Top Chef - Restaurant Wars Showdown

Let’s fast forward through the Quickfire Challenge, where the 6 contestants have to cook eggs in a greasy spoon for the early morning breakfast rush. The only thing notable about this challenge was Tom entering the Top Chef house before 6 am(!!!), while the chefs are all sleeping. That was a bit weird. I guess he had to get some face time, because he was off at a “charity event” and wasn’t going to be judging the Elimination Challenge this week.

The Quickfire ends with Dale and Antonia as the best two. Antonia is pronounced the overall winner at mastering the art of fast egg cooking.

The chefs are directed to a big empty space and Padma tells them it’s…Restaurant Wars! Because Antonia is the winner, she gets to pick two other chefs for her team. She chooses Stephanie and Richard. Uh-oh, that leaves Dale with Lisa. I don’t like that, but I guess it makes for drama.

The menus are decided and after what looks like an all too quick trip to Whole Foods for $1500 in groceries and Pier One for $5000 for dishes and décor, they begin to cook.

During the prep time, Tony strides into the kitchen, saying he’ll be replacing Tom this week and “bringing his warmer, sunnier disposition to the challenge.” He wanders around asking each team what they’re doing.

Let’s cut to the chase. The restaurant is open. They get started. The judges enter and Padma introduces guest judge Chef José Andrés. Oh, I like him.

Antonia, Stephanie and Richard (Mr. Ras el Hanout)
Gastropub:
1st Course
Beet Salad with Goat Cheese & Ras el Hanout Spices (again!!!)
Linguine & Clams with Sausage & Horseradish Crème Fraiche

Tony tasting the pasta: “This is better than what I would expect.” José: “I love the texture of the linguine. Stephanie pipes in “I made the pasta myself.” Ted says the Goat Cheese Salad (or is he just talking about the goat cheese?) is really delicious.

2nd Course
Trout with Cauliflower
Lamb Loin & Braised Lamb Shank

Ted: “This is a nice presentation.” Tony: “I was thinking exactly the same thing.”

Whoa, slow down a second, guys…EVERYTHING can’t really have been so good thus far. It’s obvious that this team will be the winning team and that Dale’s team will have some failed dishes.

Okay, this is my prediction: the two losers will be Dale and Lisa and LISA will be going home, because if they send Dale home, I ain’t watching this show anymore, because there is no one else I want to win.

I mean it. I WILL hold a grudge. I will be unreasonable and mean and I’ll spend my Top Chef evenings watching House Hunters instead. Where was I?

Tony repeats how much he loves the lamb. José is really impressed by the level of cooking and Padma says “We’re not joking around here on Top Chef.”

It is so evident that all this praise is just a set-up for how disappointing the other team’s menu will be. I almost don’t want to watch it…AND I bet something horrible will go wrong with Spike’s décor, like a giant mirror will fall off a wall or something…I SWEAR I’m writing this as I’m watching, so if that really does happen, I am absolutely psychic…

3rd Course
Gorgonzola Cheesecake with Sweet Potato Puree & Concord Grape Sauce (Gag me!)
Banana “Scallops” with Banana Guacamole & Chocolate ice Cream

The desserts didn’t go over QUITE as well, but they liked their innovativeness and, luckily for them, the judges didn’t actually hate anything.

Dale, Lisa and Spike
Mai Buddha

1st Course
Spicy Coconut Shrimp Laksa…Padma: OOH, isn’t that beautiful?
Pork & Pickled Plum Pot Stickers

Tony on the laksa: “It was just too damn smoky,” WHICH IS EXACTLY what Dale said back in the kitchen. Padma adores the dumplings. Ted loves the char on them.

2nd Course
Braised Short Ribs with Pickled Red Cabbage & Apple Basil Salad
Padma: “I love a short rib.”
Butterscotch Miso Scallops, Spicy Eggplant & Pickled Long Beans

Tony: “It’s like Willy Wonka scallops.” Padma in horror: “No, really?” A random diner says she has no idea what she’s eating...probably not a good sign. Equally, it’s not a good sign when Lisa says Dale isn’t happy with his food choices and ultimately the executive chef is responsible for the food. That can’t bode well. Lisa, it better be you or I’m out of here…

3rd Course
Halo-Halo with Cantaloupe, Coconut, Kiwi, Avocado & Candied Nuts
Mango Sticky Rice with Toasted Coconut

Tony's take on the Sticky Rice dish: “It’s baby vomit with wood chips.” He was “okay” with the halo-halo, although he didn’t “particularly love it”. José did. Random diners HATED the sticky rice dessert.

Spike’s take on his teammates’ performances: “Poor,” which also means he thought HIS wasn’t.

Needless to say Antonia’s team won. Tony: “I was really impressed by all of your comportment.” Why do I think he would have behaved more like Dale in the kitchen, who everyone is down on for acting temperamental when things don’t go right? Isn’t that the definition of a chef?

The winner is Stephanie. She wins a culinary tour to Barcelona and a guided wine tasting tour for two.

The other team goes in to face the judges. I’ve just noticed that Dale is wearing shorts and hideous blue shoes. Are they crocs? I can’t quite see…Remember it better be Lisa!

Tony: ”ALL of us were unanimous if finding some very unpleasant aspects to this meal.” Well, TONY, I find your face unpleasant! Especially, if you even think of sending my Dale home!

I don’t get his critique about the napkins. He asks who came up with the color. No one takes responsibility. He says that the décor “announced itself as a place where a greasy dumpling would be unforgivable.” Was Tony saying that the décor was SO elegant and well done that he expected the food to follow suit? It sure didn’t sound that way…

Then the judges go off on the author of the butterscotch scallop dish - Dale. (Frankly, I’ll take butterscotch any way I can get it, especially if cute Dale is dishing it out.) José said nothing worked in the dish. Padma said it was way too sweet. “Hearing the words butterscotch and scallops together in the first place was very worrying to me,” says Tony. “It looked like a melted candy bar.”

Tony goes on to rip the laksa and says it was like “putting his face in front of a campfire”. Dale actually points to Lisa just as she actually takes full responsibility for the dish.

Could it be that Dale IS a little bitch as Spike (was it?) always calls him? Never mind, Lisa’s a bigger one. They go on to criticize basically everything about Dale and Lisa and their nitpicking over whose responsibility everything was. SHE really is a tattle tale, but I’m getting an uneasy feeling that as the executive chef of this challenge, HE’S going to take the fall.

But CLEARLY, he is the better cook. He’s won more challenges including being in the top two in this very episode’s Quickfire. Dale, you better stay, buddy…José doesn’t like the lack of teamwork that they’re showing, but what are you supposed to do when you don’t want to take the fall for someone else’s mistakes?

Oh good, José opines (correctly) that because Spike was in the front of the house, he considers himself away from all the trouble in the kitchen and above it all. And he was fortunate that nothing falls off the wall.

Dale makes the point that you’re only as good as your weakest link. Lisa comes back with you’re only as good as your leader. I agree with Dale. Byuh bye Lisa. They leave to let the judges deliberate.

The judges agree that Spike was smart to stay out of it and that he did his job ok. They agree that Dale fell down as a conceptualizer, executor and something else or other. BUT the judges agree that Lisa “botched” both of the dishes she made – sticky rice and the laksa and that she’s really bad at taking criticism. Are they are picking Lisa….or not?

OOH, Lisa and Dale are still having it out. Dale isn’t that nice, but he’s still a better cook than she is.

The three chefs go back in, Dale looks mad; Lisa looks belligerent and Spike looks a little too self satisfied.

WHAT?!! DALE is sent home. That really, really, really, really stinks. He’s okay with the whole thing. He actually breaks up talking about it.

Dale being sent home is a huge mistake. A HUGE mistake. A huge MISTAKE!!! I’m done… Without Dale, I don’t care who wins…I wouldn’t even have minded if Richard had beaten him in the final two, but the remaining chefs are of no interest. Top Chef is dead to me.

O Emeril, Emeril! Wherefore Art Thou Emeril?*

It’s official. The Food Network's connection to Emeril Live will be confined only to afternoon repeats.

Fine Living (shown in a little more than half the Food Network’s 90 million homes) has picked it up. Starting July 7th, they will show a new Emeril Live every Monday night with repeats the other six nights, after an initial premiere week of five original episodes. It will be shown in the same time block as his corporate boss Martha Stewart’s show every weekday evening.

The big news here is that this prolongs the life of Emeril Live and leaves open the possibility of future seasons. The Scripps Network does own both the Food Network AND Fine Living. I guess they felt that Emeril's high profile would be of more benefit to Fine Living.

Good luck to everyone’s favorite Cajun chef.

*Yes, I know that doesn't really mean "Where are you Emeril?" but I couldn't resist the poetic sounding title...

Sweet Endings

No, I’m not talking about dessert, although I did have a couple of good ones this weekend. I’m talking about those all too few moments in life when we can savor a loved one’s achievements.

Our second and last child graduated from college on Sunday. It was a gorgeous day and a wonderful weekend. His sister from faraway was there, plus his grandfather. We had celebratory dinners with the best of friends - A and G, and some special young friends. It was a good sign that we ran out of toasts by the end of the weekend.

I thought I would be reliving his past (and mine)…kindergarten plays, middle and high school sports stuff and high school graduation. I’m not sure why, but my mind was firmly focused on the future – what he’ll do in his life, where he'll live and all he’ll see.

While the path was smooth and steady (well, MOSTLY), the end of his formal schooling was particularly satisfying. He's a really nice kid, who always knew what he wanted to do, which I realize is rare and many times not even practical.

He wants to be a sports broadcaster and he actually got a job doing exactly that. Okay, it’s far away and for a small team, but he’s doing it. And what more can a parent ask?

Oh yeah, phone calls home…lots of them.

Michael, I Miss You

Since Michael Chiarello has been moved to no cook's land on the Food Network - 7 am on weekend mornings and 11:30 am during the week - I've been keeping in touch with the flawless chef by means of his NapaStyle newsletter, which comes to my inbox with great frequency.

You may remember that I am the fortunate owner of a spectacular knife holder from NapaStyle that I use with great jubilation. (The sad thing is I'm not kidding. I really do exult everytime a knife or long skewer is required.)

Anyway, I noticed a blurb on pizzas in this newest newsletter. MC was trying to sell his outdoor pizza oven, which I'm not in the market for, but this recipe looks great.

Michael also has what looks to be many hundreds of recipes on this online catalog site, which are beautifully organized by courses, ingredients and other specifications as well. It's actually very easy to use and rather impressive. I know he's trying to sell us stuff, but he's doing a good job at getting alot of information across.

There is a fairly rudimentary blog too, where Michael talks about what's going on, business-wise mainly (DARN!), but he DOES mention that he's working on a new television show. I'm thinking it won't be on the Food Network, but who knows?

Is it a shame that a chef we've come to know from the Food Network is shilling his wares in a catalog and website? For me, no, I'll take him any way I can get him...

Sad News From The World Of Wine

94 year old Robert Mondavi died at his Napa home today. I always admired this grand gentleman, who produced some of the best wines of his generation, while providing decent moderately priced ones as well.

I remember when he and Baron Philippe de Rothschild joined together to make a California premium wine, known as Opus One. H and I visited the beautiful Mondavi Winery years ago and I remember hoping that Opus One was included in the tasting at the end of the tour....No such luck.

Mondavi's list of accomplishments is long, but of particular interest to me is his part in Copia. It was his brainchild and the recipient of his $20 million gift.

He grew up in the California wine business and his family bought the Charles Krug Winery in 1943. When he was 52 in 1966, he and his remaining brother had a disagreement that couldn't be mended and he started his own winery, the Robert Mondavi Winery. (His brother remained in control of Charles Krug.)

The Robert Mondavi family sold their entire wine business to Constellation Brands in 2001 for more than one billion dollars. The sale included their exclusive AND everyday wines, even though the family had been prepared to split the company.

All through his life, Robert Mondavi travelled widely and kept in close touch with European winemakers. He was also interested in art and music and was a well-known patron of both.

Time to crack open a bottle and toast to all his long life, good works and many accomplishments.

Top Chef - Say It With Salad, But Stop Screaming About Everything Else!

Top Chef
Episode 10 Serve and Protect

There's a money shot of Glad bags near the beginning of Top Chef. Is the prize $100,000 dollars or that much money in Glad bags? It’s hard to tell.

We open with Andrew…or is it Spike? I still can’t tell the difference. They’re showing Steph a bit. Richard says he’s tired. Spike says Dale’s a little bitch. Didn’t he say that last week?

Dale says it’s all too dramatic and emotional. Andrew says everyone is beat down but him.

Quickfire Challenge. They all look awfully exhausted after being up all day and night for last week’s wedding challenge.

Season 2 finalist Sam Talbot is the guest judge. Antonia thinks he’s tall dark and handsome. Each to her own. The challenge is to “put the sexy back in the salad.” Okay, maybe it’s SAM that should leave the island. Padma says they have 45 minutes and they can use all the ingredients in the kitchen. (There's a huge table with tons of stuff on it.)

Let’s have sex after we eat this salad, says Spike. Eww.

Dale’s looks the best to me, after we see it for one second. Steph mixes artichokes, mushrooms and pears. I don’t love that. Antonia likes “fatty salads”. Lisa is using lobster tails. (That’s a good idea, even though she not my fav.)

Steph ran out of time before she got her artichoke chip on the plate. That’s not good.

The results:
Andrew: “Thai fruit salad” with Mangoes, Strawberries, Raspberries & Sriracha Dressing. Sam: “The sriracha gives it a good flavor.”

Spike: “Sensual Beef Salad” with Pineapple, Radish, Cucumber & Skirt Steak. Sam: ”It’s nice to see the contrast in profiles.” Huh? I guess that’s good, but what does it mean?

Lisa: “Sexy Banana Salad” with Squid, Lobster Tail, Bananas & Yuzu Vinaigrette. Sam: “Actually I don’t taste a lot of spice at all.”

Stephanie: “Fall Duet” with Pear Vinaigrette, Poached Pear & Artichokes. Sam: “Thank you.”

Antonia: “Poached Egg & Wild Mushroom Salad” with Bacon Vinaigrette & Squash Blossoms. Sam: “It’s got great flavor. Thanks.” Did his gaze linger on her for a second? Was there some chemistry between the two chefs? She IS a single mother, right?

Richard: “Fresh & Clean Salad” with Ceviche of Fruits & Vegetables. Sam: Thank you.

Dale: “Poached Chicken Salad” with Nori Paste, Mirin, Sake & Rice Wine Vinegar. Sam: “Poached chicken can dry out, but that’s actually really moist.”

Richard and Steph and Lisa lose.

Sam liked Spike, Antonia (I TOLD you) and Dale. He said Dale’s dish was really unique and that he nailed it. Spike is the winner. His first win. He gets a significant advantage, Padma reminds him, instead of immunity.

They wheel in tons of greasy fast food to show that this is what most people eat for lunch. The challenge is to make gourmet boxed lunches for cadets from the Chicago police force. Lisa is funny as she says that personally all that junk looks good to her.

Sam says he is diabetic himself and has to think about healthy eating. The challenge is to “protect (the cadets’) health and serve them something tasty.“

As a winner of the QuickFire Challenge, Spike gets a 10 minute head start shopping and the four ingredients that he chooses no one else can use.

Spike is getting things that will PO everybody, because they won’t be able to use them: chicken, bread, lettuce and tomato.

Andrew doesn’t care because he thinks those are the most dumbed-down ingredients anyway. Andrew studied nutrition for 2 years and brags about how he doesn’t run around with his head cut off. OK, it’s Andrew going home!!! That’s my pick.

The lunch has to include whole grain, lean protein, fruit and vegetable.

Andrew is putting together parsnips and something or other for a sushi roll. That sounds awful! He’s bragging again. He’s going down!

Dale is using lettuce, scratch that, CABBAGE cups with bison. Antonia is dissing him (to the camera) because he only cooks Asian food.

Lisa is doing tons of explanation. It’s way too much. Tom enters the Top Chef kitchen. He seems to like Steph’s dish. Tom tries Lisa’s hot sauce. He practically gags. Spike gets a handshake. Richard wants to know if Tom likes burritos. In his usual blustery way, he says he does IF it’s a good burrito.

Tom tells the camera that they all seem to be doing a good cooking job. Lisa’s brown rice is burned. She says someone turned up the heat. Steph says it was just an accident (on Lisa's part), not sabotage. Dale agrees. They rush to box everything up to get to the police academy.

They get to the cafeteria and label their food with instructions on how to reheat. The cadets come in. Richard asks every single person, “Do you like burritos?” Spike says he’s so cheesy. He’s right.

Apparently the cadets get to choose any lunch they wish. Spike keeps only two boxes out in front, so it seems like his lunches are going fast.

Padma arrives. Here are the dishes:
Oh there are Ted and Tom. Hi boys!

Stephanie: Mushroom & Meatball Soup with Barley, Vegetable Puree & Yogurt. It’s orange and looks completely smooth, like a butternut soup. The judges seem pleased with it.

Spike: Chicken Salad with Pita & Raw Vegetables. “It’s a very pedestrian chicken salad to me”, says Padma. Ted says Spike had plenty of time to do something more exciting. Tom remarks on the ingredients he chose, thinking that he only picked them so that the other chefs couldn’t use them.

I don’t think that’s completely fair. That was part of the deal for winning the Quickfire Challenge. Of course, the winning chef would choose stuff that would benefit him or her and screw the opposing chefs.

Dale: Lemongrass Bison Lettuce Wrap with Brown Rice & Herb Salad. The cops say it’s good. The judges like it too.

Antonia: Curry Beef with Jasmine Rice, Berries & Figs with Grape Syrup. The cops really like the filet and the sauce. Ted says the beef is nicely cooked. Padma says the flavors are delicious.

Andrew: Salmon Roll with Parsnip-Pine nut “Rice” & Pickled Ginger Wasabi. “I take nutrition in a very serious sense,” he drones on and on to a very polite Ted. (If you have to ‘xplain it, it means it doesn’t stand alone on the taste.) He includes the information that wasabi helps with tooth decay. I hope he means to PREVENT tooth decay.

Padma: ”That’s very strange”. She’s talking about the dish, not Andrew…and not his dental tips. Ted: “The flavor’s not great.” Padma notices instantly that he didn’t use a whole grain. Ooh, does that mean he didn’t follow the rules? He is soooo out! Tom looks disgusted.

Richard: Grilled Tuna Burrito with Lentils & Quinoa in a Rice Paper Tortilla. He asks the same dumb question of Sam – “Do you like burritos?” What if someone says NO?!! Ted says it tastes better than it looks. Tom says, “It tastes good, actually”. One cop says it would nice on a summer day. Who knew officers could be so poetic? Sweet.

Lisa: Shrimp stir-fry with Brown Rice, Berries & Yogurt.
Padma and Sam know immediately that the rice is undercooked. It’s really spicy, a cop says.

Sam comes from a family of cops and says he liked some of the lunches and didn’t like others. Tom says if you want people to eat something healthy, it has to be delicious as well.

Lisa explains to Spike that someone fooled with her rice. Andrew realizes he didn’t use a grain in his dish (20 minutes after everyone else did).

The judges want to see Dale and Stephanie. Obviously, one of them is the winner. YUP. They get asked why they came up with what they did. The judges loved Dales’ idea of the bison, saying how healthy it is. Stephanie’s soup was very well seasoned.

DALE is the winner. GO ME!!! He gets a bottle of 2002 Rutherford Merlot wine. Whoop-Dee-Do. Oh wait, it’s kind of pricey and Dale also gets a visit for 2 to the Rutherford Hills winery. That’s cool and he’s happy that he's won 5 out of 20 times.

The losers: Spike, Lisa and…Andrew. WHO called it???? Andrew is so gone. I’m sure.

Andrew mentions AGAIN that he studied nutrition for 2 years. He goes on and on about how you should eat every 3 hours. How exactly IS a police officer going to eat that often? “I want to leave them wanting more.” Tom points out that they’ll get a candy bar later if they’re hungry, which defeats the entire purpose of the healthy lunch.

The exchange demonstrates how pissy Andrew was:
A: I wanna show you guys what it is to eat healthy.
Tom: How about serving something that’s good?
A: Was it not good?
Tom: It didn’t taste good at all, no.
A: Really? That’s funny. I had 2 people go back for it.
Tom: They went back for it because it wasn’t enough and they had to eat more.

Andrew definitely resents that the judges didn’t like it.

They get to Spike. Padma wants to know why he made chicken salad. He didn’t want to scare the cadets, he says. Then he also gets a bit aggressive. “What was so wrong about the way I used my ingredients?” The dish you came up with dummy!

They hated the combination of olives and grapes. And Spike almost insults them. Ooh gosh, he really is nasty to Tom. He says “the common person” likes those together. Tom gives as good as he gets. “If you want to take their word over mine, that’s fine”, says Tom…”Unfortunately for you, it’s my opinion that matters.”

It’s Lisa’s turn. Tom says many components of her dish were poorly cooked. She says Wah! Someone screwed with my rice. Tom's attitude: All that aside, nothing was well cooked.

Then Lisa actually points out that Andrew didn’t use a grain in his dish, which they were supposed to. She actually ratted him out. Tom says they’re aware of that. Lisa and Andrew have a nice little altercation in front of the judges.

They leave the room. “Boy, did Lisa have a lot to say”, says Padma. Tom says they’re not going to accept alleged sabotage as an excuse for her dish. Ted says there were 4 really huge mistakes in it. They agree that Spike’s was unimaginative. Sam and Tom really hated it.

Andrew and Lisa have more words. “It just shows me who you are.” Andrew says to Lisa about the tattling.

Padma points out again that he didn’t use a whole grain. Tom says that’s true. Ted says Andrew was completely arrogant.

Outside the room, there’s more Andrew/Lisa conflict.

Then Padma makes the point that it’s a unanimous decision, which means to me that they chose Andrew and she's making the point that it wasn't because Lisa told on him.

To a break…Do you think this is suspicious that there’s a commercial for diabetes medicine when they happen to have a guest judge with diabetes?

They’re back and they repeat again why they hated all the dishes. Okay, so who’s out?

Tuh-duh, it’s ANDREW!!! (I’m awesome to have picked another rejectee!!!) “I will bow out of this competition with honor and respect”, he says. This isn’t Sicily in 1962! He’s really kind of jerky.

He shakes the judges’ hands and says later he’ll probably never see any of these people again, except Spike. Spike is sad to see him go.

Again, “I play with honor. I play with respect and loyalty.. and honor”, he says soooooooooooo pretentiously. “I’m always against the grain.” Get it? He’s different…unusual…whatever. AND he didn’t add the whole grain to his dish, so he goes “against the grain”. Dumb. He certainly rubs me the wrong way. Good-bye, sucker.

Next week restaurant wars.

Oh Danny Boy, When Are You Going To Get Your Own Show?

Rescue Chef with Danny Boome

Lucy's Gumbo
Chicken and Seafood Gumbo
Blood Orange Lemonade
Grilled Savory Zucchini Flat Bread

The good news is that Danny has left the tri-state area, and, happily, we don’t have to hear him refer to places just outside the city as “Upstate” New York. The bad news is that the concept is the same – helping people make dishes that they’ve enjoyed elsewhere and had little luck cooking on their own.

Freelance writer Rebecca from Texas wants to recreate her mother’s gumbo recipe. I’m still not getting why she would ask DANNY how to make gumbo. Oh wait! I have an idea. ASK YOUR MOM! We’re not told if that’s impossible.

There’s a cooking set-up in the middle of the backyard. THAT looks normal. NOT!!! Instead of a stove, (well, there IS a burner) they use a barbecue for the pots and pans. This is never explained. Maybe Mom cooked on a clown train in uncertain surroundings or maybe Rebecca’s kitchen is being renovated. Danny is cooking outside as if it’s not weird. But everything seems weird to Rebecca.

She is perpetually confused: even as Danny is explaining something as simple as using vegetable oil to make a roux. He adds oil to a hot pot and then stirs in the same amount of flour. It has to cook for a long time, at least 15 minutes, he says, until it’s golden brown. Well, at first he says golden brown. Then, without explaining, he changes it to mahogany brown. Make up your mind.

My authority on a Cajun roux is Paul Prudhomme in his Louisiana Kitchen book of 1984. He refines what Danny says. The oil has to be added to a perfectly clean pan. That’s important if you’ve just been frying chicken. You heat the oil over high heat until it’s just smoking and THEN the flour gets added gradually, being stirred all the time. It should take only 3 to 4 minutes to get a dark brown roux. The vegetables go in next to stop the cooking. PP also calls the roux “Cajun napalm” because it’s capable of bestowing serious burns on the cook, so beware. Danny leaves the roux behind while he cooks it painfully slowly.

Danny slices 3 shallots, while pronouncing them SHALL-lots first and then shall-LOTS. He needs them for a zucchini flatbread, which Rebecca seems never to have associated with her mother’s gumbo…for a good reason. It’s NOT!

Oh, he’s using store-bought pizza dough, but at least it’s a good one. He brushes a baking pan with olive oil. Poor Rebecca is just lost. He stretches the dough to fit the pan and brushes the whole thing with more olive oil and sprinkles over salt. He presses sliced zucchini, which he actually allowed her to do, into the dough followed by the shallots. Danny tells her to grate ½ to 1 cup of Parmesan cheese over the top. 2 cups later, he puts the pan on a preheated medium grill for 20 minutes, with the top down.

Back to the roux, he prepares the triumvirate of Cajun vegetables – chopped celery, green peppers and onions. He lets Rebecca do some of the prep. She has a furrowed brow most of the time, but she does everything that’s asked of her, including the ridiculous camera close-up personal interview “Well, I was a bit suspicious when Danny said we’d be using okra. It’s kind of slimy.”

Honey, you’re making a GUMBO! Chances are it will have OKRA in it. Although, truth to tell, not every one of Paul’s gumbos has okra, but I’m sure your momma’s did.

As usual, Danny doesn’t even trust his cooking companion with the rice. He adds 2 cups of rice to 4 cups of boiling water. He adds the too-big vegetables to the roux.

Danny says she’s going to make her own hot sauce, which can be her signature addition to the gumbo. They chop lots of peppers, seeds and all and it goes into the food processer with canned tomatoes, sugar, apple cider vinegar and garlic. She questions him when he says the heat is in the seeds. I thought it was in the membrane, she says. (She’s right.) “There too”, he says quickly, wanting to change the subject. They process the whole mixture and it goes into a saucepan. The saucepan goes onto the grill, with the top down, to cook. Danny points out that the handle is stainless steel and won’t melt.

The problem with this show is that the other people are incidental to it. Danny doesn’t particularly teach anyone anything or let them do much anyway. I would rather see him in his own kitchen, making his own food, instead of pretending that he’s helping someone.

He takes out the flatbread. (I thought the zucchini should have been cooked first.) Rebecca claims to like it.

They cut 2 lbs. of boneless chicken thighs into 1inch cubes. Danny stirs in bourbon and 6 cups of chicken stock. He adds the chicken. No way does this look like the deep brown it should. It looks positively anemic.

He slices the okra thinly and tells Rebecca it’s the thickening agent. He add tomatoes and bay leaves and says the gumbo will cook for 1 ½ hours. (Paul's don’t cook that long.) He adds shrimp at the end and cooks it for 2 to 3 minutes. My, that looks pale.

I’m not being mean, really, well, ok, just a little, when I say that Cynthia seems a bit…mature to still be trying to duplicate her mother’s gumbo. Isn’t that something you do when you’re younger? By now, she should have asked a relative or experimented on her own enough to figure it out.

But I guess I DO know how she feels somewhat. Very, very, very unfortunately, my own mother is not around and there are times that I’d love to ask her about a certain recipe. Luckily, she left a very detailed recipe box and I have various family members that cook well and have good memories, so I’ve never been completely stumped.

Let’s use this as a lesson, though. Even if your kids can’t stomach being in the kitchen with you (okay, it’s MY kids I’m talking about), WRITE DOWN what you’re doing, especially if it’s a favorite dish. Many years, I give my brother and sister-in-law a favorite recipe for Christmas, plus the pot to cook it in and the other accoutrements needed to cook it. That’s a good thing to give to grown children too. That’s the one thing this episode encouraged me to continue.

Danny plans to serve a Blood Orange Lemonade. Rebecca even squeezes some of the fruit. He mixes 1 cup lemon juice, 1 cup blood orange juice and simple syrup. They cut orange wedges and add sparking water to the mixture. He adds a bit of mint and Danny pours. They toast to Mom.

He spoons the rice in bowls and then the gumbo goes over. She loves it and says it’s to die for. Her mom would be so proud. Okay, unless Mom is on a long, long trip, she’s definitely not coming back to taste it.

This mystery hangs heavy (in my mind at least) during the entire show. By the end of the episode, no other explanation seems plausible. It must be that her mother has gone to her reward.

That’s kind of a downer, especially for a episode that was shown on Mother’s Day weekend. Well, Rebecca, you’ll just have to take Danny’s word for it that you’ve made a good gumbo. In the future, write your recipes down and don’t depend on an energetic Englishman to capture the true essence of your mother’s Cajun cooking. And, Danny, find a real kitchen to cook in next time.