The Art of the Plate: Taste of Charleston

Friday, October 16, 2009

CIC has Big Bite of Taste of Charleston

The 2009 Taste of Charleston kicked off on Friday, October 9th with an Iron Chef Competition in the CIC's Palmer Campus amphitheater. The team of Chef Instructor Kevin Mitchell and Francis Marion Chef/Adjunct Instructor Simon Andrews made a tight win over their competition Chef Nathan Thurston of the Ocean Room at The Sanctuary and Chef Kevin Johnson of Anson.

On Saturday, the CIC hosted two sessions of "Taste of the Kitchen," with beer and food pairing in the morning and wine and food pairing in the afternoon.

And on a

beautiful Sunday, both HCSA and The Baking Club had booths at Boone Hall.

The Post & Courier covered the story:"Chefs to serve up advice on perfect pairings" http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/oct/10/chefs-serve-advice-perfect-pairings/

Monday, October 5, 2009

Chef Mitchell is a Contestant in The Taste of Charleston Iron Chef

The Taste: Iron Chef Competition
Hosted by Greater Charleston Restaurant Association with US Foodservice and the Culinary Institute of Charleston

DATE: Friday, Oct. 9
TIME: 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
LOCATION: 66 Columbus Street
MORE: This event kicks off the 29th annual Taste of Charleston weekend, and will take place at the Culinary Institute of Charleston's Palmer Campus. This year's competitors are: Chef Kevin Mitchell from the Culinary Institute of Charleston and Chef Simon Andrews from the Swamp Fox Restaurant, Francis Marion Hotel vs.Chef Kevin Johnson from Anson Restaurant and Chef Nathan Thurston from The Ocean Room at The Sanctuary.

What We're Reading

“Eating from the Ground Up”

Out just in time for the vegetables appearing at our farmers markets, Alana Chernila’s cookbook focuses on creatively using every root and leaf. While some of the recipes may be familiar concepts – think stuffed tomatoes – hers are packed with millet, basil, and parsley. Fried rice stars salmon, fennel, and Swiss chard stems. Roasted asparagus are sauced with a combo of butter, garlic, nutritional yeast, and tamari. Stone fruit, raw corn kernels, scallions, basil, and jalapeño make a cool salad for hot weather. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC.

"Soul: A Chef's Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes"

“This book is my homage to the cuisine of my family,” Chef Todd Richards writes in his autobiographical collection of essays and recipes. “These are the ingredients of my people. This is my sermon about my Soul food.”

Bringing accolades for his stints at Atlanta’s Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons, James Beard nominations, and, of course, his prowess at Southern cooking, Richards seasons the pot with a powerful bouquet of flavors as he pays his heritage forward. Collards cooked with ham hocks are accented with piquant pickled collard stems. Blueberries are found in fried pies; strawberries are plated with champagne aspic, whipped cream, and honey. Grilled peaches pair with radishes on toast spread with pimiento cheese. Sweet potatoes are layered with cauliflower and crab in a lush gratin.

"Soul food," Richards tells us, "is the original cuisine of the South, born from an involuntary collision of cultures."
Published by Southern Living. $35.