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Feeding Culinary Interest: On Your Mark Get Set Cook

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 24, 2007

An e-mail with the subject line 'Are you a top chef?' recently captured my attention. Ordinarily I give junk mail a cursory glance, hit delete and then move on. But this one called my name like cookies right out of the oven.

'What is a substitute for baking powder? Do you know? Test your Culinary I.Q.! Click here now and take the Culinary I.Q. Quiz to see if you have what it takes to be a top chef,' it read. I was hooked.

Without hesitation, I clicked again and took the test.

According to the folks at Le Cordon Bleu Schools, my culinary I.Q. is 110.

'You're practically a professional chef already!' the automated response replied. 'Congratulations. You have what it takes to attend!'

A clever and a genius advertising gimmick, yes? Game on.

Amused by the results, I forwarded the link to my best friend - not because I thought she would ever don an apron to become a Michelin-starred chef, but because of her competitive spirit. She rarely, if ever, cooks.

As I suspected, she bit. And to my surprise, she scored 85 and graciously attributed her passing grade to hanging around me so much.

The culinary quiz then made its way to her office, where its questions were passed around like a tray of hors d'oeuvres. It generated a lot of buzz and convivial conversation.

When it comes to food, everyone has an interest. It doesn't matter if you're a culinary whiz or wanna-be. Combine it with a ticking clock or a scorecard - and look out. Debating cobbler, crisps, yams, clams, simmer or steam, is fun. And so is challenging co-workers, friends and neighbors to a who-knows-most-about-food contest.

This isn't new. Cutthroat cooking has been around since the 1800s, when agricultural fairs started hosting cooking and recipe contests as a way of drawing more female fairgoers.

Cook-offs and bake-offs have come a long way since the pioneer days of homemade jams, jellies and pickles. Kudos and blue ribbons have been replaced by prizes of kitchen makeovers, trips abroad and, the mother of them all, the Pillsbury Bakeoff, which offers a cool $1 million grand prize.

Stage-managed competitive cooking shows are nothing new, either. 'Iron Chef,' a Japanese import, televised its first show in 1993. It turned competitive cooking into more drama than ants at a Fourth of July picnic.

Because of the popularity of reality cooking shows like 'Iron Chef,' 'Top Chef,' 'The Next Food Network Star' and 'Hell's Kitchen,' more people today probably know the meanings of terms like 'plate,' 'flambe' and 'amuse bouche' than they did 10 years ago.

On 'Top Chef,' a group of telegenic chefs engage in what is called the 'quick-fire challenge.' Each contestant has to come up with a dish or two quickly without any notice of the ingredients they will be using. They're expected to make something fabulous in minutes.

What's new? Mothers have been doing that since the beginning of time.

If you have ever wondered what a $50,000 winning recipe tastes like, try this one. It was last month's Best of Beef grand prize winner at the 27th National Beef Cook-Off, won by amateur home cook Christine Riccitelli of Nevada. Her dish - Nuevo Chipotle Beef in Butternut Squash Boats - features a delicious blend of Latino flavors.

NUEVO CHIPOTLE BEEF IN BUTTERNUT SQUASH BOATS

1 1/2 pounds lean beef for stew

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup tomato paste

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons ground chipotle chili pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 medium butternut squash

1 1/2 cups water

1 medium tomato, chopped

1 small ripe avocado, cut into cubes (optional)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place beef, water, tomato paste, sugar, vinegar, chipotle chili pepper, cumin, salt and black pepper in stockpot. Cover and bake in 325-degree oven 1 3/4 to 2 1/4 hours or until beef is fork-tender. Meanwhile, cut squash lengthwise into quarters; remove seeds. Place squash, cut side down, in a 13-by-9-inch glass baking dish, overlapping if necessary. Add water. Bake at 325 degrees for 60 to 75 minutes or until fork-tender. Place each baked squash quarter onto serving plate. Fill with equal amounts of beef mixture. Top with tomato and avocado, if desired. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Lynn Kessel can be reached at lkessel@mac.com or P.O. Box 286, Ruskin FL 33575-0286. Readers are encouraged to send recipes, comments and suggestions.

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