So…working at Publix Aprons definitely has its perks – one of them being that we get to hang out with super-awesome celebrity chefs when they come to do demonstrations at the school. June ended with a huge bang when we had Top Chef Fan Favorite Kevin Gillespie come in. It was a full house and the crowd was really great. Everyone was totally into it, asking questions, loving all of the food and wine we paired with each course, and sticking around at the end for photos and to buy his new book , Fire In My Belly. This was my first Celebrity Chef Demo, and it was such a neatexperience. Kevin could not be a cooler guy. Totally down to earth and friendly and he cooks some killer food. If you aren’t familiar with him, he was voted Fan Favorite during Season 6 of Top Chef. He also owns the restaurants “Woodfire Grill” and the newly built “Gunsmoke” in Atlanta, GA. Kevin is pretty well known for the overabundant use of pork in his recipes…and if you know me, you know that I don’t eat pork. Welp, guess what I did? I TRIED BACON. Kevin Gillespie got me to try bacon. I can’t believe I did it. It was good. I don’t really get the big wow factor and why everyone is so obsessed with it, but yeah, sure, it was good. (I am probably going to get hate mail for that statement).
Anyway, Kevin’s menu this year wasn’t hugely focused on bacon as much as it was when he came last year because he told me that apparently the people weren’t too thrilled with how much he used. But he did make some pretty delicious food – marinated turnip salad with oranges and goatcheese;crispy green beans with an amazing salsa brava that I will definitely be trying out verysoon;stuffed tomatoes with red rice and creamed shrimp topped with crumbled bacon and creamsauce;and peach melba foster jubilee with a scoop of vanilla ice creamfor dessert. I unfortunately did not get a picture of the dessert; we had to plate and serve immediately before the ice cream melted. The sauce in the dessert was made with orange bitters and cognac… That packed a huge hit of flavor and the smell coming from the stovetop was amazing.
So now that I’ve tried bacon, I guess my next featwill besome kind of beef. Oy. I’ll keep you posted on that…
Our head Event Planner, Jeanette, and me with Kevin
The Boca Aprons team
