Top Chef Season 5, Episode 6 - Eleven Chefs a Sweatin'

Happy Holidays all (or to those of you who are sent into a blind rage by that phrase, 'Merry Christmas!')! I hope you have some eggnog at hand for this holiday edition of Top Chef. How do we know it is a holiday edition? Because when the chefs enter Top Chef kitchen to meet Padma she is surrounded by all sorts of holiday decorations.

The Quick Fire Challenge is a simple, but good one: make a delicious holiday meal using only one pot. There are two ways to go about this: make everything in one pot (like a stew), or cook one thing, take it out of the pot, and start cooking another.

To see who did what, and to find out the identity of the Quick Fire judge read on.

The judge for this immunity challenge is Martha Stewart. I don't know about you, but I would be very intimidated if Martha were to ever sit in judgment of something I cooked (and I am pretty sure she wouldn't be a fan of my famous tuna pasta salad). The chefs have just 45 minutes to whip up something delicious for Martha.

Martha is one cool cookie, and she plays her card pretty close to her vest. While she samples all the one pot wonders she doesn't say much to each chef with a few exceptions. When tasting Eugene's Spicy Korean Stew with Pork and Mushrooms she can taste the corn starch that was used to thicken the sauce (that's not a good thing in Martha's book we find out), and we also find out that whilst Martha is in Maine, one can find her diving for scallops.

Once the tasting is done Martha names fellow Jersey girl Ariane the winner. The winning dish? Cauliflower Puree with Herb-Rubbed Filet Mignon which Martha mistakenly thought had lots of butter (Ariane informed her that only cream was used in the dish). Ariane wins immunity and an autographed copy of Martha's latest cookbook.

Onto the Elimination Challenge, which shockingly enough continues the holiday theme. Each chef draws a knife from the knife block which bears a number from 1 to 12. That number, as so of you more holiday tuned readers probably figured out, corresponds to one of the days in the 12 Days of Christmas. The chefs find out that they will be catering amfAR's holiday party with a guest list of 300 people. Each chef has to make a dish that is inspired by their day of Christmas. they have an $800 budget, 3 hours to prep the day before, and 1 hour on site for final prep.

The usual mad dash montage at Whole Foods follows as people try to figure out how they are going to translate 9 Ladies Dancing (Fabio) into food (he ends up making crab cakes, since crabs have long legs).

Once the shopping is done the chopping begins (see what I did there?). Furiously the chefs cook up holiday inspired treats, and at the end of 3 hours the refrigerators in Top Chef kitchen are bursting at the seams. Everyone shuffles off for some well deserved rest.

The next morning the chefs find that one of the fridges wasn't closed properly, and all the food in it has spoiled. This impacts Rahdika and Hosea the most since all their proteins were in that fridge. Rahdika has to throw away all the duck she prepped the day before, and Hosea must chuck his pork that he smoked the night before. Luckily, and with a little holiday magic, the rest of the chefs chip in and help Rahdika prep the duck parts she had in another fridge, and Hosea was able to find some pork in Top Chef kitchen that would suit his needs.

After all the drama is settled the chefs pack up their things and head over to the venue to set up. They learn that the guests will be voting on which dish they like best by placing red AIDS ribbons on a sign next to the chef's station.

Michelle Bernstein and Natasha Richardson are the guest judges this time around, and I have to tell you that Judges' Table was pretty brutal. Tom says that none of the dishes were good enough, including the top four dishes. Who are the top four? Glad you asked:

• Hosea with his Pork Loin with Chipotle Mashed Potatoes and Apple Brandy Jus
• Jeff with Seared Halloumi & Kasseri Cheese with Roasted Beets, Pears, Mint and Spices
• Stefan with Creamy Chicken Pot Pie with English Peas, White Asparagus, Thyme and Parsley
• Rahdika with Braised Duck Leg on Toasted Brioche with Pear Chutney & Toasted Pistachios

The winner is... Hosea with his pork dish (that also got the most ribbons of the night from the guests). He wins a copy of Michelle Bernstein's newest cookbook (I'm noticing a trend here) but in the spirit of giving Michelle gives the rest of the chefs a copy too.

The bottom three are:

• Eugene for his Poisson Cru with Pineapple Ring and Gold Yukon Potato Chip which all the judges thought was way too sweet.
• Melissa for her Gorgonzola and New York Strip Steak on Sourdough Crostini with Cranberry Vinaigrette because the gorgonzola simply overpowered all the other flavors of the dish.
• Jamie for her Crudo of Sea Scallop in Vichyssoise with Lemon Agrumate, Leeks and Micro Greens which people thought was slimy (gross!).

So who was kicked off? Well, Tom was very displeased with all the chefs this time around, and felt he needed to let everyone know. He went back to the room in which all the chefs were awaiting their fates and basically told them that they need to step it up if they want to win. 'Cook the food that got you here,' he recommended. He also told them that since there was a slight malfunction in the kitchen and it is Christmas, after all, no one would be going home that night.

Christmas miracle or lame reality TV cop out? Sound off in the comments!