As last night's epsiode of Top Chef opened last night I was pleasantly surprised to see something I could get the Elfman for Valentine's Day -- that "I 'heart' Padma" T-shirt that Stefan was wearing!!

The perfect gift!! No one I know 'hearts' Padma more ... And it's conveniently available at http://www.bravotv.com/Top_Chef/season/5/index.php

On to the Quick Fire Challenge: The Return of Hung!! Just what I was waiting for. Hung was the winner of Top Chef Season 3 and, as Padma said, "The fastest chef in Top Chef history."

Hung was on hand to help Padma judge the challenge which gave the cheftestants 15 minutes (in honor of Hung's being so fast) to make something delicious from ordinary cupboard staples. Ordinary meaning Spam, garbanzo beans, canned chili, and other ingredients that our "chefs" aren't used to cooking with. You know, the crap we cook with everyday!

Our chefs buzzed around the Top Chef kitchen and here's what they came up with:

Jamie - bruschetta with garbanzo beans and smoked fish
Stefan - Baked bean soup with Spam
Hosea - Sweet pea soup with pork rinds (Hung was excited about the pork rinds!) and Spam
Fabio - Mac & cheese with roast artichokes and chili pepper
Arianne - Open-faced turkey Spam sandwich (eewww!)
Carla - Asian salmon cakes w/mayo (homemade, of course)
Rhadika - Red bean dip w/bread
Leah - Waffles, strawberries and sausage
Jeff - Baby conch (remember Hung is big on fish) w/coconut sauce

After tasting the bottom three were determinied: Leah, Rhadika and Jaime
Top 3: Hosea (pork rinds), Stefan and Jeff (conch).

Hung picked Stefan as the winner, which ticked off Hosea, because he had shared his Spam with him. Stefan got immunity.

For the Elimination Challenge the cheftestants were tasked to go Back to Basics and create a seasonal meal, family-style lunch including dessert. They drew knives dividing the teams into Pig (Jeff, Fabio, Rhadika), Chicken (Stefan, Jaime, Carla) and Lamb (Arianne, Leah, Hosea).

Back at the apartment, the teams rallied together to come up with their menus. A heated exchange erupted between Jaime and Stefan with Jaime leaving telling Stefan to do "whatever you want." This only endeared her to Stefan more, "She's so cute when she's pissed." Hey Stefan, she likes her own gender, give up already!

The following morning they packed up and headed for the Whole Foods Store, or so they thought. Actually they were taken to the country to a place called Blue Hill at Stone Barns, owned by chef Dan Barber (yeah, I know, never heard of him either). The farm specializes in growing local produce and raising their own meats, hence Pig, Chicken and Lamb. The chefs would be cooking for the farmers.

Pork team decided to roast pork loin, with sausage ravioli and a basil pesto sauce, roasted vegetables, with creme brulee for dessert.

The Chicken team made roast chicken and chicken cutlets w/tomato salad, chicken consumme and a nectarine/strawberry tart.

Team Lamb went with a duo of lamb, heirloom tomato salad, rosemary garlic potatoes, and a berry trifle.

In the kitchen, Fabio became frustrated when it took Rhadika almost an hour to peel and cook corn -- "what?" he stated. Arianne was having a hard time tying up the lamb, so Leah stepped in to do it. And the Pork team was worried about meat getting done on time.

As time was running out, Arianne declared the lamb "perfect."

At the tasting: Team Chicken's consumme came into question - why serve soup on an 85-degree day? The chicken entrees went over well and the tart was considered good.

Judges declared the lamb a "mess," saying it was sliced wrong, with the grain. They also didn't like the aggressive pesto, and found the trifle "unappealing." Uh-o.

Team Pork's dishes were overshadowed by the "overwhelming pesto", while the tomatoes were well received. Unfortunately the creme brulee was deemed too sweet.

Team Pork were the first called to Judges Table and declared the winners of the challenge. All three actually won, and were promptly sent back to retrieve the rest of the cheftestants, who weren't so lucky.

Team Pork: Jeff admitted to taking off the pig fat, which the judges didn't like because it ruined the flavor. Fabio was criticized for his overwhelming pesto. And Rhadika was asked if making the salad and dessert was enough?

Team Lamb: Judges immediately asked who made the lamb, to which Arianne owned up and admitted not knowing how to tie it up properly. So why was she the only one working on the lamb, judges asked? Head judge Tom Colicchio said her "butchering was a big problem." Hosea, who said he roasted the potatoes, admitted he could've broken down the meat. Colicchio replied he should have said something ...

After sending the chefs back to await their fate, there was some interesting discussion around Judges Table. As pointed out by the Elfman, new judge Toby Young had quite a few conflicting views with Colicchio -- all valid points. However, Colicchio stood firm saying Arianne "really did a disservice to the lamb." Padma stuck up for her, while Young said she can't cook. Padma replied that actually before he came in, she did some really great cooking. To which Young replied, that he thought they were supposed to be juding on what was done in that particular challenge! Colicchio concurred!

In the end, Team Pork was deemed safe, because Jeff recycled the green tomatoes he found on the ground, and that was a big part of what the farmers stood for.

On Team Lamb, Leah was chided for not doing enough, and Arianne was sent to pack her knives and go, calling Hosea a "wimp."


Luv this gif of Carla!

Sorry to see her go, thought she'd definitely outlast Carla (not my fave). And for Jan vs Jan, who asked, Fabio is my fave this season. I think a final 3 showdown between Fabio, Stefan and Hosea would make my Top Chef!! Also, I like the new judge. Toby Young definitely has some interesting insight, and I also like the way he debated Tom last night!

Next week it looks like the Hosea/Leah hook-up might be happening, but more importantly it's -- THE RESTAURANT WARS CHALLENGE!!!

If this is your first season, don't miss next week. The Restaurant Wars Challenge is legendary Top Chef stuff. It can literally make or break a cheftestant. Back in Season 3, Hung's only real competition, Trey, was sent packing after his disastrous turn running the restaurant.

It works like this -- the chefs are divided up into two teams, each tasked with opening their own restaurant. They are usually given an empty room and kitchen and they have to come up with a theme, menu, layout and decorations, all on a certain monetary budget. Each team must also elect a restaurant manager (Trey's downfall), head chef, server and hostess, taking some of the chefs out of their element. It's usually the most interesting episode of the season, don't miss it!!

For more on Top Chef visit http://www.bravotv.com/Top_Chef/season/5/index.php