Tournament of Champions All-Star Christmas S01E01 - - video Dailymotion

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00:00:00This year, we're doing something special for the holidays.

00:00:04Combining your favorite competition

00:00:06with your favorite time of year, and turning the TOC Arena

00:00:10into a winner's wonderland.

00:00:16Tis six weeks before Christmas, and all through the land,

00:00:2032 of the world's best chefs are teaming up and taking a stand.

00:00:26They'll battle each other with all kinds of treats.

00:00:30That's his holiday right there, all over it.

00:00:32Because the randomizer demands...

00:00:36They cook one savory and one sweet.

00:00:38The dessert really on point.

00:00:40This is exactly what I'd want served at a holiday table.

00:00:44The judges' comments will be both naughty.

00:00:46It feels a little sloppy.

00:00:47I'm not loving that idea that I'm eating leftovers, quite frankly.

00:00:51And nice.

00:00:52It's one of the best pieces of lamb I've eaten.

00:00:54Incredibly impressive.

00:00:55in a way that you want on your holiday dessert.

00:00:58All right, kiss me.

00:00:59As they check their list and score, each team strikes.

00:01:04Ow!

00:01:05Who will win the title, the trophy,

00:01:08big bucks for a charity of their choice,

00:01:10and the $100,000 grand prize?

00:01:13This is Tournament of Champions All-Star Christmas.

00:01:17Happy holidays!

00:01:25Ladies and gentlemen, happy holidays to everybody, and welcome to our All-Star Christmas Tournament.

00:01:42It's the first ever team versus team competition in the TOC Arena.

00:01:48Would you like to meet our All-Star duos and see who they're competing against?

00:01:57Up first in the A Division, we have our number one seed sensations.

00:02:03I am talking about the two-time TOC champ, Chef Monique Shohan and her partner in crime, Iron Chef Stephanie Izar.

00:02:13Talking about competition, Top Chef, Iron Chef, the OG of competition is right next to me.

00:02:21And then we have Monique, not only has won tournament champions once, but twice.

00:02:27We are the team to beat.

00:02:29Well, they're taking on the number four seed, the Bad Boys, the Dragon Slayer, Chef Kevin Lee,

00:02:35and the award-winning restaurateur, the Boogie Man, Chef Dale Calde.

00:02:40Let's go!

00:02:41Oh, we're going up against them.

00:02:46Chefs, good luck.

00:02:47Thank you, Chef.

00:02:47Next, we have the sweet and savory super duo, number two seed, eight-time James Beard Award winner,

00:02:56and OG TOC judge, I can't believe he's here!

00:03:01The one and only Chef Marcus Samuelson, with his newest executive pastry chef, Rachel Sharif.

00:03:09Every competition that I've charged, I've cooked in, and TOC is no different.

00:03:13It's the holidays, I'm here with Rachel.

00:03:16I'm going to enjoy every second of it.

00:03:18Who are they going to be facing off against?

00:03:20It's the number three seed teammates, two Michelin star chef, Chef Graham Elliott,

00:03:25and his Michelin star friend, Chef Giuseppe Tentori.

00:03:31Pleasure to have you.

00:03:31Good to see you, boss.

00:03:32Let's talk about the B division.

00:03:35The number one seed super squad, the TOC champ, May Day Chef May Lynn, and her good friend,

00:03:44Martini Nini.

00:03:45Chef Nini wins.

00:03:47Who are they going up against?

00:03:51The number four seed, Mr. Delicious Chef Adam Sobel, and the great Hambino Chef Christian Patroni.

00:03:59Sorry, baby.

00:04:03It was nice knowing y'all.

00:04:05Ladies and gentlemen, then there's the number two seed.

00:04:09The powerhouse duo competing together for the first time in a major tournament.

00:04:15The Voltaggio brothers, top chef winner, Chef Michael Voltaggio, and three-time top chef runner-up,

00:04:22Chef Ryan Voltaggio.

00:04:25It took me a second to read the sweaters.

00:04:27And just so you know, this is really the way this is.

00:04:29I have the nice chef, and I have the naughty chef.

00:04:33The sibling rivalry, it's over.

00:04:36We love each other.

00:04:37We do, sometimes.

00:04:38Who are they going to face off against?

00:04:40The number three seed, the incredible Kentucky Culinary Crew.

00:04:43Chopped legend and TOC 6 runner-up, the Duchess of Paducah, Chef Sarah Bradley.

00:04:50And in her first TOC competition, giving up for Chef Damaris Phillips.

00:04:56Christmas and the holidays are about traditions.

00:04:59Sometimes Southern food and Kentucky food is overlooked.

00:05:03This is the time of year when we shine.

00:05:06Let's talk about the seed division.

00:05:08We have the four-time TOC finalist.

00:05:12Oh, he's back, ladies and gentlemen.

00:05:14The Jetster, Chef Jet T-Lot.

00:05:18And the winner of the next great baker, the sugar monster, Chef Ashley Holt.

00:05:25When I heard we were doing All-Star Christmas and it was going to be duos,

00:05:28we got to call on my pastry sister, who's badass.

00:05:32Mo, you know what?

00:05:33We're here together, and we're here to win.

00:05:34Hey, brother.

00:05:35Who are they going up against?

00:05:36They're going toe-to-toe with the number four seed, the team from the Chopped Shop.

00:05:41We have TOC's very first runner-up, Chef AF, Chef Amanda Freytag.

00:05:47And fellow Chopped Judge, the wild man himself, Chef Aaron Sanchez.

00:05:53Oh, no.

00:05:57Dude, I don't want this.

00:05:59No me gusta.

00:06:01I don't want this.

00:06:02Next, we have the dynamite duo, the number two seed team.

00:06:06Three-time TOC finalist, the angry Italian herself, Chef Brett Brissigno.

00:06:13And her teammate, the James Beard Award winner, the Bearded Baller, Chef Jonathan Sawyer.

00:06:23Welcome to the competition.

00:06:24They got a team to go against.

00:06:29The number three seed team, the fearsome friends of TOC 6 finalists, Mama Wong, Chef Leanne Wong,

00:06:37and dessert legend, the sweet assassin, Chef Zach Yum.

00:06:42Oh, good team.

00:06:46This might be the first time they called the pastry chef and said, who do you want to bring?

00:06:51I'm bringing the heavy hitter, Leanne.

00:06:54Like, I am not messing around.

00:06:58The last division.

00:07:00Division D.

00:07:02We're going to start off with the number two seed team.

00:07:06They have the West Coast Dream Team, the unstoppable House of Knives winner, making a gigantic return.

00:07:15The dumpling mafia queen herself, Chef Shirley Chonk.

00:07:20And the legendary James Beard Award-winning pastry chef, the princess of pastry, Chef Sherri Yard.

00:07:36When I first got diagnosed with my tongue cancer last year, Sherri here is one of the first person that I

00:07:43call and text.

00:07:44Because what most folks don't know is that I too was diagnosed with cancer five years ago.

00:07:49Now both of us are in remission.

00:07:52Well, I want to just hand you your warrior trophy of life, because you surely are.

00:07:57You are one of every chef's favorite people that has set an example of what it means to fight.

00:08:09Chef Sherri, you are, without a doubt, one of my favorite people.

00:08:12We're so happy to have you.

00:08:14We have the fighting spirit, and we know how to win.

00:08:18We got this.

00:08:19We got this.

00:08:19Yeah.

00:08:20They're going to take on a mega gnarly number three seed team.

00:08:27We have TOC finalist and Maryland chef of the year.

00:08:32Again, a warrior beyond measure.

00:08:36The one and only, honcho, Chef Tobias Dorzon.

00:08:41And his teammate, the 24 and 24 winner.

00:08:45They call him the wolf for a good reason.

00:08:47Chef Marcel Vigneron.

00:08:53Back in November, a tragic incident happened where me and my girlfriend were out to dinner,

00:08:59and we were gunned down.

00:09:01And I was shot 11 times.

00:09:04Still, you know, blessed to be where I am right now.

00:09:07Went through five surgeries and still on a long journey back.

00:09:11I don't know if you folks know, but our good friend Tobias, they questioned if he was going to walk.

00:09:16And I'll tell you, he's not just walking, but he's here in TOC all-star Christmas.

00:09:25And for the final matchup, ladies and gentlemen, we have the number four seed team,

00:09:29two-time Grocery Games award-winning wine country restaurateur,

00:09:33the general herself, Chef Krista Lutke, and Food Network star, the Spice Queen, Chef Artie Sequeira,

00:09:44on her first TOC debut.

00:09:47One team left.

00:09:55If you look around, there's one chef that we couldn't do this without.

00:09:59And you know who that is?

00:10:00Antonia!

00:10:01That's right, the reigning TOC champ, Princess Warrior, Chef Antonia LaFosso!

00:10:14I wonder who Antonia brought.

00:10:22Oh, yeah.

00:10:23I'll tell you who she brought.

00:10:25Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschili!

00:10:28And that will round it out, folks.

00:10:4332 chefs ready to do battle.

00:10:45Love you.

00:10:46Go get them.

00:10:47Coming in, seeded one, being the most recent winner, everyone is like they're the one to be.

00:10:53The expectation for us is higher.

00:10:55But it's not as high as the expectation we have for ourselves.

00:10:57Correct.

00:10:58So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen, the lineup for Tournament of Champions All-Star Christmas.

00:11:04Now, the fact that you have joined forces as a super duo, the judges are going to expect two

00:11:10holiday dishes from each team in every round. That will mean a savory dish and a sweet dish,

00:11:17because a satisfying holiday entree deserves a festive dessert.

00:11:21The bad news is, just like in the Tournament of Champions, you win, you move on.

00:11:26You lose, you go, well, with a coal in your stocking.

00:11:30And the team that wins the holiday contest, there is a beautiful TOC All-Star Trophy.

00:11:36Thanks to Carnival Cruise Line, we are awarding the winning team $100,000.

00:11:44$100,000!

00:11:46Now, since it's the holidays, we also have some more surprises under the tree.

00:11:50We have golden gifts that go to the highest-scoring teams in the first and second round.

00:11:55And in honor of the season of giving, we will also be giving away another $100,000

00:12:03to charities for the highest-scoring teams along the way.

00:12:10We're kicking things off with one of the biggest battles of the season.

00:12:17It's a marquee showdown between two of TOC's most high-profile finalists,

00:12:22along with their mega-talented teammates,

00:12:27Team Jet and Ashley versus Team Amanda at her own!

00:12:30You guys, to your trailers, goodbye!

00:12:37Chef, thank you so very much!

00:12:43Oh!

00:12:44First!

00:12:45I know.

00:12:46Rip the band-aid off!

00:12:47It's Christmas!

00:12:49Well, you know...

00:12:49Nobody cries on Christmas.

00:12:50No, every... well, yeah, there's tears of joy.

00:12:53Joy.

00:12:53Which we're going to be doing.

00:12:54Joyous holiday.

00:12:55Our first two teams are getting ready to throw down some holiday dishes.

00:13:00First up, we have Chef Jet Tila and Chef Ashley Holt.

00:13:04They are number one seed because, well,

00:13:07Jet is the winningest chef in this arena without a belt.

00:13:11And Ashley, well, she is a baking champion.

00:13:13Dude, I can't believe we're first.

00:13:15I guess there's no time to have nerves, but...

00:13:18First seed and the first to go.

00:13:19Oh!

00:13:20Now you're making me nervous.

00:13:22I asked Ashley Holt, please, please be my partner.

00:13:26We've known each other for quite a long time.

00:13:27She was my producer on the Today Show many years ago.

00:13:29She is one hell of a pastry chef.

00:13:32We're here to make some magic and...

00:13:33Win.

00:13:34And win.

00:13:36Now their opponents, huh, they are Food Network legends.

00:13:40Chef Amanda Freitag and Chef Aron Sanchez.

00:13:43Amanda competed in the first TOC finale,

00:13:46and Aron recently returned to cookie competitions,

00:13:49which explains their number four seed status.

00:13:52We are a team.

00:13:54Yeah.

00:13:54We've cooked together for many years.

00:13:55We know each other's style.

00:13:56We've eaten each other's food.

00:13:58What's going to be our strategy is we're going to share,

00:14:00divide, and conquer.

00:14:01You and I both have a ton of experience in every area of the kitchen.

00:14:05So I'll do something savory, you do something sweet.

00:14:07I do something sweet, you do something savory.

00:14:09So what do you know about Amanda and Aron?

00:14:10They're chopped legends.

00:14:12Fantastic chefs.

00:14:13Absolutely.

00:14:14A tough competition.

00:14:16There's no turning back now.

00:14:17We got this.

00:14:19We got this, sis.

00:14:20It's on.

00:14:21Vamanos.

00:14:23Are you ready for the fight before Christmas?

00:14:28Well, then, let's light it up.

00:14:33Chef Amanda Freitag received multiple glowing reviews

00:14:36from the New York Times as the executive chef

00:14:38before joining CHOP and is the only person

00:14:41to judge every single season.

00:14:47Now, she has won a total of six battles in this arena,

00:14:50and she was the first ever TOC runner-up.

00:14:54Her teammate, Aron Sanchez, is the chef partner of three successful restaurants

00:14:59and was awarded best Latin American restaurant by Time Out New York.

00:15:03Aron has judged both CHOP and MasterChef and defeated Amanda, Jeffrey Zakarian,

00:15:12and Monique Shohan on CHOP all-stars.

00:15:16Give it up for Chef AF and the wild man!

00:15:20Team Amanda and Aron!

00:15:22You two, how long have you known each other?

00:15:3620 years?

00:15:36We came up in New York together, so...

00:15:37It's been about 30.

00:15:38Yeah.

00:15:39You are going to be a dynamic duo.

00:15:40Yeah.

00:15:41Give it up!

00:15:41AF and Aron!

00:15:44Let's meet your opponents.

00:15:47Chef Jet Tila is a master of Asian cuisine,

00:15:50who has opened over 20 restaurants across the U.S.

00:15:53Now, he has an Emmy and a James Beard nomination,

00:15:56who made the final four of Tournament of Champions four years in a row.

00:16:03His teammate, Chef Ashley Holt, is the owner of a luxury cake shop.

00:16:08She's a CHOP champion and beat out 12 other contestants to win Next Great Baker.

00:16:15Give it up for the Jetster and the Sugar Monster, Team Jet and Ashley!

00:16:31Aroan, Ashley, first time in TOC.

00:16:37But you show up with seasoned pros.

00:16:41And you two OGs, you know what time it is?

00:16:43It's time to take it to the randomizer!

00:16:45Let's go!

00:16:49Oy, oy, oy.

00:16:50All right.

00:16:54And look at how we have disguised the randomizer to look friendly.

00:16:58It's so festive.

00:17:00It is festive.

00:17:01Now, as you know, the randomizer will determine the mandatory details of both of your dishes.

00:17:06The mandatory savory item for one dish and the mandatory sweet item for the other dish.

00:17:12And the equipment, the style, and the wild card, which is going to apply to both dishes.

00:17:18Now, doesn't that sound fun?

00:17:19Yeah.

00:17:20Totally.

00:17:21Oh, no.

00:17:22My gift to you is, let's spin the randomizer.

00:17:25Here we go!

00:17:26Savory!

00:17:32Watching this right now.

00:17:34And then you're going to cook it.

00:17:35Oh!

00:17:41Top sirloin, honey crisp apples, metal skewers, poached, and canned pumpkin.

00:17:50How do you skewer canned pumpkin?

00:17:50Oh, what do you do this?

00:17:52Here's a gift, because I'm the giver.

00:17:55You have 35 minutes on the clock, but I'm going to give you two minutes to confer with one another

00:18:00before I start the clock.

00:18:02What are you thinking?

00:18:02Okay, uh, I think I'm going to make a skewer, call it a kebab.

00:18:05Ashley and I have known each other for many years.

00:18:06She is top notch in pastry land, and that's why I'm going to be cooking savory.

00:18:11I'm dying to know what they're saying.

00:18:13Like, what are they thinking?

00:18:14Like, what are we going to do with canned pumpkin?

00:18:16There will be a pumpkin base, poached apples, and marshmallows.

00:18:20Amanda Freitag can make just about any kind of cuisine.

00:18:23She's well-versed in desserts as well.

00:18:25We're going to go relleno.

00:18:26I'm going to start grilling some peppers.

00:18:28Aron is a triple, quadruple threat of cooking.

00:18:32Not only does he have an authentic Mexican background, but he's classically trained.

00:18:36In the diversity of what we do, I think it's going to make us stand out.

00:18:40Three, two, one, go.

00:18:46Well, that got real, real fast.

00:18:51Well, that got real, real fast.

00:18:52This is a terrible randomizer.

00:18:56There's no cohesive, kind of automatic way to go.

00:19:00We're just going to stick with what we're strong at.

00:19:02It might feel most comfortable in sweets.

00:19:05I think I'm going to be sticking in my sweet lane.

00:19:07So, tops are aligned.

00:19:08The mandatory savory item for one dish, not the most tender.

00:19:12Definitely high in the flavor profile.

00:19:13The mandatory sweet item, honey crisp apples, sweet tart flavor.

00:19:17Actually, out of all the apples, it's my favorite.

00:19:19The equipment, the style, and the wild card need to be employed to both dishes.

00:19:24Metal skewers, I can see it in the meat, but in terms of the pastry, no clue.

00:19:28Poaching sirloin, I don't know.

00:19:31Canned pumpkin, this is not seasoned.

00:19:33We call it the wild card because it is.

00:19:35Chef Aron, welcome to TOC holiday.

00:19:38This is fantastic.

00:19:40How you feeling?

00:19:41I'm feeling great.

00:19:42I got the best partner.

00:19:43You sure do.

00:19:43Thanks, guys.

00:19:45So, to help us better understand our team's sweet and savory moves, I'm joined by my own team

00:19:50of culinary commentators.

00:19:52Michelin recommended chef and food authority, the wild card himself, Justin Warner.

00:19:56An award-winning restaurateur and TOC3 champ, the one and only Chef Tiffany Faison.

00:20:01Now, Justin and Tiffany will closely track the preparation of her holiday dishes

00:20:06so they can faithfully present them to the judges during the blind tasting.

00:20:09Are we dividing savory sweet?

00:20:10We're comboing.

00:20:11I'm grinding for chili enogado.

00:20:14Very Christmas holiday Mexican dish.

00:20:16Sure is.

00:20:17And then we're going into a pumpkin apple tart, a little cranberry, a little marshmallow.

00:20:22I like where this is going.

00:20:23I want to help Amanda get a head start on the dessert because, you know,

00:20:27that's going to be the most time consuming.

00:20:29Aron is working on tart shell, so I have to grind that meat right away,

00:20:33and I grab the bacon as well to give it some fat and some flavor.

00:20:37Do you want me to put any onion or garlic or anything through the grinder with this?

00:20:40Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.

00:20:40A little bit of cumin, a little bit of coriander, mama.

00:20:43We've cooked together at his mom's house, at each other's restaurants,

00:20:46spent some time in Mexico together.

00:20:48And we're so like-minded, yeah.

00:20:50This is my hermana, my sister.

00:20:52Tart shell in, tart shell in?

00:20:53Yes, tart shell's in, Chef.

00:20:55Amanda already has that ground sirloin and bacon seasoned mixture for me already done,

00:21:00so I'm grabbing the elements that could potentially go inside that picadillo or that filling.

00:21:04Some grilled red bell peppers, which is where I'm using the actual skewers.

00:21:08I'm also starting to fry the chile poblanos.

00:21:11I used to see Aron Sanchez in there competing.

00:21:14Haven't seen this in a long time.

00:21:15He hasn't missed a beat.

00:21:18Jet, how are you feeling, bud?

00:21:19This randomizer is hard.

00:21:21It is hard.

00:21:22I'm going to be cooking savory, and I love top sirloin.

00:21:26I just didn't like anything else.

00:21:27The combo of skewer, beef, and pumpkin, I was like, where do I go with that?

00:21:32Chef, we're going to see a meatball, a skewer, a colt stuff.

00:21:34We're going to do a skewer.

00:21:35It's going to be more like a kind of a kefta.

00:21:38You know, I'm going to do a kebab on the skewer so they can slide it off and eat.

00:21:41Nice play.

00:21:42Knowing this game, visually seeing a skewer will give us points in the judging.

00:21:46All right, Justin, I am going to poach these skewers in fat garlic butter.

00:21:50Understood.

00:21:51Ash, how are you?

00:21:51Doing good, Jet.

00:21:53You good?

00:21:54Yeah, how about you?

00:21:54Uh, TBD.

00:21:56There's a lot going on at once.

00:21:57Chef, flour, sugar?

00:21:59Flour, sugar, I'm making a fritter batter.

00:22:00What's going to be in that fritter?

00:22:02So I'm roasting some apples, oranges, cinnamon.

00:22:05I'm pulling that up, mix that into like a roasted apple, a seasonal, um, like a harvest fritter.

00:22:10We have a lot of culinary experience on our belt, but we've not cooked together in the kitchen

00:22:16tandem before.

00:22:17I know you can hold your own.

00:22:18I can hold my own.

00:22:19Like, we just got to trust each other.

00:22:20Yeah.

00:22:22Chef, how was your first TOC so far?

00:22:25When I first started my baking business, I would make honey crisp apples every fall.

00:22:30So they were actually the entryway into me being an entrepreneur.

00:22:34With 35 minutes, I know that I can make a delicious fritter that will represent

00:22:38our team in a great way, um, yeah, and be able to fully execute.

00:22:42Teams, 20 minutes left, 20 to go.

00:22:47How are you feeling, Chef?

00:22:48I'm making a pumpkin tart with poached apples and toasty marshmallows on a skewer.

00:22:55Toasted marshmallows on a skewer, good way to use a skewer.

00:22:57I'm using the technique of poaching the apples to sort of check that off the randomizer list.

00:23:01There's still sugar.

00:23:03But I also caramelize and then put them on a skewer, almost like a candied apple.

00:23:07What do we got in here?

00:23:09Pumpkin, cream cheese.

00:23:10Watch out for 10x on your blast.

00:23:12Don't worry about me.

00:23:14Woo!

00:23:14Sorry.

00:23:15Sorry.

00:23:16I think, obviously, for dessert, pumpkin and apple go great for the holidays.

00:23:20And then I wanted a cranberry caramel to give the balance a ooey-gooey pumpkin flavor.

00:23:25Roulette marshmallow with a super sour cranberry.

00:23:30My sauce for the chiles in Nogala, traditionally, it calls for walnuts.

00:23:34And then I decided to use some of that pumpkin puree in there again to kind of marry everything together.

00:23:39Traditional meets the randomizer.

00:23:42Are you stuffing peppers yet?

00:23:43No, I'm going to peel them right now, honey.

00:23:45The best and worst part about Tournament of Champions is one and done.

00:23:49But we are determined.

00:23:50We're also full of heart.

00:23:51And I think that's something that around the holidays is exactly what you need for the win.

00:23:57Absolutely.

00:23:58To not succeed and at least progress to this competition will be an absolute failure.

00:24:04And we're not going to accept that.

00:24:05Chef, what's the score here? What do you got?

00:24:09This is going to be the poached garlic and onion harissa.

00:24:16There it is.

00:24:17Canned pumpkin is my world to make pumpkin pie.

00:24:21Mm-hmm.

00:24:22I've never used it for anything else, so I was very stumped for a few minutes.

00:24:27What's in the pan over here?

00:24:28Cooking down my pumpkin hummus.

00:24:30Pumpkin hummus?

00:24:32Yeah.

00:24:32Excellent.

00:24:33I don't want to savory up my pumpkin hummus with some chicken powder, but it can read salty.

00:24:37I'm going to make an apple mint slaw.

00:24:40To balance out all the salt and umami on the plate.

00:24:43The pumpkin puree, I just need to turn it into a cream.

00:24:47I need to jump into your mixer, okay?

00:24:49We'll whip some cream, add some sugar, vanilla, all the good stuff.

00:24:52Fold in the pumpkin puree.

00:24:53Mascarpone, chef.

00:24:54Correct.

00:24:56Give it a little more body and depth, and it's going to be good.

00:25:00Oh, the fritter, chef.

00:25:01Looking good, chef.

00:25:02Nice, made extra, broke one open, checking all the way through.

00:25:05And I see it's a little underdone inside.

00:25:07I think if I fill it with the cream, it'll kind of help disguise that a little bit.

00:25:11You come into this kitchen, and you've been razor focused.

00:25:15That is amazing.

00:25:17Teams, five minutes left in the competition.

00:25:20Five to be plated.

00:25:21Aaron, you got to hustle.

00:25:23Hustle, hustle.

00:25:23I know.

00:25:24The first thing that I'm getting on this plate is the nogada sauce.

00:25:26It's the canvas, stuffed poblano pepper, pomegranate, a little bit of green, some micro cilantro,

00:25:33and all day long.

00:25:34Fine.

00:25:35I'll go left, you go right.

00:25:36Yeah.

00:25:37I lay my kofta skewer down into that bed of hummus, paint a little bit of the harissa.

00:25:44My God, I'm sweating like crazy.

00:25:46Two minutes, chef.

00:25:47Two to go.

00:25:48Let's go.

00:25:50I'm taking the tart, topping it with some of that pumpkin cream cheese custard.

00:25:54Poached cranberry.

00:25:55This is a little bit of me.

00:25:57This is a little bit of our own.

00:25:58My apples and my marshmallows.

00:26:00I'm a skewer.

00:26:0130 seconds.

00:26:02We have our soft fritter.

00:26:03Dust it with a little bit of powdered sugar.

00:26:05I'm happy that I was able to show up as a pastry chef and have a complete dessert on the plate for my first

00:26:11TOC.

00:26:1210, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

00:26:21We're done.

00:26:22Thank you so much.

00:26:24We'll leave it up to the judges.

00:26:25We will see you soon.

00:26:27Great job.

00:26:29Dude, how was that?

00:26:30First cook.

00:26:30That was insane.

00:26:31Yeah.

00:26:32It is a blur.

00:26:33I'm happy with it.

00:26:34Very much so.

00:26:34Because I think what we did is we were able to invoke Christmas time, the holidays.

00:26:40Sugar monster.

00:26:41Oh my God.

00:26:42The Jets there.

00:26:44Come on, champ.

00:26:46Let's go.

00:26:47I think as a team, we've rocked it.

00:26:50Hark.

00:26:52We have three wise men and women to behold these Christmas dishes

00:26:56and hopefully shower these chefs with praise and points.

00:26:59Let's meet the judges.

00:27:00First, James Beard award-winning chef who has opened some of the most acclaimed restaurants

00:27:05in the country.

00:27:05Who is it?

00:27:06The one and only Chef Michelle Bernstein.

00:27:14Right?

00:27:14I like this.

00:27:15We love her so much.

00:27:17Chef, wonderful to see you.

00:27:19And in the holidays, next we have the Emmy and Jane Beard award winner,

00:27:23named Esquire Magazine's Chef of the Year, Chef Ming Tsai.

00:27:30How are you feeling?

00:27:31He's very technical.

00:27:33And finally, last but not least, celebrated chef and New York Times best-selling author

00:27:37who has opened multiple Michelin-star restaurants, Chef Curtis Stone.

00:27:41Just get on them, buddy.

00:27:42Hey!

00:27:43Curtis!

00:27:44What a great panel.

00:27:46Well, chefs, you are in for it tonight.

00:27:48As you know, we have two chefs cooking for you right now.

00:27:52They had to work with the randomizer, make a sweet and savory dish.

00:27:55In savory, they got the opportunity to work with top sirloin.

00:27:59Ooh.

00:28:00In sweet, the honey crisp apple.

00:28:02They both had to use the equipment of a metal skewer needed to employ poaching.

00:28:06And the wild card ingredient was canned pumpkin.

00:28:09And here, to deliver all that information and more, the one and only chef, Dibbidi Faison.

00:28:18Talk about it.

00:28:19Eat it, eat it.

00:28:20Judges on the right, we'll start with the savory dish.

00:28:23You have chilies on nogada, Christmas style.

00:28:26A roasted babano that is stuffed with your top sirloin, ground with bacon, onion, garlic, and other spices to create a picadillo.

00:28:35Red bell peppers were skewered and grilled and added to the picadillo.

00:28:39On the bottom, the nogado sauce is your canned pumpkin puree, walnuts, and cream cheese.

00:28:46I don't see a lot of nodding.

00:28:48This is good.

00:28:50This is really hard.

00:28:51On the left, your pumpkin and apple tart is a freshly baked tart shell.

00:28:55The filling on top is canned pumpkin, caramelized white chocolate, and cream cheese with the cajeta poached cranberries.

00:29:02Your honey crisp apples, they were poached in a little bit of apple cider, skewered, and roasted.

00:29:07That is then finished with your marshmallows that have been skewered and roasted as well.

00:29:11Oh my god, I'm nervous.

00:29:13Very, very tasty dishes.

00:29:16Yes.

00:29:16Let's start with the savory.

00:29:17I got to learn how to make chilies on nogada in Mexico City.

00:29:20It was so delicious like this, and this chef put tons of flavor in this meat.

00:29:26This second chef obviously has done some pastry.

00:29:29It's a delicious crust.

00:29:31There's butter in the crust.

00:29:32That bite of apple marshmallow filling and cranberries

00:29:35is a perfect holiday bite, so really impressive.

00:29:39You know, it's an interesting rendition of chiles en nogada.

00:29:42My husband's from Oaxaca.

00:29:43I make chiles en nogada also during our holidays.

00:29:46I'm not getting a huge amount of help from the bottom puree.

00:29:51I feel like it could have been just a little bit thinner,

00:29:53but all around it's a really nice bite of food.

00:29:56Ming is right.

00:29:57This tart shell is everything.

00:30:00Like the shell is amazing.

00:30:01It's buttery, right?

00:30:02We left a lot of butter to help.

00:30:03I told you.

00:30:04I'm taking credit for it.

00:30:07I told you.

00:30:08What's interesting is now apple to me is a little bit of the second thought

00:30:13after the tart.

00:30:14That's good.

00:30:14Yeah, that's really good.

00:30:16Come on, Curtis.

00:30:17Come on, Curtis.

00:30:17Look, for me, the chili could have been cooked a little more.

00:30:21It still feels a little crunchy, and maybe just a little more char on it would have given

00:30:26it just a little more depth of flavor, but all in all, very, very tasty dish.

00:30:30Moving on to the dessert, I looked at that and I was like, oh, it's a bit of a mess.

00:30:34When you think about dessert, you want it to be really pretty.

00:30:36Yes.

00:30:37And the apples that have been poached, they're a little soft to go on a skewer,

00:30:40so I'm not sure if it's a great use of the skewer.

00:30:43I'll tell you what, though.

00:30:44What it loses in presentation, it really makes up for in flavor,

00:30:48and the cranberries really bring a brightness to it.

00:30:51Flavor.

00:30:52Eats really deliciously.

00:30:53Okay.

00:30:54All right.

00:30:55Good cop, bad cop.

00:30:56Hope.

00:30:56All right, judges, we have two separate scorecards for you.

00:31:00We are going to score dishes individually.

00:31:01Remember, 50 points maximum for each dish, 25 points for tastes,

00:31:0620 points for the use of the randomizer, and five points for the presentation.

00:31:10I like what they said.

00:31:11I think so, too.

00:31:12And I just like the fact that we committed to an idea.

00:31:15Yep.

00:31:15And we didn't waver.

00:31:16We're just warming up.

00:31:17So here to describe the second team's delicious dishes is the fellow food ambassador,

00:31:21the one and only Justin Warner.

00:31:23Just let me know after it's done.

00:31:25Judges, before you, two plates.

00:31:27The first of which are savory dish for the evening.

00:31:30The top sorelane was ground with garlic, onion, some za'atar, and then skewered to form a kefta.

00:31:36That was then grilled and finished by poaching in butter.

00:31:40For canned pumpkin, judges, you will find that is the hummus beneath the kefta.

00:31:44And then that slaw was done with the apples, snap pea, and a little bit of labneh.

00:31:49Our sweet component, this is a roasted honeycrisp apple fritter,

00:31:53the accompanying pumpkin cream topped with a bit of poached pear relish.

00:31:57For the honeycrisp apple, you will find that grilled and inside of the fritter.

00:32:03Now, those apples were also skewered.

00:32:05The pears were poached in a bit of red wine, some butter and sugar.

00:32:09Come on, come on.

00:32:11I love this fritter.

00:32:12It's really good.

00:32:13In fact, I started with it, and I'm going to finish with it.

00:32:16I told you.

00:32:17I told you.

00:32:18I love how they use the apple component.

00:32:21And I love the use of the canned pumpkin in the whip.

00:32:25I think that's fun.

00:32:27The kefta, the chef did a really good job at spicing it up,

00:32:30but then it's just really salty.

00:32:36She's tough.

00:32:38Good.

00:32:38Chef Ming, disagree.

00:32:40Beautiful-looking, tight plates.

00:32:42You can see the skewer.

00:32:44So, visually, nailed the randomizer really well.

00:32:46Starting with the savory.

00:32:48Mine is well-seasoned, bold.

00:32:49It's not overly too salty for me.

00:32:51Bold.

00:32:51I like that, yeah.

00:32:52It is spicy.

00:32:53I love it.

00:32:54I, too, like Michelle, love these fritters.

00:32:56This pumpkin butter dip is delicious.

00:32:59This is a perfect combo.

00:33:00All right.

00:33:02Yeah.

00:33:03Curtis Stone, what you got for us?

00:33:04Come on, Curtis.

00:33:05Okay, so let's talk about this kefta, because top sirloin, it will be dry, but then they've

00:33:09poached it in butter.

00:33:10And I think that's a very clever way to use poaching, and it's a very clever way to use

00:33:15top sirloin.

00:33:16I'm impressed by it.

00:33:17Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:33:19I love the crunch of the apples and the slaw.

00:33:21I think it works really nicely.

00:33:22The puree is just too salty, sadly.

00:33:26You never hear that with Jet's food, ever, ever.

00:33:30I love the apple and pear combination.

00:33:32They grow together, they go together, right?

00:33:33That pumpkin whip is delicious.

00:33:36This is exactly what I'd want served at a holiday table, so the dessert really on point.

00:33:40Oh my god.

00:33:42Did it make you proud?

00:33:43It made me so proud!

00:33:44You did such a great job!

00:33:46Great judges, uh, scorecards in front of you.

00:33:48Oh, Ash, I'm so sorry.

00:33:50Like, I messed us up on seasoning.

00:33:54He liked it.

00:33:54But gameplay was strong.

00:33:56Yeah.

00:33:56Let me tell you, you can overlook a lot of things.

00:33:59Oversalting is probably the hardest thing.

00:34:02Or overcooking.

00:34:03They love the dessert, though.

00:34:04All right, judges, thank you very much.

00:34:06More competition coming up.

00:34:07You can go either way.

00:34:08You can be surprised, yeah.

00:34:09It's super close.

00:34:09What a crazy first battle.

00:34:11All right, chefs, they're ready for you.

00:34:14Here we go.

00:34:15Let's go find out our fate.

00:34:17Time to face the music.

00:34:20Ladies and gentlemen, the judges have tallied the scores.

00:34:22I have the results.

00:34:23And let's bring our chefs back in, please.

00:34:25Chefs AF, Chef Arone, Chef Jeff, Chef Ashley.

00:34:36I will tell you, both teams, dynamite cooks, you should be very proud.

00:34:39Right?

00:34:40Audience, great job.

00:34:42In savory, one team scored a 39 out of 50.

00:34:48The other team scored a 38.

00:34:51Oh, shoot.

00:34:52Wow.

00:34:53That's so close.

00:34:54Dude.

00:34:54In the suites, one team scored a 40 out of 50, and one team scored a 44 out of 50.

00:35:03Oh, my God.

00:35:05With a total of 79 for one team and 82 for the other, the winner of the premier TOC all-star

00:35:14Christmas battle is...

00:35:22The winner of the premier TOC all-star Christmas battle is...

00:35:26Jet Nashley.

00:35:30Oh, man.

00:35:32Congratulations.

00:35:34Congratulations.

00:35:35Congratulations.

00:35:36It was such an honor.

00:35:40I think that's so beautiful.

00:35:42Thank you very much.

00:35:44I appreciate it.

00:35:44Uh, congratulations, Jet and Ashley.

00:35:47And I think it was a valiant effort, Arone, to see you come and cook, and especially with

00:35:51such a dear friend, and the two of you working together, you did a dynamite job.

00:35:55I'm sorry you're going home.

00:35:56Chef AF, Chef Arone, thank you so much.

00:35:59Thank you very much.

00:36:01I'm so proud of you.

00:36:05I think we did a great job.

00:36:06I think so.

00:36:07I think you're awesome.

00:36:08I just wanted to do that again.

00:36:09Me too, it was so...

00:36:10Yeah, I just wanted to do it.

00:36:11Yeah.

00:36:12I thought...

00:36:12I loved our food.

00:36:14I thought it was great.

00:36:15Wow.

00:36:16Did you think that was yours?

00:36:19I thought I might have heard us on the seasoning.

00:36:23I will tell you this, though.

00:36:24You've won your first round.

00:36:25Congratulations.

00:36:27Chef Asher, Chef Jet.

00:36:28Ashley and Jet, we will see you soon.

00:36:30Congratulations.

00:36:31First round win.

00:36:32Well done.

00:36:36Thank you guys.

00:36:38How do you feel?

00:36:38Your first win, how do you feel?

00:36:40I feel awesome.

00:36:41That's great.

00:36:42First time in the TOC arena, how's it feel?

00:36:44Oh my gosh, that was nuts.

00:36:46Crazy.

00:36:46I wasn't my best cook, straight up.

00:36:48My pastry partner saved my rear end.

00:36:51Are you ready to meet the next two teams?

00:36:55Our number two seed team is celebrated chef,

00:36:58Shirley Chung, and pastry master, Sherry Yar.

00:37:03Now, Shirley is a fierce culinary fighter,

00:37:05while Sherry is a decorated pastry chef.

00:37:08The two are long-time friends,

00:37:10and Sherry recently helped Shirley

00:37:12through a real-life battle.

00:37:13I just recovered from stage four tongue cancer.

00:37:19In the beginning, Shirley is one of the first person

00:37:22that I call and text.

00:37:25I mean, I've been singing on you for the past year,

00:37:27so thank you.

00:37:28You're the only person that I want to come to you with.

00:37:30And I just love you, and I can't wait for us to make memories.

00:37:34Yes.

00:37:35Now, their opponents are the number three seed,

00:37:38team Tobias Dorzon and Chef Marcel Vigneron.

00:37:41Now, Chef Tobias rocketed to the semifinals,

00:37:44his first time on TOC.

00:37:46And after years of culinary competition,

00:37:48Marcel finally has a major tournament win under his belt,

00:37:51and is hungry for his TOC victory.

00:37:54You tie your shoes,

00:37:55that's when you know battle mode right here.

00:37:57Both friends know they're underdogs,

00:37:59but Tobias, well, he has proven that he can overcome anything.

00:38:02A little over a year ago this time,

00:38:05I was in a hospital bed.

00:38:06I was shot 11 times.

00:38:08I was told that possibility of never walking again.

00:38:12So being here with my guy, you know,

00:38:14ready to take on everything that comes our way,

00:38:17it's no better feeling.

00:38:18Thank you for choosing me to be a part of your comeback story.

00:38:21Honored and flattered to be here cooking alongside my boy Tobias.

00:38:25We're just going to take the world by storm, baby.

00:38:27Our goal is always make the most delicious food that possible.

00:38:31Yes. And then we win the same.

00:38:33Okay.

00:38:34Done.

00:38:34Sherry's probably got a leg up on us as pastry.

00:38:37She helped make Wolfgang Puck.

00:38:39You know, she was his pastry chef, you know, for decades.

00:38:43All right, Chefs, they're ready for you.

00:38:44Fabulous.

00:38:47All right, let's do it, Chef.

00:38:49Are you ready for a culinary Christmas miracle?

00:38:54Let's light this up!

00:38:55Chef Tobias has gone from professional athlete to a celebrated executive chef.

00:39:03Named 2024 Chef of the Year by the Maryland Restaurant Association.

00:39:10But Tobias, well, he has proven that he can overcome anything.

00:39:15Chef Marcel Vigneron has worked under world-renowned chefs such as Jose Andres,

00:39:20and his eatery wolf was named one of the top 10 best new restaurants by LA Magazine.

00:39:25He was the runner-up on season two of Top Chef and beat out almost two dozen acclaimed chefs to become

00:39:31the first-ever winner of 24 and 24.

00:39:36Put your hands together for Huncho and the Wolf, team Tobias and Marcel.

00:39:47My brother.

00:39:49My brothers.

00:39:51Gentlemen, it's a pleasure to have you.

00:39:52Congratulations.

00:39:53Thank you for having us.

00:39:53Let's meet their opponents.

00:39:55Now, Chef Shirley Chung opened restaurants in Las Vegas to the likes of Thomas Keller and Jose Andres,

00:40:04before opening her own LA eatery famed for its best-selling dumplings.

00:40:10Now, Sherry Yard was the head pastry chef at Wolfgang Puck worldwide, including Spago and Rainbow Room.

00:40:19Give it up for the Dumpling Mafia Queen and the Princess of Pastry, T. Shirley.

00:40:25And Sherry.

00:40:36You play that music.

00:40:38You should be worried.

00:40:39Audience, are you ready?

00:40:41Teams, let's take it to the randomizer.

00:40:43Right this way.

00:40:48Now, as you know, the randomizer will determine the mandatory details of both of your dishes.

00:40:54Is charcoal a wild card ingredient?

00:40:57Let's get busy.

00:40:58Here we go.

00:40:59Savory.

00:41:06I'm getting greasy looking.

00:41:10Little mix.

00:41:12Strawberries.

00:41:14Box grater.

00:41:15Oh, hey.

00:41:16Blazed in fruitcake.

00:41:19Fruitcake.

00:41:20Fruitcake.

00:41:20Ooh.

00:41:21Ooh.

00:41:22Wow.

00:41:22Ooh.

00:41:23That one's interesting.

00:41:23Okay.

00:41:24What was the last thing you did, Chef Marcel, with a fruitcake?

00:41:27Well, I mean, give it to a friend as a recycled gift.

00:41:29I use it for a doorstop.

00:41:31Paperweight.

00:41:32Yeah.

00:41:32Chefs, you have 35 minutes to cook, but I'm going to give you two minutes before we start the clock

00:41:37to confer as a team.

00:41:39Little neck clams.

00:41:40Are we taking them out and braving them?

00:41:42Tobias is going to do savory.

00:41:44I'm going to do sweet.

00:41:45But at the same time, we're still a team, right?

00:41:48So we're going to bounce ideas off each other.

00:41:50So I'm going to do a soy paste, spicy, little night clam.

00:41:56I have a reputation.

00:41:57I don't like to bake.

00:41:59So my best friends are always paste sushi.

00:42:02Okay.

00:42:02Strawberry.

00:42:03Three, two, one, and you can begin.

00:42:07And they're off.

00:42:13The biggest challenge is actually combining all of the stuff together.

00:42:17It's many things we can do with strawberries to make a dessert.

00:42:20Different ways we can cook clams, but how are we going to incorporate a pre-made fruitcake with clams?

00:42:30And they're off.

00:42:30Little neck clams.

00:42:31They're sweet.

00:42:32They're small.

00:42:33They're delicious.

00:42:34Strawberries, you know that the flavor is just next level.

00:42:37When they've had a chance to really ripen on the vine.

00:42:39Box grater.

00:42:40Everybody knows the box grater for grating cheese, but it's got a zester on it.

00:42:43Glazing gives you this nice translucent coating that goes on the outside.

00:42:47Fruitcake is the weird one.

00:42:49So this is studded with dried fruits and nuts.

00:42:52This should probably be the hinge pin to the competition.

00:42:55Fruitcake, fruitcake, fruitcake!

00:42:58You guys known each other for a while?

00:43:00Yeah, we met on Guy's Grocery Games, I think it was, many, many moons ago.

00:43:04I know Marcel from previous battles.

00:43:06And I like to battle with the best.

00:43:08If I'm ever going to have to team up with somebody, I want to team up with somebody just as good is not better than me.

00:43:13You guys were not the Christmas coupling I had on my bingo card.

00:43:17I'm thrilled to see you guys here together, but surprise.

00:43:20Oh, we're like the yin and yang.

00:43:21He's got big muscles.

00:43:22I don't have muscles.

00:43:24I'm fast.

00:43:25He's a little bit slower right now.

00:43:26So we just like, we fill in each other's gaps.

00:43:29What's the plan?

00:43:29Like a play on Clams Casino.

00:43:32We'll put a little bit of Mexican chorizo in the clams once we open them up.

00:43:36Okay.

00:43:36There's a crumble.

00:43:38You know, I like people to come early on Christmas dinner.

00:43:41Clams Casino is something that you can offer as an hors d'oeuvre.

00:43:45I want them to open up in a nice broth.

00:43:48I'm getting fish sauce to add to my seafood stock.

00:43:52Let's see if this top works.

00:43:54Wow, what do you have now?

00:43:55I'm going to make a fish brittle.

00:43:58What?

00:43:59Like a glaze, butter and sugar.

00:44:01Butter and sugar.

00:44:02Make my caramel first.

00:44:04I wanted to have a salty but sweet glaze.

00:44:10Smell that fish sauce.

00:44:11Woo!

00:44:11My sauce?

00:44:12Yes.

00:44:13Go, Chef.

00:44:14I'm thinking strawberry ice cream, Chef.

00:44:15Okay.

00:44:16It's a big risk.

00:44:17You're dealing with time, temperature.

00:44:19This kitchen is hot.

00:44:20What up?

00:44:21You got strawberries?

00:44:21Strawberry.

00:44:22You got strawberries in there?

00:44:23Strawberries in there.

00:44:23Corn syrup, milk, cream, sugar.

00:44:26Dry milk powder.

00:44:27And I blend my strawberries, but I want more strawberry flavor.

00:44:31So I actually threw in like half a jar of strawberry jam into my ice cream base.

00:44:36Talk to me about fruitcake.

00:44:37That's actually really good, that fruitcake.

00:44:39I ended up throwing the fruitcake in the blender.

00:44:43Chef, you want to taste the base?

00:44:45Sure.

00:44:47It's a little fruitcake-y.

00:44:48You taste the strawberry, right?

00:44:49I do.

00:44:50Chef, when you have a plan, lay it on me.

00:44:57I'm going to do a spicy sweet filet, steamed little like the clams.

00:45:03I'm going to use box craters to do all my aromatics.

00:45:08So garlic, ginger, onion, micropane.

00:45:11Got it.

00:45:12Ooh!

00:45:12During my recovery, I never really stopped cooking.

00:45:17But from my radiation and chemo, it showed my taste.

00:45:22The first thing that came back was sugar.

00:45:24And then all the aromatic I can taste.

00:45:27But one thing I love the most, which is salt and savory, it came back to my palate the last.

00:45:33So I really have to watch out for that.

00:45:35Crazy enough, Chef?

00:45:37Yep.

00:45:37Beautiful.

00:45:38I have fruitcake now.

00:45:39That is a dense fruitcake.

00:45:41It is.

00:45:42Yeah.

00:45:43It's a perfect sweet and sticky component that going to tone down my salt.

00:45:48How are you putting this in with the clams?

00:45:49So I'm going to make a fruitcake crumble on top, like a breadcrumb crumble.

00:45:55But also fruitcake going into fruitcakes.

00:45:58Fruitcake soy sauce, relays.

00:46:02When was the last time you had fruitcake, Chef?

00:46:04Actually, I like fruitcakes.

00:46:07You like fruitcake?

00:46:08Yeah.

00:46:09Growing up in China, that my grandma traveled the world.

00:46:13Something that she brought back during Christmas was fruitcake from America.

00:46:17That's why I like fruitcake.

00:46:20Cherry fruitcake crumble for us.

00:46:23Four minutes.

00:46:25Gary and I will be cooking together for function, for friends.

00:46:30But this is actually the first time that we're cooking side by side in a competition environment.

00:46:35I really have a feeling that me and you together, we're going to win this.

00:46:40Okay, good.

00:46:40Chef, I'm seeing the sugar and corn syrup.

00:46:43I'm seeing the dairy items on the side.

00:46:44Are we going to see a caramel here?

00:46:46Yeah, caramel all going well.

00:46:48We'll have a Christmas morning Pompardieu, otherwise known as French toast.

00:46:52I'm familiar, Chef.

00:46:53I'm liking it.

00:46:54We'll be beautiful together.

00:46:56As the butter is browning, I put up a pot with milk and heavy cream.

00:47:00Buck's greater, buck's greater.

00:47:02And I'm going to grab all my ingredients that are going to add flavor.

00:47:05Orange, the lemon, and ginger.

00:47:07What's the difference between Pompardieu and regular French toast?

00:47:11What you charge on the menu, Chef.

00:47:13You got it.

00:47:13So rumor has it there's some chefs out there that might be a little intimidated that I'm here.

00:47:18Look at me, little old me.

00:47:20That said, I have been baking for so many years and I've done everything from ice cream to sugar sculptures.

00:47:26Gorgeous, happy.

00:47:29A dessert in a short period of time?

00:47:31I don't know, we'll have to see whether or not I can pull that off too.

00:47:34Less than 20 minutes to go.

00:47:37What do they do with the fruitcake?

00:47:38This is like the nastiest thing ever in life.

00:47:41I know at Clamp Casino, you finish it off with, most of the time, breadcrumbs,

00:47:47but you can use the fruitcake and some garlic.

00:47:50Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

00:47:52Mm-hmm.

00:47:54Breadcrumbs and fruitcake and garlic.

00:47:58Yeah, that old famous combination.

00:48:00Box grated salad, chef?

00:48:01Mm-hmm.

00:48:02I made a fennel and green onion, little salad.

00:48:04So when you're eating the clams and you're getting the fish caramel, you can have fennel to clean off your palate.

00:48:12How's it looking, chef?

00:48:13Great.

00:48:14Looks perfect.

00:48:15Yeah, it looks great.

00:48:16Really nice texture.

00:48:17You got that Sherry Yard on the other side.

00:48:19Yeah.

00:48:20Sherry Yard is one of the best pastry chefs in the country, if not the world.

00:48:25And Shirley Chung, she's beaten me on Tournament of Champions before, so I know she's good.

00:48:30The strength of Shirley just to be back in competition.

00:48:32I already know that it's going to be a dogfight.

00:48:34We got love for every single chef here.

00:48:37You know what I mean?

00:48:37All of them, but...

00:48:39I want to get them home to their families faster.

00:48:42As soon as that clock starts, it's a competition.

00:48:44Ice cream's made, chef.

00:48:45I love that, baby.

00:48:46Marcel grabbing liquid nitrogen?

00:48:49Are you serious?

00:48:50What's the game plan, bud?

00:48:51Um, you know, I'm going to freeze some stuff and make some delicious treats.

00:48:54I got to do some box grading, right?

00:48:56So we freeze the strawberries in liquid nitrogen.

00:48:58I start grading, and it's like this, like, strawberry dust.

00:49:03So pretty cool.

00:49:05Pretty cool.

00:49:05And I was like, that works.

00:49:06That'll be a nice little garnish for on top, I think.

00:49:08We're checking off boxes, right?

00:49:10And now we got strawberries.

00:49:11Now we've got to do some glaze.

00:49:13I'm trying to make this caramel, get that super thick, really sticky.

00:49:18Let's play with the caramel.

00:49:19Getting it to a nice, glazy consistency that I want.

00:49:22For me, strawberries, caramel, it's a match made in heaven.

00:49:26Did he just take the strawberries into caramel and make...

00:49:29Sure did.

00:49:29Glaze them.

00:49:30Twelve and a half minutes.

00:49:31Twelve and a half to go.

00:49:33Now the timer is coming down.

00:49:35I really need to see my clams.

00:49:37De-glaze the pan with sake, and then the fruit cakes

00:49:41that's coming out of the oven.

00:49:43Yep, that's it.

00:49:43Breadcrumbs.

00:49:44Breadcrumbs, olive oil, salt, pepper,

00:49:48cheesecake, caramel in this.

00:49:50Got it.

00:49:50This is the first time I'm combining these two items together,

00:49:54but it might not be the last time.

00:49:56Five minutes, teams.

00:49:58Five to be plated.

00:49:59Five to go.

00:50:00Strawberries, where are strawberries?

00:50:02Come and play.

00:50:03I'm on strawberry sauce.

00:50:04They're being grated.

00:50:05I use the box grater again.

00:50:07They both use the grater so much.

00:50:09And put that sauce on the burner so it can reduce down.

00:50:13They're fresh in there, and heavy cream.

00:50:16When it came to glaze as a pastry chef, I was thrilled.

00:50:21Blazing.

00:50:22Blazing.

00:50:23How many minutes?

00:50:25Three.

00:50:26Three.

00:50:29Pop, let me hide you.

00:50:30I'm excited to be able to step back into tournament champion stage again.

00:50:35Oh, goodness.

00:50:35After everything.

00:50:36That's worth celebrating.

00:50:38Yes.

00:50:38I believe 30 times 2.0 is stronger and better.

00:50:42I have my strawberries all around the outside room.

00:50:49Fruitcake caramel on the bottom.

00:50:51Grab the Palm Purdue.

00:50:53Glaze the strawberries.

00:50:56It was a Christmas miracle.

00:50:5990 seconds.

00:51:00I'll get some of the glaze on the bottom.

00:51:02Last Christmas, you know, I wasn't walking.

00:51:05So being back in the kitchen, being amongst other phenomenal chefs.

00:51:09I feel blessed to be where I am right now.

00:51:11I'm just here to celebrate the holidays with the good people.

00:51:14One minute.

00:51:16Maybe two scoops, eh?

00:51:18I take my pre-chilled glasses and do a couple scoops of ice cream.

00:51:23I've got my glazed strawberry.

00:51:25And then I'll play around with all my other stuff that I want to sprinkle on top.

00:51:29Five, four, three, two, one.

00:51:34We're done, chef. Stop working.

00:51:40Both teams performed incredibly.

00:51:43Where you came up with that in your imagination, I don't know, but job well done.

00:51:51All right, let's bring in the judges.

00:51:55Wow, man.

00:51:55I think you did okay.

00:51:57I mean, for having never worked together before, I mean...

00:52:00That was like magic, baby.

00:52:01Good job.

00:52:02And your plate looked beautiful.

00:52:04Really beautiful, right?

00:52:05Ugh.

00:52:07Ugh.

00:52:08Whew.

00:52:10Whew.

00:52:14All right, folks, let's welcome back our judges.

00:52:17The one and only Chef Michelle Bernstein.

00:52:19Oh, Michelle Bernstein.

00:52:21She's going to be fast.

00:52:22She's going to be a really good judge.

00:52:23Chef thinks I...

00:52:25Oh, my God, man.

00:52:26Chef Curtis Stone.

00:52:27Wow, thank Curtis.

00:52:30Wow.

00:52:31And they've got great palates.

00:52:32Yes.

00:52:32Great judges.

00:52:33Judges, for the second battle tonight, the randomizer gave out the holiday gifts with

00:52:38little neck clams for the savory, strawberries for the sweet, box grater for equipment,

00:52:44the style was glazed, and who doesn't think about fruitcake?

00:52:48I try never to eat fruitcake ever.

00:52:50They're like, great, clams and fruitcake.

00:52:54Mmm.

00:52:54Judges, we'll begin with the savory portion of the dish.

00:53:00First up, we have sake-steamed clams with a soy glaze, and then, of course, a fruitcake

00:53:06breadcrumbs on top.

00:53:07For our sweet dish, we have Christmas pan-perdue.

00:53:10The strawberries were run through the box grater.

00:53:13Accompanying that, some toasted fruitcake, you have the glazed strawberry at the top,

00:53:17and then the pan-perdue itself, which was gently torched with a little sugar at the end of the cook.

00:53:22I love little neck clams.

00:53:24The clams are nice and tender.

00:53:25The glaze is a great glaze, a cultured spoon.

00:53:29It's incredibly thick, maybe just a little too intense.

00:53:32It reduced a little bit too much.

00:53:35I love the use, just like the Italians do, the breadcrumbs on pastas, on clams.

00:53:40Really smart use for the fruitcake.

00:53:41They're a really well-thought-out dish.

00:53:43Yay!

00:53:44The clams are really nice, not too chewy, but the soy glaze is definitely way too salty.

00:53:50I feel like if they would have just stopped a little short,

00:53:53maybe add a touch of fat in there to soften up the flavors.

00:53:57I only got three clams. I'm a big guy.

00:53:59You know, like, this is just a little snack for me.

00:54:01Maybe a couple more clams would have been nice.

00:54:04But if you didn't tell me they had to use fruitcake in it, I'd still like the dish.

00:54:07I'd be like, that's actually really good, and I like it.

00:54:10The pan-perdue.

00:54:11The strawberries get to really sing.

00:54:13They're bright. There's a lot of butter in there.

00:54:15There's a lot of richness and flavor, the right amount of sweetness.

00:54:18The crust that they have on that with the sugar, they did a beautiful job with that.

00:54:24I know that they were working on a glaze as well with the strawberries,

00:54:26and I think they could have been a little shinier, a little glazier.

00:54:29However, I love that it's not too sweet.

00:54:31And again, the fruitcake was fun.

00:54:33It was fun to have the nuts and the dried fruit in there to have more texture.

00:54:38The fruitcake in both dishes was not a negative.

00:54:41It actually helped the dish a little bit.

00:54:42That was a good teamwork.

00:54:47Yeah.

00:54:47Two scorecards there, 50 points each, 25 points available in taste, 20 points in the use of the

00:54:54randomizer, and five points for presentation.

00:54:56A little over-reduced with the soy, a little salty.

00:55:00That makes me feel a little bit more confident.

00:55:04Judges will begin with Clams Christmas Casino.

00:55:08The little neck clams were popped open in a seafood stock, then stuffed with a chorizo and

00:55:13butter glaze, and a fruitcake, breadcrumb, and garlic stuffing.

00:55:18It was then finished with a box-grated salad of fennel, scallion, and lemon zest.

00:55:24Not to be outdone by clams, we have strawberry fruitcake ice cream.

00:55:28The strawberries on the side, they were glazed with a creamy caramel glaze.

00:55:31In addition to that, we had strawberries that were treated to liquid nitrogen and then grated on the top.

00:55:37A little gift of Christmas sprinkles.

00:55:40All right, ice cream's melting, let's go, let's get the show on the road.

00:55:43Pork and clams, I think, is one of the best combinations, better than peanut butter and jelly

00:55:47or peanut butter and bacon.

00:55:48Fennel, so necessary, cuts through all the fat, gives that a little anise quality.

00:55:53If you read this on a menu, you'd just get up and walk out of the restaurant because you'd be like,

00:55:56fruitcake, clams, and chorizo, no, thank you.

00:55:59It works.

00:56:00It's really, really clever.

00:56:02This chef or chefs have got real refinement to what they've done.

00:56:08The glaze is really nice because it's a really good balance.

00:56:11It has the flavor of the clam.

00:56:13Then it also has a delicate sweetness to it, which is not obnoxious.

00:56:16But the dessert is really sweet.

00:56:21But I love the frozen strawberry because it cuts through a bit of the sweetness.

00:56:24I do agree with Michelle, the dessert is sweet, but it's dessert.

00:56:28And it's a really well-made 35 minutes, a strawberry ice cream.

00:56:34I mean, hats off to this chef.

00:56:37That frozen strawberry gives you a really nice, interesting balance.

00:56:40Of course, it's not as sweet as the ice cream, so some more of that might have been nice.

00:56:44But the triumph here is this clam dish.

00:56:47This is wonderful.

00:56:49Look how hard these chefs are competing, and they're competing as teams.

00:56:52I'm having fun.

00:56:53Two dishes to score 50 points each.

00:56:56I think if we get this first W, we'll turn it into an M for some momentum, baby.

00:57:03I'm all in.

00:57:04Like, I heard everything.

00:57:05It's just a different thought process in my mind right now.

00:57:08Just being able to just be here.

00:57:09Oh.

00:57:10Thanks for having me on your team, chef.

00:57:11Come on, man.

00:57:13Woo!

00:57:15Anybody's game?

00:57:16It is okay.

00:57:19Ladies and gentlemen, I have the scores.

00:57:20Let's bring the teams back in.

00:57:23Chef Tobias.

00:57:24Chef Marcel.

00:57:25Chef Shirley and Chef Sherry.

00:57:30Well done.

00:57:30What a challenge.

00:57:34And here are the scores.

00:57:35In the savory category, for one dish, 39.

00:57:38The other dish, 45.

00:57:39In the sweet dish category, the judges scored it 40 for one dish and 40 for the second dish.

00:57:50For a total of 79 to 85.

00:57:54The winner of the all-star Christmas battle between Team Shirley and Sherry and Team Tobias and Marcel is...

00:58:03The winner of the all-star Christmas battle is...

00:58:06Tobias and Marcel.

00:58:13Congratulations.

00:58:20Well done.

00:58:22Well done, well done.

00:58:23Chef Shirley, Chef Sherry, you both worked with purpose.

00:58:27Both such warriors, cancer survivors, out here battling tonight.

00:58:31It's been a real pleasure.

00:58:32Ladies, thank you very much.

00:58:33Thank you so much.

00:58:34Chef Sherry, Chef Shirley, thank you.

00:58:39It's fine.

00:58:40Okay.

00:58:41You've been by my side for the past one year.

00:58:45Giving me all this advice.

00:58:47So be my support.

00:58:48So I'm so happy that we'll be able to do this.

00:58:50Yeah, we just made another memory, right?

00:58:52Yeah.

00:58:52We didn't know if we were ever going to see you in the kitchen again.

00:58:55Or competition.

00:58:56Or even see you.

00:58:57Yeah.

00:58:58The biggest thing from my accident, it taught me that living your moment.

00:59:03Like enjoy every moment because you never know when it's your last.

00:59:07But you just won, my friend.

00:59:09Yeah, yeah.

00:59:10Congratulations.

00:59:12You just won the first round.

00:59:16Here we go.

00:59:21Come on now.

00:59:24Congratulations.

00:59:24The comeback king over here, brother.

00:59:26The comeback kid, baby.

00:59:28I love it.

00:59:28That's the dream work.

00:59:29I guess we're in round two.

00:59:30Yes.

00:59:31Ladies and gentlemen, did we deliver two fantastic rounds of competition.

00:59:37And the main event will deliver.

00:59:40Let's meet our all-star duo.

00:59:42From our A division, we have the number one seated team.

00:59:46The powerhouse duo of TOC reigning champ, the one and only Antonia Lofaso.

00:59:53And Alex Gornashelli.

00:59:55Hi, Antonia.

00:59:56Chef Alex.

00:59:57Are we ready?

00:59:58Are you ready?

00:59:59He'll be up against restaurateur Krista Ludke and Food Network star Artie Sequeira.

01:00:04Can you believe this?

01:00:06Both of them have won guys grocery games, but Krista has yet to get a win in the TOC arena.

01:00:12Oh my gosh, look at the tinsel.

01:00:16And Artie, well, she's a TOC first timer, which is why they are seated number four.

01:00:21This is the team that everyone feared, right?

01:00:24And we get them round one.

01:00:25I mean, you got to get through them anyway, so we might as well get it over with.

01:00:27Well, rip off the bandit.

01:00:28Imagine how everyone's going to feel when we beat them.

01:00:31Right.

01:00:31Then they'll be scared.

01:00:32Anybody can talk about food and that is like, it is the great connector.

01:00:35But I think when I realized that Krista valued her faith and that's something that is really important

01:00:40to me, you and I are connected on this very deep, sacred level.

01:00:45I've just always felt connected.

01:00:47You bring huge, big, bold flavors, which is amazing.

01:00:49And I think together, our combination of me being able to multitask, it's a dream team.

01:00:54Your great strength is that you've won this entire competition and you're an amazing cook.

01:00:59I appreciate that sentiment.

01:01:01I am still a ball of Christmas nerves.

01:01:05You and I met on Chopped a hundred years ago.

01:01:07You were my judge, right? And it went from you being my judge, to my mentor, to my friend.

01:01:13We've actually never cooked together before.

01:01:15So this is like a, this is like a first and I'm excited about it.

01:01:19Me too.

01:01:19All right, let's do it.

01:01:21All right, chefs, they're ready for you.

01:01:22Oh!

01:01:23Let's do it.

01:01:26Are you ready for the final culinary snowball fight of the night?

01:01:31It looks like this, uh,

01:01:33Chef Chris Bellucci is a celebrated wine country chef who has won the Michelin Bibb Gourmand two years in a row.

01:01:44She's an eight-time Triple G winner, but has yet to score a victory in the TOC arena.

01:01:48Chef Artie Sequeira is a super popular Food Network judge known for her expertise in both sweet and savory cooking.

01:02:00Who's won Chopped All-Stars and season six of the Food Network Star.

01:02:07Give it up for the contender and the Spice Queen, team Krista and Artie.

01:02:13All right, let's do it.

01:02:15Woo!

01:02:16Let's go!

01:02:18Wow!

01:02:18Woo!

01:02:19Woo!

01:02:20Woo!

01:02:21Woo!

01:02:21What?

01:02:22General, awesome to have you.

01:02:24Now you have gained superpower forces with the one and only, the Spice Queen herself.

01:02:29Ready to crush it.

01:02:30I have to say good luck to you because your opponents,

01:02:37after a 10-year stint at Wolfgang Puck Spago,

01:02:39Chef Antonia Lofaso started her own SoCal restaurant empire,

01:02:45which include the Michelin-recommended Dama, one of my faves.

01:02:49And earlier this year, she beat out 31 acclaimed chefs to become the TOC reigning champion.

01:03:01ICAG.

01:03:02Also known as Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli, an acclaimed author and a legendary chop judge.

01:03:13She has defeated some of the best chefs in the country as an Iron Chef and the star of Alex

01:03:19vs. America.

01:03:21Please give it up for the Princess Warrior and ICAG, Team Antonia and Alex!

01:03:27Congratulations, champ, and welcome back.

01:03:38Thank you, Chef.

01:03:39Kate, nice to see you here competing.

01:03:41We're super uptight and I'm going to make desserts.

01:03:43Yeah.

01:03:45Teams, are you ready?

01:03:46Oh, yeah.

01:03:47Let's take it to the randomizer right this way.

01:03:49Woo-hoo!

01:03:54Without further ado, in the big finale tonight, here we go.

01:03:57Come on, come on, come on.

01:04:03Here we go, here we go, here we go.

01:04:07Chicken, thigh, pork.

01:04:09Nope.

01:04:09Chicken.

01:04:10No, no, no.

01:04:10Whole chicken.

01:04:11No.

01:04:12Navel oranges, toaster, peppery, and chestnuts.

01:04:19I think I don't like it.

01:04:2035 minutes on the clock to make this savory dish and this sweet dish.

01:04:24I'm now going to give you two minutes before I start the clock and let you confer together

01:04:28as a team, and your clock starts now.

01:04:30Good luck.

01:04:31What are you doing?

01:04:32All right, so I'm going to do fried chicken, mashed potato.

01:04:36Our whole plan has just been like, you do desserts and I do savory.

01:04:39I'm going to make an orange ice cream.

01:04:41Okay.

01:04:41I'm thinking I'm going to do little mini bundt cakes.

01:04:43Okay, so you do sweet.

01:04:44Orange zest, and yes, I'm going to go sweet all the way.

01:04:46If you're good with that.

01:04:47Yeah, great.

01:04:48I mean, I haven't had a TOC win yet in this arena, but it's going to be a Christmas miracle.

01:04:52We are bringing home the win, right?

01:04:54I love it.

01:04:55Three, two, one.

01:04:56Go.

01:05:02This underdog team, Kristen, and Artie can pull this out, but these two seasoned warriors,

01:05:07ICAG and Antonia, I mean, they have got so many competitions under their belt.

01:05:12This is going to be a tough one.

01:05:13A tough one for the underdogs.

01:05:17One of the things I think about holidays that we often forget is there's a spiritual component

01:05:23about it.

01:05:23Yeah.

01:05:23And both of us have a very deep spiritual connection.

01:05:26I have admired Krista.

01:05:28Don't tell her though, right?

01:05:29I'm right here.

01:05:31But Krista has a real heart of service.

01:05:34We've done a ton of fundraisers together.

01:05:36Krista will do the jobs that nobody else wants to do, and she will do them without applause,

01:05:40without recognition.

01:05:42She will do it just because it needs to be done.

01:05:44I am truly honored to be Krista's wingman today.

01:05:47You're the best.

01:05:48You got a good game plan?

01:05:50I'm doing a schnitzel with like a peppercorn milk gravy with a cardamom,

01:05:56and I'm doing a sweet potato puree.

01:05:58Chestnuts are going in this puree, and I'll actually try to put some in the dredge as well.

01:06:02Got it.

01:06:03It's very quiet in the house for Christmas.

01:06:05Not even a mouse.

01:06:07Not even a mouse.

01:06:08Whoa, it's about to smell like burnt Christmas in here.

01:06:11Are we toasting rosemary?

01:06:12We are toasting some rosemary.

01:06:14What's the plan?

01:06:15Vanilla.

01:06:15Cake.

01:06:16I can put orange zest in the cake.

01:06:18I can put my chestnuts in the cake.

01:06:20Like, so cake to me is like instantly where I go.

01:06:23Like, little beautiful bun cakes.

01:06:25They look like leaves.

01:06:26And now I just have to execute it.

01:06:28Pastry, like, is something that I tend to shy away from.

01:06:32Like, I don't want to measure things.

01:06:34But I've been like honing and practicing.

01:06:37And you've been getting my photos of my late night baked treats.

01:06:40My wife is very happy.

01:06:42She's like, please promise that you will keep baking after this competition.

01:06:47Watch out, everybody.

01:06:49Where's the rest of the...

01:06:50Oh, did you buzz it?

01:06:51Yes, it's in your thing.

01:06:52Oh, you are...

01:06:53I got you.

01:06:54I love you.

01:06:55And that's what the holidays are all about.

01:06:57Did you prep chestnuts?

01:06:59They're in your dredge.

01:07:00Station symbiosis, A+.

01:07:02Chestnuts ground on Christmas Station using that and both her cake batter and then also

01:07:07handed it right to Artie for the batter for her schnitzel.

01:07:09Cake batter?

01:07:10Yes.

01:07:10Little bunk cakes.

01:07:12Because nothing says Christmas like little bunk cakes.

01:07:14Wow.

01:07:15Cake cake.

01:07:15First time to use here.

01:07:17Yes.

01:07:17Talk about bragging rights, though, if we took down Antonia and Alec.

01:07:21Oh, my gosh.

01:07:22All right, teams.

01:07:23We have 25 minutes left in the competition.

01:07:26Krista is an incredible chef.

01:07:29It's the holidays.

01:07:30And this dish, I think, could go from the deepest parts of her soul.

01:07:34I don't count anyone out.

01:07:36I think they're both great cooks, and I think they came in here a little bit more uninhibited,

01:07:39a little bit more free, and driven to beat us.

01:07:42Justin, long time no see.

01:07:43Indeed.

01:07:44I'm doing fried chicken.

01:07:47Breaking down chicken.

01:07:48I mean, do I want to do it?

01:07:49No, but I do it pretty quickly.

01:07:50Like, I had two chickens broken down in, like, less than two minutes.

01:07:54Maybe three.

01:07:55Like four, but all right.

01:07:56Just two minutes.

01:07:57What's the preparation on the chicken, chef?

01:07:59Fried.

01:08:00Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, chestnut gravy.

01:08:02And chestnut gravy?

01:08:04Yes, sir.

01:08:04Like that?

01:08:05She took some extra parts there and is rendering them out.

01:08:08So she's making a stock over there?

01:08:09Yeah.

01:08:11Cornstarch and AP?

01:08:12Cornstarch and AP.

01:08:13Got it.

01:08:13What was the yellow color?

01:08:14Mustard.

01:08:15I could smell that mustard cooking.

01:08:17That's crazy.

01:08:18I'm gonna make a dessert that has oranges and chestnuts in it and nothing else.

01:08:21I'm gonna make an orange ice cream sandwich.

01:08:25I started making the ice cream base, basically a neutral vanilla base,

01:08:28and I added a ton of orange zest.

01:08:30And I threw that into the ice cream machine and I thought,

01:08:32I'm feeling pretty good.

01:08:33I roast my chestnuts, I boiled them to soften them,

01:08:36and then added amaretto and cooked that down with cream.

01:08:40Who tastes this?

01:08:43It's chestnut caramel.

01:08:45It's delicious.

01:08:46Those chestnuts were perfect for puree.

01:08:50Chestnuts work so good in dairy.

01:08:52Boiling them in cream, softening them, and for me, I was like gravy.

01:08:56This dish, the chestnuts actually drove the train.

01:09:00I look at the toaster and I think that I'm gonna do the most obvious thing on the planet on purpose,

01:09:07and that is make toast.

01:09:08I thought, you know, I need to add some sweetness.

01:09:10Chef, you toasted the oranges.

01:09:12I did not, Justin.

01:09:13See what I did there?

01:09:14I just toasted the bread and then rolled it in caramel.

01:09:16Do you like that?

01:09:16Oh wow, I thought they were oranges.

01:09:18No, that's toast.

01:09:19A little trompe l'oeil.

01:09:20It just looks to me like holiday, like caramel, like a candy.

01:09:23Do you have salt over there, Alex?

01:09:24Take it.

01:09:25Here.

01:09:26Round one, keep it simple.

01:09:27Four things, tops, and be done with it.

01:09:30I agree.

01:09:31Antonia?

01:09:32Yes?

01:09:33How are we?

01:09:33Great.

01:09:34All right, teams, we have 20 minutes left.

01:09:3920 left in the competition.

01:09:42Yeah, thank you.

01:09:45Merry Christmas, you filthy animals.

01:09:50Pepper is the king of spices, and cardamom is the queen of spices.

01:09:56I'm thinking of this dish as almost like the day after Christmas, like you've done

01:09:59all of your cooking for Christmas Day and Christmas morning, and you need a break and you deserve

01:10:04one, sister, so you go get yourself some fried chicken and some gravy and some mashed potatoes.

01:10:08And a Bundt cake.

01:10:12What part of the chicken are we going to use, Chef?

01:10:13Thigh.

01:10:14Thigh?

01:10:14Okay, save the neck for me, Clark.

01:10:16With this short amount of time, I have to fry this protein.

01:10:22And so if I'm doing fried chicken, I instantly think of gravy, and that's a great place to put.

01:10:27A lot of pepper, and because black pepper gravy is a thing.

01:10:31Black pepper-roo rockin', we love that for a gravy.

01:10:35I just remember with holidays, my family always making like some beautiful, lovely sweet, right?

01:10:40And there was always like, like a royal icing or yummy frosting.

01:10:44So the cream is like heavy cream steeped with this rosemary that I put in the toaster,

01:10:49the orange peel, pink peppercorns in the cream, and then like let it rip.

01:10:54I want it to be like snow, like a ski slope, like just falling down this warm Bundt cake.

01:11:00Which is again, perfect for the holidays.

01:11:02Yeah.

01:11:04Antonia and Alex, I mean like the most feared competitors in the competition, right?

01:11:08Yeah.

01:11:09But we're, we're scrappy.

01:11:12Every time I think, oh, I'm not going to finish this.

01:11:15I'm not going to get it done either.

01:11:16How could I even possibly build a dredge?

01:11:18Oh, Chris is building the dredge.

01:11:20Okay, great.

01:11:20They also have a fire in the station, but we're good.

01:11:25Do I want to put any of it in your gravy and just let it hang out for a minute?

01:11:28Sounds great.

01:11:34I'm like, oh, the sweet potatoes.

01:11:35Maybe I just need to mix it.

01:11:37No way they'll get cooked it.

01:11:38Okay, uh, Krista has them and they're in the food processor.

01:11:41Okay.

01:11:41It was like you were in my head.

01:11:44Yeah.

01:11:44Well, and I can't believe you did all of that.

01:11:47And then you baked a freaking butt cake.

01:11:51There it is.

01:11:55When the chicken floats, it's ready.

01:11:58What are we doing with the potato chef?

01:11:59That's the mash?

01:11:59That's my mash.

01:12:00I'm really wanting to make Robochon potatoes.

01:12:03Is that heavy cream chef?

01:12:04That is heavy cream.

01:12:05It's TOC.

01:12:06So I always kind of like go for it.

01:12:07The first medium was using the ricer and then going to the Tammy.

01:12:11That's where she just gets the best mashed potato you'll find.

01:12:14I've done enough TOC to know that gameplay matters.

01:12:16And when you see something on the board like whole chicken,

01:12:20that means giblets.

01:12:21It means liver.

01:12:22It's the whole chicken for a reason.

01:12:24Just that chicken liver gravy.

01:12:26Yes, chef.

01:12:26Got it?

01:12:26Got it.

01:12:27For me, peppery is not driving the bus.

01:12:30I don't want the dish to be overwhelmingly like pepper.

01:12:33Toasting the peppers.

01:12:35This needs to be sort of pepper adjacent.

01:12:37So using a little bit of like Korean pepper,

01:12:40using a little bit of Aleppo pepper, using black pepper,

01:12:43and then using actual physical peppers.

01:12:45Chopped them, added some acidity to them.

01:12:47A little bit of white balsamic, a little bit of red wine bin.

01:12:49You know, when you eat fried chicken,

01:12:50you want a little bit of that relief.

01:12:52We are in the final 10 minutes.

01:12:5410 minutes to go.

01:12:55You good, Alex?

01:12:58My ice cream is butter.

01:13:00I go to check my ice cream and it's like a little liquidy.

01:13:02Like I can't make a scoop for the sandwich and I know it.

01:13:04Okay.

01:13:07Okay.

01:13:08The margins are so slim on TOC.

01:13:10The wind can be by one point.

01:13:12It can be by a sliver.

01:13:13Am I allowed to use the other ice cream machine?

01:13:15I'm like, you know what?

01:13:16I'm going to lose this whole thing with this product.

01:13:18I go and grab orange juice and I mix corn syrup, water, sugar.

01:13:23The rest of the base I save creamsicle.

01:13:25I think the ice cream might be loose.

01:13:27I think we're going for like more of a sherbet-y sort of ice cream-y

01:13:30creamsicle, if you will.

01:13:31Which I think is actually a more identifiable use of the navel orange.

01:13:35You good, Alex?

01:13:36I just made an orange creamsicle ice cream

01:13:38and the other ice cream machine.

01:13:39Okay, great.

01:13:41It works, it works.

01:13:42Pink peppercorns.

01:13:43I buzzed the pink peppercorns in the blender

01:13:46and then I just mixed it with a little sugar

01:13:48and I'm thinking snow, pink peppercorns, Christmas.

01:13:50Chef, the pink peppercorns, where have they gone?

01:13:52Well, not yet, but black pepper's going in my chestnut caramel.

01:13:55Understood.

01:13:56And then pink peppercorns are going to go on my sorbet if it ever happens.

01:14:00Christmas is about believing what you see.

01:14:04Fair enough.

01:14:05Three minutes, three to go.

01:14:06To plate, I start with a beautiful little mound of that sweet potato puree

01:14:12and then I nestle the chicken right on top.

01:14:14I finish with a good amount of gravy.

01:14:17Biggest concern for me is, did I do enough?

01:14:21Did I use the orange enough, right?

01:14:23Did I use the pepper enough?

01:14:25I know I put the chestnuts in there, but, you know,

01:14:27could I have done them another way?

01:14:29Is this plate big enough to take out giants?

01:14:32Two minutes, Chef.

01:14:33I feel like I really nailed the randomizer and nailed the challenge.

01:14:38The potato puree is, like, so luscious.

01:14:40Then all of a sudden, the gravy sat down next to it, like, fried chicken

01:14:44and a little pepper chow chow.

01:14:45This is great.

01:14:46One minute.

01:14:48Chef, are you Supreming?

01:14:49I'm Supremes.

01:14:51I go get my caramel dip toasted bread, chestnut puree.

01:14:54I go get my sherbet out of the ice cream machine and it's, like, passable.

01:14:58Second ice cream.

01:14:58I made butter, so I pivoted and made creamsicle.

01:15:01Chestnut caramel sauce.

01:15:0330 seconds.

01:15:04Put the pink peppercorn sugar on top of my sorbet.

01:15:06This?

01:15:06All of it.

01:15:07Use all of it.

01:15:07It's red, it's green, it's gold.

01:15:09It looks like the holidays.

01:15:11Five, four, three, two, one.

01:15:15Chef!

01:15:21Thank you so much.

01:15:22We're gonna send you back to your trailers.

01:15:24You get to watch the judging.

01:15:26Let's bring the judges out right now.

01:15:28Great job.

01:15:30We did say on a chicken wing and a prayer.

01:15:34We did okay.

01:15:35Yeah, I think we did okay.

01:15:36I like fried chicken, chestnuts, chicken liver.

01:15:38It's gonna be up to the judges.

01:15:39Yeah, a hundred percent.

01:15:41All right, ladies and gentlemen, for their final round,

01:15:44let's welcome back our judges, the one and only Chef Michelle Bernstein.

01:15:47Michelle's awesome.

01:15:48She's a technician.

01:15:50Chef Bing Sy.

01:15:52He's tough, he's tough.

01:15:53And Chef Curtis Stone.

01:15:57Heavy hitters.

01:15:58I love Curtis Stone.

01:15:59Curtis is awesome.

01:16:00These are really good, great judges.

01:16:02Now be nice.

01:16:04Tonight, the randomizer served up for this final round.

01:16:07A whole chicken, navel orange.

01:16:10Equipment was a toaster, peppery and chestnuts.

01:16:14You're here to present the first dish.

01:16:16Take it away, Chef Tiffany.

01:16:17Judges.

01:16:18On the right, this is chestnut coated crispy chicken.

01:16:21This is on a rustic puree of buttered chestnut and sweet potato.

01:16:25Green and black cardamom and the black pepper were toasted into a roux,

01:16:28creating the whole chicken gravy.

01:16:30Because nothing says Christmas like a Bundt cake.

01:16:33This Bundt cake was constructed by first toasting orange zest and also buzzing out chestnuts.

01:16:38The cream was steeped in toaster roasted rosemary and a little bit of orange peel and pink peppercorn.

01:16:43Then finished again with black pepper and fresh orange.

01:16:46Did you breathe during any of that?

01:16:48I didn't.

01:16:50It's how I talk to my family at Christmas and then I'm out.

01:16:52I'm happy right now.

01:16:55What?

01:16:55This is fun.

01:16:56We have the chestnut, which makes a really great crunchy texture on this chicken.

01:17:02I'd love a little more pepper in this because I want to be like, right?

01:17:06With pepper.

01:17:07There's pepper everywhere.

01:17:08This is a crispy cake.

01:17:10It has that lovely orange flavor for the holidays.

01:17:13What a great southern treat.

01:17:15Yeah, that's right, Michelle.

01:17:16Brilliant.

01:17:17I look at this plate of food and instantly I think of the holidays, right?

01:17:20You've got the green, you've got the bright orange.

01:17:23I do get different hits of peppery note.

01:17:25As much as I appreciate the chestnut in the crumb, a little more would have been something.

01:17:30I'm sure.

01:17:31I can't believe they got this cake done in the amount of time that we gave them.

01:17:35The moistness of the cake is right there.

01:17:37I don't get a lot of pepper and I don't get a lot of orange.

01:17:40What?

01:17:41Um, that's good.

01:17:43No one's searching for the orange in your cake.

01:17:44Both the dishes perfectly executed.

01:17:48Yes.

01:17:49The chicken, moist, super crunchy.

01:17:52I wish there were glazed chestnuts on the plate.

01:17:55Agreed.

01:17:56But again, perfectly cooked chicken and a perfectly baked dessert.

01:17:59Uh, let's go to the scorecards.

01:18:02You knocked it out of the park, girl.

01:18:04Thank you, but we still have to beat them.

01:18:07All right, here to present the second team's dish is the one and only wild card,

01:18:12Justin Warner.

01:18:13With Jack Frost nipping at my nose, I present the next round of dishes.

01:18:17First up, we have fried chicken with mashed potatoes and chestnut gravy.

01:18:22Off to the side is a sort of chow chow.

01:18:23You will see chilies, fresnos, and serranos.

01:18:26All of those were toasted in the toaster.

01:18:29No matter what the result, I'm proud of you.

01:18:30Moving on to the sweet side, we have an orange and pink peppercorn ice cream sandwich

01:18:35with a chestnut caramel.

01:18:37You'll find the black pepper in the caramel as well.

01:18:41Delicious, right?

01:18:43I love this gravy.

01:18:45Even though livers are so strong, you taste the chestnut because of that incorporation.

01:18:50I like how they toasted all those chilies, those peppers, and make a little relish.

01:18:54Peppery chicken dish.

01:18:55I want to be really spicy right now in my mouth, and it's not quite there.

01:19:00We're happy about this.

01:19:01Yes, it's not your dish.

01:19:06This dessert.

01:19:07Loves it.

01:19:0835 minutes.

01:19:09This chef, whoever you are, he or she, this is a delicious dessert.

01:19:13You mered it.

01:19:14Orange, orange, orange.

01:19:15I love seeing Supremes.

01:19:16I think this is a huge hit, this dessert.

01:19:20You get it.

01:19:21You did.

01:19:23I am impressed with this chestnut liver sauce.

01:19:26It's beautiful.

01:19:27I was just telling Ming on the way here that moving over to the pastry,

01:19:33it would have been nice to see them actually bake something.

01:19:36It could use a little bit more spike in citrus.

01:19:40And the pepper is fun, but I need a little bit more pepper.

01:19:43There's literally a dusting of pink peppercorns all over the top.

01:19:47We're giving them a run for that money.

01:19:48Yeah, 100%.

01:19:49Fried chicken is not easy to get right.

01:19:51In fact, it's quite difficult.

01:19:53This is super crispy, and it's perfectly juicy.

01:19:55Over here on the dessert side, if you're gonna call it an ice cream sandwich,

01:19:59you gotta eat it like a sandwich.

01:20:00And it did.

01:20:01Of course, when something's frozen, it inhibits the flavor.

01:20:03And the same goes for orange, right?

01:20:05If you want this to be really orangey, you probably gotta reduce it down.

01:20:08But for the most part, it's absolutely delicious.

01:20:10They're hard.

01:20:11Yeah.

01:20:12Fantastic.

01:20:12Thank you, judges.

01:20:14Scorecards are in front of you.

01:20:15I don't think we won.

01:20:16Really?

01:20:18No.

01:20:18And I think you better start to wrap your head around that.

01:20:20I don't want to wrap my head around that.

01:20:21Can we just wait?

01:20:23We can.

01:20:23I think it's a lot closer than I thought it would be.

01:20:27You know what I mean?

01:20:28Chefs, thank you very much.

01:20:30Michelle Bernstein, Ming Tsai, Curtis Stone.

01:20:33Job well done.

01:20:34I mean, we could.

01:20:35We could.

01:20:36I want to win it so bad, though.

01:20:37It's time to tally up the scores and bring the chefs back in.

01:20:40Chefs, scores are in.

01:20:42They're ready for you.

01:20:43Thank you for doing this with me.

01:20:44Thank you for doing this.

01:20:44You were the best.

01:20:45Okay.

01:20:46Come on.

01:20:47Big round of applause.

01:20:49Krista Lundke, Artie Sequoia.

01:20:53Alex Bronichelli and Tony Lofaso.

01:21:03The scores are in from the judges, and here they are.

01:21:06One team scored a 40 out of 50 points in savory and a 39 out of 50 in sweet for a score of 79.

01:21:17The other team scored a 40 out of 50 in savory and a 39 out of 50.

01:21:25There was a tie.

01:21:28First off, let's just hug it out here real quick.

01:21:31So when we come to this type of tie, whichever team would have a higher taste score would win.

01:21:39There was a tie in the taste of sweet.

01:21:43Therefore, the deciding factor will be the score of taste in savory.

01:21:53I wish both teams best luck.

01:21:57The difference in savory was half of a point.

01:22:00The winner of the battle between team Antonia and Alex versus team Krista and Artie is...

01:22:19Antonia and Alex!

01:22:28You gotta say, it's not a win tonight, but that's about as photo finish as it can come.

01:22:38We feel like we won.

01:22:41Chef Krista, Chef Artie, great first round.

01:22:44Go get him, guys.

01:22:45Bye, everybody!

01:22:48Merry Christmas!

01:22:54I'm me.

01:22:56Like, if we were gonna lose, there's no better way to lose.

01:22:59Yeah, seriously.

01:23:00Seriously.

01:23:01Congratulations, you've won the first round.

01:23:04Let's go ahead and take a look.

01:23:09Going up against Tobias and Marcel, who earlier took down Shirley and Sherry.

01:23:15We saw that.

01:23:16A lot more first round competition that's gotta happen before we get into the second round.

01:23:20But I'll tell you what, you're one step closer to being the champs.

01:23:22Congratulations.

01:23:24Chef Alex, Chef Antonia, well done.

01:23:26First round win!

01:23:27Barely, close the door.

01:23:33We're not going back out there for a while.

01:23:35We are leaving before they change the score.

01:23:37We are leaving before they change their mind.

01:23:38So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen.

01:23:40But we still have 10 more powerhouse duos who are anxious as a couple of kids at Christmas

01:23:46morning for their holiday quests to begin.

01:23:48You've got to join us next time when six more teams step into the arena in hope, hope, hopes

01:23:54of becoming the $100,000 Christmas winners.

01:23:58Adios.

Tournament of Champions All-Star Christmas S01E01 -

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