I seem to miss this event ever since I’ve come to known about it.  Even though I’m not a big fan of chocolate, I’m always impressed by the many different types of chocolate concoctions and by the chocolate art.  Details below:

Where

Metropolitan Pavilion
125 West 18th Street – New York, NY 10011

When

October 30th to November 1st, 2009 – Chocolate Show
Friday, October 30: noon to 8pm
Saturday, October 31: 10am to 8pm
Sunday, November 1: 10am to 5pm

Tickets
Now available for $28 per adult.
Website : www.ticketmaster.com
The price will be $30 when purchased at the door
General admission is free for kids under 5 and free for kids 5 to 12 with a 2 child per adult limit. The price for any additional child is $8.
Tickets are only available by internet.

Complete details here.

On the next episode of Bizarre Foods, Andrew embarks on the 48-hour Survivor Special episode.  Ah yes, will Andrew be listed amongst the elite survivalists such as Man vs Wild’s Bear Grylls and Survivorman’s Les Stroud?  I don’t think so, but it’ll be interesting to watch.  He’ll be stranded for 2 days in a Mexican jungle, fending for himself.  Of course, he’ll be trained beforehand in starting a fire, building a shelter, foraging for foods, and amongst other things before he goes out on his own.  Is it me, or does 48 hours seem too short?  He can definitely survive on his belly fat for at least a week without food.

Catch the new episode on Tuesday, June 16 at 10 E/P on the Travel Channel

Celebrated chef and restaurateur Marco Pierre White (UK’s “Hell’s Kitchen”) serves up a new original cooking competition series “The Chopping Block,” in which the British Michelin star chef offers neophyte hopeful chefs/restaurateurs a chance to compete in America’s greatest restaurant challenge. “The Chopping Block” will expose the unseen pitfalls and behind-the-scenes madness that goes into opening a restaurant — with a grand prize of $250,000. The controversial and unpredictable White represents the contestants’ best chance to make their dreams come true, as he is one of the world’s most notable chefs and restaurateurs and they will all be under his critical eye.

The heat is on when White ushers the contestants — split into two teams of four couples each — to two empty restaurant spaces, side-by-side, in the middle of Manhattan. There, they are given less than a week to accomplish a multitude of tasks, including a design and makeover of each space, planning a menu, and generating buzz-worthy publicity to ensure a crowd on opening night. Both establishments will open at the same time and will be competing for the same customers — against 26,000 other restaurants in the world’s busiest (and hungriest) city.

In each episode, noted food critics will be assigned to observe the chaos that inevitably unfolds on opening night and after the dust has settled, White will return with the reviews. The worst-performing team will have to plead their case — because one couple will be asked to remove their aprons as they are sent home.

Series premiere on Wednesday, March 7 on NBC at 8PM Eastern

I can’t bake for the life of me, but that doesn’t stop ‘Ace of Cakes’ from being one of my favorite shows on the Food Network.  These guys just make baking cakes so much fun!  On February 16th, you can catch the ‘Ace of Cakes’ marathon starting at 11AM.  I also like to watch because I think Anna on the show is pretty cute.

After digging up some information, I thought the show might end up to be quite entertaining as the formula isn’t like the other cooking competition shows.

The focus of the show isn’t just about food, it’s about how to run a business of food.  Teams are made up of couples and will be challenged in restaurant design, menu planning, and creating a signature dish.  The winners will have the chance of opening their very own restaurant.  Rock-star chef Marco Pierre White will be hosting.

‘Chopping Block’ airs in March on NBC.  Check local listings.

Seeking culinary fame?  Dreaming on being on television?  Well, here’s your chance to be one step closer.  The New York City casting call for the sixth season of Bravo’s Top Chef will be held on March 1, from 10am to 2pm at Craftsteak in New York City.

As for the remaining casting calls:

• PHILADELPHIA – Wednesday, March 4, 10 A.M. – 2 P.M., XIX NINETEEN at Park Hyatt at the Bellevue
• LOS ANGELES – Sunday, March 15, 10 A.M. – 2 P.M.1, Craft Restaurant
• CHICAGO – For casting information in Chicago, please email TCCastingChicago@gmail.com

Best of luck!

American chef Aaron McCargo is hoping that bold versions of American comfort food will appeal to new fans.

The 37-year-old New Jersey native won his own show, “Big Daddy’s House”, on the Food Network in a grueling television competition last year. The second season, which started in January, features his twists on familiar fares like hamburgers and Buffalo chicken wings.

He spoke to Reuters about his passion for bold flavors and how to stretch the food budget.

Q: What is the biggest difference between the dishes you make in the new season and the first season?

A: “I’m offering a lot more suggestions if you want to go either the high-end of cooking or the low-end of cooking. I’m also teaching people that they can bring kids into the kitchen and what to have the kids do once they are in the kitchen.”

Q: Times are tough. Can families still afford to liven up their meals?

A: “No one really wants to spend money on groceries. I want to prove them wrong because you want to treat yourself every now and then. My whole outlook is to show how you can treat yourself to that one great dish if you decide to break the bank, whether it’s a salad or an entree.”

Q: What is the best tip to stretch the food budget?

A: “Buy something universal. For example, pork butt which is a very inexpensive cut of meat. You can have it with potatoes and carrots one night. Maybe you can shred it up the next night and make quesadilla. On the third night, you may want to make tacos or sloppy joe. There are a lot of marketable items in the supermarket you can bring into the house and use that one cut of meat and make four to five dishes out of it. I also suggest people make portions and freeze them so you don’t waste them by leaving them in the refrigerator.

Q: What do cook for yourself and your family at home?

A: “I call myself a freak of nature in the kitchen. I just keep it really simple at home – like a one-pot meal with pasta, Italian sausage and fresh vegetable. The dishes you see on my show are ones I still make at home.”

RECIPE

Inside Out Burger (Serves 4)

6 slices bacon, cut into bite-size pieces
250g mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1kg ground chuck
1 large shallot, diced
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
125g Swiss cheese, cubed
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
4 sesame seed buns

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

1. Place the bacon in a large sauté pan and cook until crispy, about five minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve one tablespoon of the bacon fat in the pan. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until caramelized, about five minutes. Set the mushrooms aside to cool in a bowl.

2. In a large bowl, combine the beef, shallot, black pepper, salt, and Worcestershire. Separate the mixture into four equal portions. Divide each portion into two separate patties.

3. Combine the cheese into the cooled mushroom and bacon mixture. Take one patty and top with two ounces of the filling. Place another patty on top and pinch around the edges to make sure that the filling is totally covered. Make the rest of the patties the same way.

4. Over medium-high heat, heat a large skillet with grapeseed oil. Once hot, add the burgers and cook for two minutes per side. Place the pan into the oven and cook for four to six more minutes for medium burgers.

5. Remove from the oven and serve on sesame seed buns.

Anthony’s mission is to step away from the Venice of tourists and into the Venice of Venetians. The scenery and food is absolutely breathtaking and he states that he thinks Venice is the most beautiful city in the western world. He eats fresh risotto that he ranks as one of his favorite meals, and feasts on fresh tree figs, plump tomatoes, freshly cut basil, sea bass, spider crab – simply delicious and simply Venetian. Of course, he also shows us a taste of what the local culture and economy is all about.