Chopped

3 Advance to Tomorrow’s Chef Showdown Finale

March 17, 2018 By Lisa Grigsby

For the 3rd year in a row nine of Dayton’s best upcoming Chefs competed in a chopped inspired cook-off as part of The Dayton Home and Outdoor Living Show a the Dayton Convention Center. In the Chef Showdown contestants were given a mystery bag with 4 ingredients, the use of the Whole Foods Pantry and 20 minutes to cook an appetizer to present to the judges panel. They were also given the option to bring a special ingredient of their own to add to the fun. Also on hand to assist with the event, two students from the Ponitz CareerTechnology Center Prostart Culinary Program, Chris and Jasmine, pictured here in the red shirts.

In the 11am round from left to right Chef Aaron Braun from Wheat Penny, first time competitor Chef Jansen Trotman of Lily’s Bistro and Chef Aimee Plesa from Bargo’s were faced with a mystery bag that included: Shell on White Shrimp, Cream of Mushroom, Canned Jack Fruit and Preserve Lemons.

Left to right dishes from:

Aimee Plesa
Secret Ingredient: Warped Wing Beer

Jansen Trotman- secret ingredient n/a

Aaron Braun
Secret Ingredient: Asian BBQ Sauce

Judging Round One- The Big Rabu, Steve Milano, Ann Roberts and Laura Rea who chose to advance to the finals from Round One- Aaron Braun!

In Round 2 Chef Mariah Gahagen from Wheat Penny, defending Champion Maria Walusis from Watermark and newcomer to the Showdown, Chef Timothy Skiber from the UD Marriott’s Dewberry 1850 had the challenge to create a dish with Andouille Sausage, Vanilla Wafers, Bitter melon and Maple syrup.

Pictured here left to right:

Tim Skiber’s dish using a special ingredient lent to him by Chef Maira -bourbon

Chef Maria’s taco’s
special ingredient: spicy pepper jelly

Chef Mariah’s deconstructed gumbo with her special ingredient

Judging this round, Chef Aaron Watson, the new executive chef at the convention Center and foodies Kevin Rankin and Ann Roberts. Moving forward to the finals from Round 2 – Chef Maria Walusis

In round three Chef Jon Mezera from Table 33, Chef Rae Rosbough from Trolley Stop and Chef Crystal Coppock from Wheat Penny opened their bags to find Pork Belly, Blue Berry Granola, Frozen Kale and Rose Water.

Pictured left to right:

Jon Mezera’s eggroll made with his special ingredient black garlic

Rae’s special ingredient were Indian spices

Crystal’s soup made with her special ingredient- Anchovy butter

Round 3 was judged by foodies Ann Roberts, Laura Rea and Kevin Rankin and all 3 judges felt this was the toughest round of the day, but after much deliberation they selected Chef Crystal Coppock to advance to Sunday’s finals.

Sunday’s 1pm final round includes the very same 3 chefs that competed in the finals last year, Braun, Coppock and Walusis. We can’t wait to see who will prevail and walk away with $500 cash and bragging rights for the next year. Tickets to attend the Home and Outdoor Living Show are $10, come on by and cheer on your favorite chef! The Chef Showdown is produced by Planned2Give.

Pictured below, the 2017 Chef Showdown Finals.

Q &A With Food Network’s Ted Allen – In Dayton To Host AIDS Fundraiser

April 17, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

The Food Network host of Chopped, Ted Allen, will return to his home state of Ohio this weekend to host a 3 city fundraiser for the AIDS Resource Center Ohio. In a recent phone interview with Mr Allen, he shared that “Too many peole mistakenly believe that AIDS isn’t anything to talk about anymore. We have too many young people, who didn’t see the deaths in the 80″s and 90’d and don’t know the disaster we’ve lived through.

It’s great that we have medicines and treatments and preventative options but too many of our youth need to realize that HIV is 100% preventable. Meds are expensive and have side affects, this isn’t something you just take a pill for and forget. Almost 1/2 of new infections are 13-24 years old. African American women are hugely impacted by HIV. ” He shared that it’s his honor to serve as the Chair of this statewide fundraiser.

Ted Allen first received national attention as on of the hosts of the 2003-2007 Bravo series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

We asked Ted to tell us about his times on that show:

It was the best times, filled with humor and raunchy rowdy, guys tooling all over town in that convertible. Thom Filicia is one of the funniest guys I know and the worst driver ever. I can’t even believe I’m still alive, he’d be speeding down the road, and telling a story and he’d turn around to look you directly in the eye and I was wearing this fake seatbelt, it’s a miracle we’re all still here.

What an honor it was to be a part of the first tv show ever to have 5 openly gay men being themselves. We’d get hundreds of letters from young gay kids talking about how great it was to be able to watch that show with their parents and laugh. Just getting one such letter would be an honor, but we got so many. We truly were so lucky…

Is it was a burden to be known as a gay role model?

Oh no it’s such a privilege, if we are making any difference, well just look at how times have changed. I am legally married in my state. But we’re not there yet, it’s 2 steps forward and one back – Indiana. Just last night I hosted a benefit for Baily House ( a who serve those who are homeless with HIV+, who and to be able to shine the light on a cause you believe in wholeheartedly, what an honor. And I got to meet Joel Gray and Jane Pauly, what great fringe benefits.

On Chopped we know you see tons of ingredients in those baskets. What would you like in your basket if you were a contestant?

How about just some cheese, eggs, mustard, mayo and lamb chops. I’s so sick of gummy bears and all the weird stuff. Think about it- it’s the hardest show there is. It’s set up for failure. Three of the 4 fail. Who can cook amazing things in 20 minutes when they start out as bone in 3 pound leg of lamb? It’s just hard. And the judges want you to succeed, they want to eat good food!

I asked him if there were any shows that went bad and couldn’t air:

We can’t afford not to complete a show, we work for 12 hours to get one episode. So luckily, knock on wood we haven’t had a disaster that we didn’t overcome..

As for a personal disaster, when I was writing for Chicago Magazine, I was having the Dining Editor Penny Pollack over to my house for brunch. I had made fresh cinnamon rolls and thought I’d leave them in the oven so they’d be warm and just as the doorbell rings I see a pool of butter and cinnamon pooling down the oven door onto my floor and my smoke alarm goes off. Welcome Penny….

Ted hosted another Food Network Show The Best Thing I Ever Ate, so of course we asked about those meals:

I’ve had so many, like at Minbar by Jose Andres, a tiny restaurant with 6 seats and more chefs than seats where they feed you one scrumptious morsel after another…. But I’ve also had a great burger at a neighborhood join in Brooklyn with hand ground beef and a perfectly cooked runny egg on top.

That’s the wonderful thing about food, there are so many great foods and international cuisines, you could have like 900 lifetimes of best meals …

That show was so much fun, I could be more of myself and have fun and go unscripted…

What’s your favorite pig out food?

Pepperoni Pizza= but only with good real peperoni- it it curls up and gets that puddle of grease on it it’s the good stuff – not that flat stuff that lays there

Or macaroni and cheese with kiolbassa- not so good for yo, but oh yum!

What food trend are you over?

Desserts with bacon- can we move on? Don’t get me wrong- I love bacon, but thick cut bacon is a mistake. It’s to hard to make crispy and ends up being chewy. Good bacon should be cooked slowly and served crispy

Food Trucks- it’s confusing. I don’t want to have to chase you all over town for a meal and I want to enjoy my food at a table with a bathroom nearby. I get that it’s a lower cost for some to get into than a bricks and mortar option and I respect that, so I get it.

Who is your celebrity crush?

Oh I’m too old to have one, I don’t know, maybe Neil Patrick Harris. He’s lovely and so is husband, as are their kids.

What else would you like to share?

As much as I enjoy hosting events and getting to meet people, I wish I didn’t have to.

New York City Councilmen Corey Johnson was a speaker on Gala I recently hosted and he has spent most of his life telling the story of coming out as gay in high school, as a captain of the football team. He’s spent his whole adult life talking about being out, gay rights, serving others. As long as we still need things like the Ohio AIDS Walk I’ll be there. It’s a privilege to get to talk to people about a cause I’m passionate about and we need to work together until this is conquered..

We are not done yet!!!

If you’d like to join Ted Allen Sunday, April 19th for the Dayton 5K AIDS Walk, which also has a 1K stroll and a 16 mile bikeride, you can sign up online until Saturday at 5pm, or just register at the even. On Sunday registration begins at 10am at UD River Campus (the old NCR Headquarters) at 1700 S Patterson Blvd. The Walk/Run/Ride steps off about noon. Help raise $1000 and you can join Ted Allen at a Grand Walker brunch at Coco’s Bistro. Check the AIDS Walk site for more info.

Bravo’s Chopped Host Named AIDS Walk Chair

February 18, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

AIDS Resource Center Ohio announced today that the Honorary Chair of their 2015 AIDS Walk/Run/Ride will be Ted Allen, host of the hit primetime Food Network series “Chopped.”

“Chopped” is a cooking competition series that pits four chefs against each other for a chance to win $10,000. Mr. Allen was previously a judge on the first four seasons of Bravo’s “Top Chef” and Food Network’s “Iron Chef of America,” and was the food and wine specialist on the groundbreaking Emmy® Award winning Bravo series “Queer Eye.”

“I am delighted to be named Honorary Chair of AIDS Walk Ohio and look forward to joining the fight against HIV/AIDS in Ohio,” said Mr. Allen. “We need to continue to strive to ensure that people with HIV have access to treatment and services so they can live long, healthy lives. We also need to remain vigilant in working to prevent new HIV infections here in Ohio and across the U.S.”

Off camera, Mr. Allen is a writer and a frequent contributor to Bon Appétit, Epicurious and the Food Network Magazine. Ted won a 2012 James Beard Award for his work hosting “Chopped” the show itself also received a Beard for best in-studio program. He was also a finalist for a National Magazine Award for an Esquire feature on the little-known phenomenon of male breast cancer.

Mr. Allen was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. To help raise pledges for AIDS Walk Ohio, Mr. Allen will join participants who raise $1,000 or more in the Grand Walker Breakfast in Columbus on Saturday, April 18 and the Grand Walker/Grand Rider Brunch in Dayton on Sunday, April 19. Eligible Toledo participants will be able to participate in the Dayton Brunch.

The 2015 AIDS Walk Greater Dayon will take place on Sunday, April 19, 2015 in Dayton. This year’s tri-city walk/run/ride is slated to be the largest HIV/AIDS awareness event in Ohio. The mission of AIDS Walk Greater Dayton is to raise awareness and funds for HIV/AIDS service organizations through education and promotional activities leading up to the event and through the participation of corporations, walkers, runners, riders civic leaders and community members together in this annual event. Dayton AIDS Walk coordinator Jen Dean shared, “the goal for this year’s event is 500 participants and $115,000 in funds for HIV/AIDS services. To register and start fundraising today, please visit www.aidswalkohio.org.

Do You Have What It Takes To Be A “Chopped” Champion?

December 11, 2012 By Lisa Grigsby Leave a Comment

Springboro’s Cook’sWares has just announced they will be hosting a ‘Chopped Challenge‘ this winter, sponsored by Wüsthof Knives. Starting on Saturday afternoon, Jan 26th chefs will compete in a 3 course cook off, preparing an entire meal from a basket of provided ingredients.

Each cook will have access to 4 burners and 1 oven, and they will share the grill. Winners will move on to a second round on February 2nd and winners of that round will move into the finals to be held on Feb 16th. According to Joe Westvall the culinary school director, winners of each round (2) will get a Wusthof meat cleaver personally signed by Harald Wusthof, 7th generation head of Wusthof International. The Grand Prize winner will get a 7 piece Wusthof set also personally signed by Harald Wusthof.

If you think you have what it takes, you can register by calling 937-748-4540. Or perhaps you’d rather sit the judges seat. As ajudge, you will sample all the courses from each chef and vote to determine the winner.

Judging criteria will be provided. Recipes will be made available to you a few days after the class. Judges – register as you would for any class: by phone, on-line, or in person. Each event is limited to 12 judges and it will cost you $40 each to weigh in your vote.

Cooks’ Wares is located at 756 North Main Street in Springboro, just a few doors down from Dorothy Lane Market at Settlers Walk. The Springbooro location has been open for 10 years and besides offering cooking classes, they sell a full array of cooking tools, bakeware, small appliances and cookbooks.