#47: fusion (second edition) - June 2013

Fusion-off the second was held on the patio of Chris & Kristina's lovely basement suite in Capitol Hill, making it the first cookoff to be held outside of Vancouver proper. It was a perfectly delightful summer evening and we were quite content to spend it outside drinking and eating ourselves silly.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES
Bronwen: "Charlie don't eat bacon" coconut BLT in a rice paper wrap with cilantro, served with a soy-peanut sauce (North American-Vietnamese)

Jen: "the Onion Knight of Gibraltar" ajo blanco (chilled garlic & almond soup) with green grapes & olive oil, served with an onion-kale bhaji (Spanish-Indian)

Steph: "Russian to Bangkok" broiled red pepper stuffed with coconut red curry vegetables (Russian-Thai)

Malloreigh: "unlikely axis" rice paper lasagna with shiitake mushrooms, nori, and Japanese eggplant (Italian-Japanese)

Chris: "with every bite, you let the Commies win" lettuce wrap with smoked tofu fried in ginger sesame oil, jicama jalapeño cucumber slaw, and five-spice mustard (Cuban-Chinese)

Kristina: "perogokonomiyaki" potato & cheese perogy fried with a chanterelle & cabbage pancake, topped with okonomi sauce & vegenaise (Ukranian-Japanese)

Also in attendance were Jeff Z, Sarah, Liang, Ash, and Alex.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Bronwen/Malloreigh
presentation: Jen
best concept: Chris/Malloreigh
best execution: Chris
overall favourite: Chris

overall winner: Chris

best name: (unscored category) Chris

#46: appetizers & cocktails (third edition) - May 2013

We made an executive decision that appetizer & 1oz cocktail cookoff is so much fun that should be a yearly event, so the third installment was held at Blühaus on the 26th of May. We had yet again only four competitors, and although we'd changed the date from the previous Sunday so that a couple of people could attend, they ended up sadly not being able to attend this Sunday, either. Nevertheless the food was impeccable and we all had a lovely time getting afternoon drunk in our fancy clothes.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Malloreigh: "rosemary paté" (must be sung to the tune of "Raspberry Beret") sunflower seed & mushroom paté topped with rosemary and toasted walnuts, gluten-free crackers for dipping; served with a rosemary grapefruit gimlet (gin & lime cordial)

Jen: "a greyhound stole my peanut sauce!" portobello mushroom satay with an herb-ginger peanut sauce; served with a ginger-rosemary Greyhound (gin & pink grapefruit juice)

Ash: "beet 'n' bloody" beet tartare with horseradish aioli & capers on a tempura onion slice; served with a pomegranate Bloody Mary (vodka & tomato juice)

Chris: "afternoon tea?" vanilla sponge cake with cucumber, strawberries, and peaches; served with a peach-almond iced tea mixed with bourbon & strawberry beer

Also in attendance were Steph & Kristina. Later on when George came home he tasted what was left and joined us for a quick round of Cards Against Humanity.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Mal/Jen/Ash
presentation: Ash
best appetizer: Jen
best drink: Mal/Jen/Chris
best pairing: Chris

overall winner: Chris

best name: (unscored category) Jen

Mal's drinks

Jen's drinks