would like us to cook for him, suggested an exhibition match, a one-ingredient battle as a prelude to our full rematch at the end of the year. We accepted.

Late Wednesday, he revealed the secret ingredient (so we'd have time to go shopping)...battle Grape! But grape in all its forms. Grapes. Raisins. Wine. Vinegar. Grappa. With a full day, similar sources, and a mild case of telepathy, we were a bit worried that we'd be making the same things. Fortunately, we overlapped more in interpretation than execution.

Amuse bouche

    • Vivian - Stuffed grape leaves (sushi-style)

    • Daniel - Stuffed grape leaves (traditional) with currants, raisins, and dill in a lemon sauce

Appetizer

    • Vivian - Cold poached turkey salad with green grapes

    • Daniel - Dill and morel chicken croquettes with spicy grape salsa

Main

    • Vivian - Pork tenderloin wrapped in prosciutto and sage leaves with a roasted Concord grape sauce

    • Daniel - Red wine and mushroom risotto

Dessert

    • Vivian - Apple-raisin turnovers

    • Daniel - Creme caramel with tokaji syrup and grappa raisins

Verdict: Vivian, by 3 points (out of 300)

The Results

Out of 320 points (5 for originality, 5 for appearance, 10 for taste for each of the four dishes)...Viv won by only 3 points this time. So, if she won by 4 points in 2001, it's only 4 more battles before I win! Until then, I get to eat the cooking of the best chef in Somerville <g>

Battle Garlic, 2010-03-06

In honor of smoagendash and koshmom 's wedding, we held exhibition match: Garlic.

Sadly, there will be no formal battles until the boy is of an age to be patient for one whole day, or we get a babysitter willing to watch the kid while we cook and would like to participate in and watch the boy during the tasting.

The menu

Amuse (Daniel): Stuffed mushroom with homemade garlic sausage, topped with black garlic

Appetizer (both): Bruschetta 3 ways - Rubbed with raw garlic and topped with garlic-marinated bell peppers, topped with olive-herb and roasted garlic tapenade, and "bagna cauda" style.

Soup (Daniel): Chicken mousseline quenelles in garlic broth.

Salad (Vivian): Classic chopped salad with homemade ranch dressing and bacon

Main #1 (Daniel): Crepes Baxter - Chicken crepes with a garlic and vermouth veloute

Main #2 (Vivian): Potato Gnocchi and Roasted Garlic ragout

Dessert (Vivian): Roasted Garlic Pumpkin Pie with maple syrup and coconut milk

As always, a good time was had by all. Must keep mousseline out of the hands of the cats, then sleep.

Exhibition match: Tomato, 2010-09-25

So....I hate raw tomatoes. I like them as part of a sauce, but not too prominent unless it is the Abraham Family Spaghetti Sauce (which, apparently, according to a person steeped in Northern and Southern Italian cuisine, is actually an excellent tomato stew). So we called in help. Rick joined us for this round.

The Menu

  • Amuse and Cocktail - BLT skewers (Dan) & Bloody Maru (Viv)

Bacon, arugula, confit cherry tomato, and toast squares on skewers, served tapas-style on top of a Bloody Mary made with sake rather than vodka.

  • Appetizer (Rick) Trio of Tacos and Salsas

Steak, chicken, and carnitas (pork braised with orange, pineapple, ginger, and chipotle) with matching salsas in tomatillo, pico de gallo, and pinapple tomato.

  • Soup (Dan) Golden Gazpacho Sorbet

Yellow tomato gazpacho with a spoonful of extra spicy poblano gazpacho.

  • Main (Dan) Grandma Abraham's Meatball Sandwich

An old family sauce recipe, mixed with a new meatball recipe, on a cute tiny Iggy's dinner roll.

  • Salad (Viv) Strawberry, Watermelon, and Tomato salad

Just what I said <g>.

  • Main (Viv) Steak in Fresh Tomato Sauce w/homemade pasta

10 minute tomato sauce with Speckled Roma tomatoes.

  • Dessert (Rick) Dessert Bruschetta

Fresh shortbread with husk tomato & mint jam plus whipped cream.

Battle Apple, 2011-10-24

And we tied! I finally have a not-loss against Vivian, and will rest on my battle laurels.

attempting to reconstruct what we made from memory and the shopping list...

  • Dessert (Daniel) Fried Apple Pie - smoked Granny Smith apples, Calvados sabayon

  • Appetizer (Daniel) Smoked sausage and apple soup

  • Amuse (Daniel) - apple, brie, major grey chutney

  • Salad (Vivian) - duck prosciutto, frisee & pickled apple salad.