Iron Chef Challenger: Citrus

[snack_pack85]

I am considering entering the Food Network Magazines (and Iron Chef) Citrus Challenge. I was wondering if anyone else is going to enter and if you have any ideas for a winning dish.

I want to stay away from salads because that seems too easy to be the winner. I'd like to make one savory dish and one unique dessert (citrus tiramisu is on the top of my list).

I had some good ideas for the last challenge (maple syrup) but never entered .

 

[tannerodell]

Is the challenge over??? I saw that to and it really intrigued me. I just can't enter any of the cool contests since I'm so young.

 

[Big Shot]

Is the challenge over???

Nope, you have till the 1st of March to enter

I just can't enter any of the cool contests since I'm so young.

Nice to see young people interested in cooking, my son started to enjoy it when he was around 5, he's 10 now and still wants to be a chef when he grows up.

Edit to add: By the way nice website

 

[Lynan]

Snack_Pack....good on you for entering this contest. Wonderful to see young ones full of enthusiasm for getting behind a stove and doing it!! And best of luck to you too!

My personal thoughts.....Tiramisu with citrus does not sound good Im afraid. It would need another name altogether as Tiramisu is a coffee/savoiardi based dessert and coffee and citrus just wont work IMO. The combo of citrus with marscapone, sponge fingers etc is fine, think of other things that may combine well and rename and rework your dessert. Caramel/toffee goes well with oranges for eg.

Anyone thinking of entering wont be sharing their ideas Im sure...

Have fun and let us know ( an idea anyway) of what you come up with.

 

[FWishbringer]

I got started when I was 5... my grandmother had tried teaching my mother (oldest girl daughter) and then tried teaching the rest of her kids... none wanted to learn how to really cook.

I was the kid that liked helping, and turned out I had a knack for it... at age 7 I came up with my own recipe for peanut butter cookies (though I've seen the recipe a few places now... 22 years later)

the recipe I came up with so so long ago...

Peanut Butter Cookies
1c creamy peanut butter
1c sugar
1 egg

1. preheat over to 350
2. mix ingredients
3. form into balls and place on waxed cookie sheet
4. dip a fork in an extra bowl of sugar and press twice into each ball forming a hatch pattern, and making into cookie shape
5. bake until bottom of cookies begins to turn brown (pick a corner one and check with spatula... about 5 to 7 minutes)
6. once beginning to brown, remove and slide wax paper off pan to cool
7. allow to cool before eating, they hold together once cooled

To keep this from being a total hijack post....

tiramisu (coffee) + orange does not sound good. I've tried many ways to mix orange with coffee.. and it really doesn't turn out well without masking it. Small amounts of orange with allspice/mace/nutmeg is a great way to make an xmas coffee, but really orange and coffee is bad idea.

Perhaps doing a 'mixed up' version of a pineapple upside down cake (by mixed up, think creatively... its just a thought)... how about something like using a tortilla, adding a bit of glaze, and filling with sweetened mango and orange served as a garnish in an orange flavored ice cream? Could keep the orange flavor very mellow in the ice cream, and the 'stick' could have food-processed 'pulp' for nice flavorful kick. If you cooked with by spreading the end out and deep frying the end so its crispy, its a short term, edible spoon!

 

[GuaranteedGF]

I'm planning on entering the contest too, but I'm not sure what I want to enter since I have another citrus contest I'm also entering.

I wouldn't dismiss orange and coffee as a total no-no -- orange zest twists are often served with demitasse.

Keep in mind that each variety of orange has a different flavor profile and even where a variety is grown influences taste; thus they combine with other flavors to produce uniquely different results. Example - blood oranges and navel oranges are both "oranges" but they are not interchangeable! The type of coffee matters also - be specific in your recipe. If your using blood oranges say so, if your using a specific roast made a certain way write in your recipe so the flavor profile you decided upon can be reproduced.

Experiment with as many different types of oranges you can get your hands on. Try using all the different parts (juice, flesh, rind) and try as many different cooking techniques before you decide if something works or not.

Here is link I found for a coffee recipe similar to what I was thinking about that when I wrote this post:

http://www.coffee-statistics.com/coffee_recipes2.html

Good Luck!!

 

[babetoo]

I'm planning on entering the contest too, but I'm not sure what I want to enter since I have another citrus contest I'm also entering.

I wouldn't dismiss orange and coffee as a total no-no -- orange zest twists are often served with demitasse.

Keep in mind that each variety of orange has a different flavor profile and even where a variety is grown influences taste; thus they combine with other flavors to produce uniquely different results. Example - blood oranges and navel oranges are both "oranges" but they are not interchangeable! The type of coffee matters also - be specific in your recipe. If your using blood oranges say so, if your using a specific roast made a certain way write in your recipe so the flavor profile you decided upon can be reproduced.

Experiment with as many different types of oranges you can get your hands on. Try using all the different parts (juice, flesh, rind) and try as many different cooking techniques before you decide if something works or not.

Here is link I found for a coffee recipe similar to what I was thinking about that when I wrote this post:

Coffee-Statistics.com - Coffee Recipes 2

Good Luck!!

orange and chocolate are a great combination. there are many candies with the combo. think along those lines and you may come up with a winner

 

[GuaranteedGF]

contest citrus

orange and chocolate are a great combination. there are many candies with the combo. think along those lines and you may come up with a winner

Thanks for the input. I haven't decided what to do, but was responding to someone that said to skip oranges and coffee. Since coffee and chocolate share a lot of the same notes on the tongue I was offering support to another member to try it! In my silly youth I had a chocolate business and the favorites back then was choc with orange - in the mid 80's that was the rage!

I think for this contest I'm going with something spicy with the citrus - I've had chili peppers on the brain lately!

Stacy
NY,NY

 

[FWishbringer]

My input is just that, input. Sometimes things that don't go together can still be mixed in new and exciting ways. I used to work in a coffee house and I live in Florida.

My family always has a pot of coffee brewed except the wee hours of the night, and we have a grapefruit, orange, lemon, and banana trees.. so I've tried alot of coffee/citrus mixes and never found anything that clicked.

If you do come up with a really good recipe, please share.

 

[GuaranteedGF]

Battle Citrus

I've tried alot of coffee/citrus mixes and never found anything that clicked.

If you do come up with a really good recipe, please share.

If I decide to start playing around with coffee I will keep you in the loop. I have some notations I made a while ago in my idea book about ways to bring out the vanilla and "grassy" notes in a seasonal roast from a local distributor. It's only available in the spring. Those notes might do well paired up with bright citrus flavors.

The recipes I'm currently developing all seem to explore various degrees of spice and smoke. I have other items I'm working on before I can seriously start recipes for Battle Citrus.

Stacy

 

[bigdaddy3k]

Every pot of coffee I brew has dried orange zest and cinnamon mixed into the grounds. It seems to go over quite well.