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by Russell Warnick

Top Chef All-Stars Exit Interview: Episode 5

Can you believe Top Chef reached 100 episodes? In celebration of this milestone we were treated to Tom Colicchio showcasing his speed in the kitchen. Of course we didn’t get to see much of Tom actually cook; it took him a mere 8 minutes and 37 seconds to prepare a sea bass dish. The chef’testants dutifully showed their reverence to Chef Colicchio and looked on in envy.

Keep reading to see what chef’testant got kicked off and which chef’testant packed their knives to go, but ended up getting saved for another day.

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by Russell Warnick

New Year’s Food Resolutions for the Beginner and the Brave

Once the holiday season is over and we’ve finished indulging in turkey, ham and stacks of gifts, there are slightly less exciting things to look forward to: resolutions. We are all forced to make them, and of course we’ll eventually break them before January is out. But in the spirit of all things new again, here are some New Year’s resolutions for both the beginner and brave food lovers.

Tell us how you will resolve to make 2011 a better food year.

New Year’s Food Resolutions: The Beginner

By Brit

Try Something New
Skip the #34 Kung Pao Chicken and choose something new, something that scares you, something that’s blue.

Meatless Monday
It’s no secret that we’re a fan of Sid Lerner, the pioneer of Meatless Monday. For one day a week you can avoid meat and eat a little healthier, save a little cash and reduce your carbon footprint.

Cook More
I love eating out as much as the next person, but there’s nothing more satisfying than cooking and enjoying your own meal.

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by Russell Warnick

Leftovers Week: Roast Chicken Pot Pie

As regular readers of ES might know I have difficulty pleasing my BF — in the kitchen. One of the food items that doesn’t sit well with MrsBritannia is dark meat, and I have to be honest it doesn’t sit well with me either, especially on the bone, unless it comes in a basket sitting on a bar with a beer.

The day after Christmas, at least in the U.K. and many parts of the Commonwealth, is known as Boxing Day, a Victorian-era tradition when the wealthy would provide gifts and leftovers to their servants, so they could enjoy a day off for the holidays themselves. I was brunching across town on Christmas, so I didn’t have any leftovers the next day (fortunately I didn’t have any hired help to disappoint, either). So for Boxing Day dinner we decided to make a roasted chicken and vegetables. As most of our friends were recovering from Christmas themselves it was just the two of us, which made for plenty of post-Boxing Day leftovers, including dark meat. I put out a call for what to do with the meat and I was given a couple of good suggestions, including chicken croquettes and a pastel de choclo. But I played it safe and went with chicken pot pie.

by Russell Warnick

I’m Not Bloody Kidding: Chocolate-Tomato Cake

When I think of chocolate pairings I usually go with strawberries, orange, mint and perhaps bourbon. Tomato, I think not.

A colleague recently told me how she substitutes water with canned tomato as the wet ingredient for her chocolate cake mix. Yes, you read that right. Tomato in a chocolate cake. As I’m not the baker in my household, it was nice to know that this little experiment would consist only of a box of chocolate cake mix and a can of diced tomatoes.

Following the instructions on the back of the box, an Organic Chocolate Cake Mix from Arrowhead Mills, I added just short of a whole can of Whole Foods 365 brand of no salt added, plain diced tomatoes, pureed.

Read on to see how this crazy combination turned out.

in Recipe 10 comments

by Russell Warnick

Top Chef All-Stars Exit Interview: Episode 3

For Top Chef this week we were given the delight of David Chang (and those dimples), the shock of a double elimination, and what was probably (like Padma Lakshmi said) one of the most interesting challenges yet.

Check out what the latest scorned chef’testants have to say about their All-Star return, and exit, after the jump

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by Russell Warnick

Top Chef All-Stars Exit Interview: Episode 2

Calm down, Joe Jonas isn’t the new host of Top Chef All-Stars. He was just the awkwardly placed judge for the Quickfire challenge. And who else would our chef’testants be cooking for this week when a Jonai is present? None other than a room full of thankless kids. Read on to see what this week’s surprising loser has to say.

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by Russell Warnick

How to Boil an Egg

As the year comes to a close we are starting to get inundated with best ofs, top 10s and most popular lists. I stumbled upon Yahoo’s 2010 Year in Review – Burning Questions list, which lists the most commonly asked search engine questions. Amongst the how to lose weight, how to write a resume and which city has the best water (cough cough DC)… There, sitting at #10 was “How to Boil an Egg.” Seriously America, how to boil an egg?

So, purely in the interest of education, here is a quick guide on how to boil an egg. Whether you like it soft, medium or hard boiled, the instructions are after the jump.

in Eggs / Recipe 6 comments

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