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Show PE ES OS Se ES ON eS : S.L. Firefighter Wins $10,000 With Tabasco Torté BY NANCY HOBBS For Phil Winston, using the green put him in it. The Salt Lake County firefighter’s apple torte laced with green Tabasco sauce extinguished all of “The competition was stiff. I didn’t think it would be as toughas it was.” Phil Winston Tuesday in New York City at Tabasco’s first na tional “Cook & Ladder” contest, staged to find the best firehouse cook in the country “The competition wasstiff. I didn’t think it would be as tough as it was,” Winston said in a telephone interview after the winners were announced. The second-place Spicy Shrimp Cordon Bleu with Mushroom Cognac Tabasco Sauce by Keith Young of Freeport, NY, “was incredible,” he said. But a criterion for “creative use” of Tabasco mayhave given Winston an edge. Judges obviously were swayed by the unique sweet and spicycombinationof Winston's torte. The Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce, with milder spice and Firefighter Phil Winston displays what's left of his prize-winning Layered Apple Cheese Torte With Caramel Saucein New York Tuesday. higher vinegar content than the red pepper sauce, “enhances theflavor of the apples,” Winstonsaid. Traditional red pepper sauce in the caramel topping C4 Winston, who took vocational cooking classes in Salt Lake Countyfirefighter the other competition and brought him $10,000 See the winning recipe Salt Lake County came for his unique dessert, however. Cooking seems almost to come second nature to —— “kind of heats the back of your throat, but it's not hot.” Theidea of a firehouse cooking competition oc curred to Tabasco President Paul MclIlhenny when he spotted a firefighter buying a gallon jug of his family’s product at a grocery store. Whobetter to know, tolerate and even savor “hot”? Though the companyhas previously sponsored citywidefirehouse competitions, thiswasits first national challenge. Winston, whose reputation as a talented cook has spread far and wide during less than two years on the force, only needed to hear about the contest to start putting together an entire pepper-saucereper- two from toire. His selection as oneof10 finalists high school and sought more cooking instruction after joining the Armyat age 17. He graduated at the top of his class and later won “U.S. Army Cook of the Year” honors twoyears in a row. Of the $10,000 Tabasco award, Winston gets $5,000; the firehouse gets the other $5,000. Capt. Brass, spokesman for Salt Lake County Fire Department, said Winston was told before going to New Yorkthat, if he won, how the department's shares spent would be up to him. Word is, Winston has decided to donate at least a chunkofit to a camp for kids run bythe Intermountain Burn Unit. 6 Details will have to wait for Winston's retumn, however. First there are celebrity spots to be done, including an interview with Bryant Gumbel on today’s “This Morning” program. “I'll for sure be back to work Friday, though, Winston promised hungryco-workers. TheSalt LakeTribune FOOD @ COMICS, C-6 TELEVISION, C-7 WEDNESDAY ANN LANDERS, C-7 FEBRUARY 2, é M CUISINE QUEST, C-2 SECTION, ceahaaill) Halid THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE Nectar of the Gods BY MIRIAMPEREIRA FORT MYERS NEWS-PRESS Therich,faintly sweet aromalures the nose. Thetyesfollow the scent. A milky brown nugget beckons. Thefirst bite breaks open the smooth shell. It.dissolves in the mouth, envelop- | ing the tongue in sweetness. Ahhh, chocolate. What other confec- tion can.elicit moans of delight and pleas for more? How youare loved. You send your worshippersto the heights ofplea- sure when devoured and to the depths oncethe last morsel is swallowed. Its poweris so engrossing thatif Vicky @ Sweettreats Kearns were ever stranded on a desert island, chocolate would be one of the c-3 things she simply couldn’t bear to do without, Black Russian Cake “When-youbite into chocolate, there’s just something about when it melts in your motith,” says Kearns, manager of Key West Boutique Fine Gifts & Chocolate Shoppe in Fort Myers, Fla. The-boutique sells truffles, fudge, 1 package dark chocolate cake mix 1 cup vegetableoil 1 package(3 ounces) instant chocolate pudding mix 4eggs % cup strong coffee 4% cup crémede cacao % cup Kahlia hand-dipped white, dark and milk chocolate: “When. it’s the real chocolate, you never get fired ofit,” Kearnssays, “I wish Iwas asize 5/6, but I'll neversee thatsize. We hays quality control here. Need I say more?” Chasblate ii s also passion for Norman Love, thépastry cheffor The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Oo.based in Naples, Fla. His desserts are-whimsical and awesome monu- Photo illustration by Benjamin Rusnak/Fort Myers News-Press A chocolate coveredstrawberry is only onein a world of temptations for chocolate lovers. 1 2 2 2 Topping cup confectioners’ sugar,sifted tablespoons strong coffee tablespoons Kahliia tablespoons crémede cacao mentsa£6..chocolate. Love's creativity helpedaithree-memberU.S. team ofchefs place third in the World Pastry Cup ’99 in Lyon, Brance. His entry: a chocolate sculptui@of jazz musicians’ features and instrumtéfts suspended in midair. Choeelate is the top-selling dessert amongaikTheRitz-Carltons, he says. But:ftisn’t just consumed in sinfully sweet ‘desserts, Love says. A culinary trend is-the chocolate dinner in which chocolate:is incorporated in each course. Hencexhocolate’s appearance in delicate white sauces that accompanyfish and the “Combine ourinternalstores of this natural amphetamine with chocolate, and one only heightens that giddy sensation known as love.” From Intercourses: An Aphrodisiac called the food of the gods.” It is an appeal that transcends centu- the consumption ofchocolate. The road to sin apparently was paved with this sweet treat. Casanova, the famed 18th-century ladies’ man, must have wallowed happily onthis road,his belief in chocolate was so stalwart. Twocenturies later, chocolate’s popularity is stronger than ever.In the United States, people ate some3 billion pounds of chocolate — about11.7 pounds per person — and spent $12.5 billion on Hershey's, Cookbook classic Mole Poblano, a Mexican chili sauce thatcontainsbitter chocolate. “It's satisfying,” Love says of chocolate’s enigmatic appeal. “That's whyit’s the Mayan empire, a night at the local brothel was paid with a handful of cacao beans. In the 1600s, church officials decried Aphrodisiac Cookbook(Terrace,$24.95), Chocolate wasthe Viagra of antiquity. The Aztecs and Mayans celebrated the ries andcivilizations. The Aztecs and Mayans were thefirst to appreciate the powersofchocolate, ac- ruler Montezumais said to have con- cording to Martha Hopkins and Randall Lockridge’s book Intercourses: An sumed 50 cups ofthe stuff each day to perform for his harem of 600 women. In harvest of the cacao bean with orgies, Hopkins and Lockridge write. The Aztec Russell Stover and other brands in 1997, the mostrecent figure available from The National Confectioners Association. Chocolate doesn’t have to be avoided, says confessed “chocoholic” and dietitian Ginger Patterson, who on hertravels goes on quests for chocolates. (Patter- son’s best find to date was in Paris.) To the Heart, Via the Stomach, No yaiing =< BY NANCY HOBBS THESALTLAK! ered with luscious sweetened strawberries. can be beneficial in lowering cholesterol. Meanwhile, the combinationsoffats and sugars found in chocolate release serotonin, the feel-good hormone, and phenylethylamine — “the very same molecule that courses through the veins ofone who is in love,” write Hopkins and Lockridge. “Combineour internalstores of this natural amphetamine with chocolate,” they add, “and one only heightens that giddy sensation knownas love.” All that good news doesn’t mean choc- oholics can run amok. Chocolate is rich in calories — about 150 per ounce — and laden with fat — roughly 8 or 9 grams per ounce. As with most things, it should be consumed in moderation, Patterson says. “Alittle bit of chocolate is not harmful to us,” she says. “It’s important for the @ Sweet treats that, and you don’t want to skimp.It's If yaursweetheart, like Claiborne,is a the waysto his or her stomach —which,of course.we all know,is the quickest route to the heart. And though the esteemed food editor didn't suggest low-fat prod: ucts, we found that they work as well as fat products. The creamy mold itself Isn't sweet; the strawberries add W > i) akin to a reverse strawberries Romanoff. A plate of shortbread or other tea cookies is a nice accompaniment. If berries and cream aren't your val- Or, as Jane Snow, food editor for the Akron Beacon Journal suggests, “Nothing says ‘I love you' like setting dinner on fire.” Crepes Suzette is her answer to a flambéed dessert. “Imagine bringing the skillet to the table, applying a match and dazzling your valentine with a suave pyrotechnic display. You could serve Spam sandwiches for the main course andstill walk away a hero,” Snow writes. asa a the mold. In the bow!ofan electric mixer, combinethe cottage cheese, cream cheese and sour cream. Beat until well blended and smooth. Whip heavy cream and fold into the cheese mixture. Spoon the cheese mixture into the mold, smoothing andpacking it firmly. Fold the cheesecloth over the top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Open the cheesecloth andinvert the mold onto the centerof a StrawberrySauce tards, mousses and puddings, this may be InterCourses: An Aphrodisiac” Cookbook, by Martha Hopkins and Randall Lockridge below) Cookbook: 25th Anniversary Edition, has only 2 grams of fat per serving, whether frosting with an airy Seven-Minute Frosting or dusted with powdered sugar. fan of“nursery desserts,” such as cus: ingthe sugar,coffee, Kahliia and * creme de cacoa. Mix well and ~ spoonover the warm cake. ‘cup heavy cream newspaper's food editor, as well as from published during his distinguished Careers Prick holes throughout the cake with a skewer or ice pick. Prepare the topping by combin- Strawberry Sauce (recipe cup sour cream platter. Carefully remove the cheesecloth. Garnish with strawberry sauce and serve with additional strawberry sauce. Serves 10 or more, all now classics three-quarters full. (Save remainingbatter, if there is any, for cupcakes.) Bake 45 to 50 minutes at 350°. After cooling slightly, invert the cake onto a servingplate. * Coeur 4 La Créme 1 cup cottage cheese lcup cream cheese The recipe is one of 1,000 recipes se- four cookbooks bowl. Beat for 4 minutes until smooth. Pour into a greased 10inch tube or Bundt pan until soul. entine’s type, perhaps the low-fat Black Devil's Food Cake is. The recipe, from The New American Heart Association lected ag the best from Claiborne’s food columns in the The New York Times spanning his 40-year career as that Combine the cake mix, oil, pudding mix, eggs, coffee, créme de cacao and Kahlta in a large Prepare a 3-cup mold, preferably heart-shaped, by lining it with letting the edges overlip the rim of BU! Though the late Craig Claiborne was admittemly not a dessert man, he had a delicious way to nurture the heart: a creamy, molded Coeur 4 La Créme, cov- Chocolate contains stearic acid, which \ \: cup sugar, or more to 2 packages(10 ounces taste each) frozen strawberries, or 2 tablespoons framboise, 2 pints (1% pounds) fresh kirsch, mirabelle or other strawberries white liqueur madeof berries Emptydefrostedberries into the containerofa food processor or blender. Or remove stems from fresh berries and rinse well, then put in the containerofa food processoror blender. Add the sugar and blend to a fine purée, Addtheliqueur. Serve chilled in a sauceboat. Makes 24 cups. The Best of Craig Claiborne, Times Books ees ‘Peal Franghton/The Salt Lake’ | v Coeur d La Crome with Strawberry Sauce,- |
