Esposito squashes culinary challenge

In the words of the popular Food Network show “Iron Chef,” “Bang a gong, we are on!”
Sunday marked the Chef’s Challenge at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater.

The competition, sponsored by the Monroe County Community Kitchen, is in its fifth year.

“You in the community voted. Over 1,000 votes came in to select these three chefs,” Emcee Brad Wilhelm, a comic from the Comedy Attic, said to the crowd.

The three local chefs had an hour to create a dish using a secret local ingredient announced at the start of the competition. This year’s ingredient was squash.

“In the past, we’ve had things like apples, sweet potatoes . . . of course, last year it was earthworms. Sorry, I mean cheese, cheese!” Wilhelm kept the crowd rolling with laughter as the chefs labored over their dishes.

Beyond entertaining the crowd, Wilhelm ran this year’s trivia for prizes, ranging from gift cards to T-shirts. He also facilitated the live auction.

Assisting Wilhelm were David Coonce, chef and kitchen manager at Bloomington Cooperative Services, and Gregg Rago, chef at Nick’s English Hut.

After the ingredient was announced, a bit of information on the food was given.
“Every part of a squash can be eaten,” judge Lynn Schwartzberg explained. “From the stem, to the seeds, to the flower.”

She added that the flexibility and different types of squash would aid the contestants greatly.

Luke Hubbard, the sous chef at Uptown Café, was one of the competitors in the challenge. He has eight years of culinary experience, having completed an apprenticeship in Lake Tahoe. Hubbard’s soup was appreciated as the better of his two options, with a Cajun-style kick the judges said they loved.

Another local chef, Erika Yochum, participated this year as the first female chef in the contest. Yochum is the chef and owner of Feast Bakery Café and has 15 years of culinary experience. Unlike her counterparts in the challenge, she is self taught.

With the secret ingredient, she created an elaborate meal including an appetizer-style dish, a trout entrée, a pineapple dessert and a cocktail.

The only chef who works on campus was Damian Esposito, the executive chef from the Indiana Memorial Union. Rather than selecting a sous chef, Esposito brought along Michael Craig, a pastry chef, as his partner. Esposito has 17 years of culinary
experience.

Before the secret ingredient was announced, Esposito told the crowd what he was hoping for.

“We’re hoping it might be peaches and not something savory like, say, squash,” he said.

The audience laughed at the coincidence. Esposito created a imple meal with the squash, including a palate-cleansing element.

The Monroe County Community Kitchen reported $12,000 raised at the competition this year from tickets sold and the live auction. Among the items auctioned were a carrot for $40, a guest judge seat for $250, two seats in the Bistro seating section to sample the food for $525 and three different dishes created by the chefs, ranging in price from $85 to $115.

The chefs were judged by a panel of local celebrity judges, and the winner chosen by them was awarded the coveted Golden Spatula. This year’s local celebrity judges were Schwartzberg, David Tallent and Charlotte Zietlow.

In the end, Esposito came out victorious and claimed the Golden Spatula. The People’s Choice Award was given to Yochum, and the Bistro Seating pick went to Esposito.

With a smile, Esposito turned and handed his new spatula to Craig.

“I really owe this to this guy,” Esposito said. “He has been one of my best hires. He can make amazing pastries and wedding cakes, even cakes on a stick — people love those.”