#53: cooking with tea (second edition) - February 2014

The previous cookoff (cooking with booze) made us all nostalgic for the tea cookoff, so we decided to do that one again. This time it was held at Flatland (Laryssa/Hayley/Katie's) on the 17th of February. There were a few new faces, as well as several faces that hadn't been seen in awhile! We all admired the interior overhaul the girls had given the place after Katie moved in, and the wine, beer, & conversation flowed freely.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Amanda: "fuckin' breakfast" earl grey oatmeal with cinnamon-sugared almonds, earl grey poached pear, and sprinkled with lavender

Sarah: "sip it slow and pound it hard" genmai-cha miso broth with fried mochi, bean sprouts, carrots, & green onion

Laryssa: "dragonball tea" green tea-crusted tofu with stir-fried shiitakes & cabbage in a green tea sauce; green onion garnish

Jen: "round robin" coconut curried sweet potato soup with jasmine & lemon ginger teas

Katie: "nutty bush" chai quinoa balls with lemon, garlic, & chili peppers, on a bed of sprouts with green onion & celery

Maddie: "maté chocaroons, or, snapchat has failed me" double chocolate coconut macaroons with yerba maté & sea salt

Hayley G: "ca-CHOO!" matcha & white mulberry tea cashew cheesecake with lavender-infused chocolate and toasted salty sunflower seeds

Nik: "teacups" green tea & coconut butter tarts with a chai-infused graham crust

Katie, Maddie, & Nik competed for the first time. Also in attendance were Selena, Tim D, Dan, Nina, Cera, & Hayley W.

CATEGORIES & WINNERS
seconds: Jen
creativity: Katie
presentation: Amanda
tea-nacity: Amanda/Sarah
overall favourite: Amanda/Laryssa/Jen

overall winner: Amanda

best name: (unscored category) Laryssa

#52: cooking with booze (second edition) - January 2014

Liquor-off the second was held at Ravenclaw House (Malloreigh & Allie's) on the 13th of January. It was one of our biggest, thirteen entries! After a few small ones in a row, it was a little overwhelming; we didn't finish eating until almost 11pm! It was an incredible cookoff, and our five (!!!) year anniversary! It was also the first in a long, long while where everyone who attended was competing.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Anna: "Wiser's cornucopia" mushroom & bean chili with sundried & roasted tomatoes, infused with Wiser's rye whiskey and garnished with chives, sour cream, & 2 kinds of cheese

Malloreigh: "I love cooking with wine; sometimes I even put it in the food!" pea, mint, & cilantro flan with mashed cauliflower & sunchokes, cooked with white wine

Chris: "something something sausage in your mouth" fennel & red wine seitan sausage with pane bianca, homemade pickled onions, and a red wine miso sauce

Jen: "patatas Havanas" Catalana-style patatas bravas (fried potato wedges) tossed in dark Havana rum & crushed chilies, with a white wine aïoli

Sarah: "pockets of realization" gluten-free perogies filled with bourbon-infused coconut bacon and potato, served with an apple cider applesauce

Laryssa: "the stout & unsavoury shepherd" tempeh, mushroom & vegetable pot pie with gravy, made with stout in every element (including the crust)

Kristina: "go home prawns, you're drunk!" whiskey flambé 'prawns' with grits, jalapeño, tamari, & hot sauce garnish

Bronwen: "steak your claim" tofu steak cooked with Bulleit rye, with a whiskey brown sauce, mashed potatoes, and sautéed mushrooms & onions

Alex: "French twist" white wine macadamia nut cheese on crostini, with a shaved vegetable salad and olive oil & lemon balm garnish

Tim: "ice ice beerby" ice creams made with (from left to right) stout, nut brown ale, pale ale, & gluten-free chestnut ale; served with roasted pear & rum-soaked sour cherry

Ash: "roseberry sorbet" raspberry rosé wine sorbet in a sugar cone & garnished with cocoa nibs

Steph: "boozy bourbon baked berry brown betty" blackberries & strawberries soaked in bourbon, with a coconut flour & oat topping

Allie: "royal pink rumpage" royal gala apple crumble with Sailor Jerry spiced rum and oat-pumpkin seed topping, garnished with soy sour cream

Anna, Tim A. & Alex all competed for the first time.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Jen
presentation: Alex
alcoholism (best use of ingredient): Tim
creativity: Jen
overall favourite: Chris/Jen/Bronwen

overall winner: Jen

best name: (unscored category) Tim

Because we didn't have any judges (non-competitors), we ran out of wine pretty quickly and actually went for a liquor store run during the break! That hasn't happened in a long time, & it's pretty ironic that it would happen at an alcohol-themed cookoff.

#51: family recipes - November 2013

Family recipes cookoff was held on the 25th of November, at Ash's lovely new house in Hastings-Sunrise. It was a quiet one, but we sat at the dining room table with our wine and it felt almost like a dinner party.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Jen: "prime time deliverance" seared broccolini on top of penne & vegetables in an almond alfredo sauce

Malloreigh: "don't forgetti the spaghetti" handmade noodles in tomato & herb sauce with 'beef' meatballs

Allie: "corn star parking" creamed corn, saltine cracker, & rice milk casserole

Ash: "mouse" chilled fruit soup with dried apricots, raisins, canned peaches, & cherries with winter spices

Also in attendance was Jeff, who decided not to enter as no one in his family is an especially good cook except himself.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Malloreigh/Ash
presentation: Jen
nostalgia/most immersive*: Malloreigh
creativity: Jen
overall favourite: Malloreigh

overall winner: Jen

best name: (unscored category) Allie/Ash

*this was a difficult category to come up with — as simply put as possible, it was the dish that most made you feel the cook's attachment to & history with it.

#50: pumpkin - October 2013

Pumpkin cookoff was held on the 21st of October, at Blühaus. Although people seemed pretty jazzed about it, there were only three competitors, sadly. Nevertheless we all enjoyed ourselves — we definitely had a beer & wine surplus.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Malloreigh: "I Thai'd Indian'd it" coconut curry with pumpkin, jackfruit, & kale, served over jasmine rice with peas, cinnamon, & cardamom; garnished with coconut flakes & dried cranberries

Jen: "the nutty pumpkin king" baked pumpkin in a dusting of cheese, breadcrumb, & fresh herb; served with a dip of walnuts, pumpkin seeds, dill, & sour cream

Ash: "pumpsicle pie" pumpkin-coconut ice cream pie with coconut caramel sauce

Also in attendance were Jeff, Bronwen, Steph, and Sarah.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Ash
presentation: Jen
pumpkinosity: Jen
creativity: Mal/Ash
overall favourite: Mal
overall winner: Ash

best name: (unscored category) Ash

#49: salsa - September 2013

Salsa-off was held at Bronwen's Mount Pleasant home on the 8th of September. It seems Sunday cookoffs are destined to be the least-attended, but we still had six entries and plenty of wine.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Jen: "rum runner" grilled pineapple, homegrown tomato, romano bean, spiced rum, & cilantro salsa, served with chili powdered corn chips

Allie: "mango tell it on a mountain lion" mango, avocado, red pepper, lime, jalapeño, & cucumber salsa, served with Old El Paso chips

Malloreigh: "Catayumyum" tomato, parsley, almond, red wine, & garlic salbitxada served with grilled asparagus & green onions

Sarah: "salsa refresca" strawberry, cucumber, cilantro, & lime salsa, served with Jen's chips

Bronwen: "this salsa is my jam, yo" tomato, hot pepper, & onion jam, served on cornflour shortbread with coriander

Ash: "Bluebeard berrybutt" blueberry, tomato, & mint salsa, served on a cinnamon & cardamom-dusted corn chip

Also in attendance was Tim A (of Plate Invaders), who wanted to compete but ran out of time.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Jen/Bronwen
presentation: Ash
salsify: (best use of theme) Allie
creativity: Malloreigh/Bronwen
overall favourite: Bronwen

overall winner: Bronwen

best name: (unscored category) Allie/Ash

#48: the threesome - July 2013

Three-ingredient cookoff (aka the threesome) was held at Mal/Allie/Ash's on the 25th of July. Everyone seemed very enthusiastic about the theme, because we had plenty of competitors! Things were a little dessert-heavy — a rarity — but everyone's dishes were wonderfully different and uniquely delicious.

COMPETITORS AND ENTRIES

Malloreigh: "two chicks at the same time" polenta with cashew cream & sautéed wild mushrooms, mushroom & cashew paté, and kettle corn (mushroom, corn, cashew)

Kristina: "all around the world, statues crumble for me" cucumber roll with jicama and fennel slaw, in a roasted fennel ponzu remoulade (cucumber, jicama, fennel)

Jen: "Halloween orange and chimney red" hot sauce-glazed tempeh with cracked pepper and a smokey grilled corn purée (corn, tempeh, hot sauce)

Chris: "ménage à trois, aka fuck the French" peach-vodka sorbet between fried lasagna noodles, with raspberry sauce (peach, raspberry, brown rice)

Jeff: "screw you Ben & Jerry's, why do you make breaking up so hard?" blueberry ice cream cake with an almond crust, topped with blueberry sauce & almond brittle (blueberry, almond, sugar)

Bronwen: "talk tamil to me" coconut ice cream in a lime half, with sweet lime syrup and a tamil curry praline (coconut, lime, curry)

Ash: "express freeze" espresso granita with coconut whipped cream (espresso, coconut, sugar)
[no photo, I am a failure]
Allie: "fuck you Dr. Jasreen Alibi"* chocolate chip soynut butter cookies (chocolate, soybean butter, chickpeas)
*spelling likely incorrect, but this is Allie's allergist, who is forcing her to eliminate all kinds of ridiculous foods.

Allie competed for the first time but could not taste every entry, so didn't vote. Steph also attended but did not compete due to only recently recovering from a three-week-long battle with shingles. Malloreigh competed in absentia, but returned home from work in time to taste all the entries and vote.

CATEGORIES AND WINNERS
seconds: Kristina/Jen
presentation: Bronwen
creativity: Kristina/Jen
best threesome: Malloreigh/Chris
overall favourite: Jeff

overall winner: Kristina

best name: (unscored category) Malloreigh

#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