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Culinary wizard Kevin J Denecke got his just desserts as he secured the grand prize in Cucina Italiana’s second season of Master Chef thanks to his palatable pudding.
After whittling down 36 contestants via six tense heats and two gruelling semi-finals, Kevin’s ‘Star-Crossed Lover Cake’ wowed the judges and saw him crowned champion over three other finalists in a nervy showdown.
The 42-year-old American purchasing manager said: “I’m absolutely ecstatic! It’s the first time I’ve entered a competition like this and to win is unbelievable.
“Cooking has been a passion of mine for many years and I’m always cooking at home and for friends because I find it really relaxing. I saw an advertisement for the competition and since it’s just round the corner from my house in Juffair, I thought I’d give it a shot.”
The final challenge was to create a three-course Italian meal in just 90 minutes: 20 for the starter, 45 for the main course and 25 for the dessert. A wide selection of ingredients was provided beforehand by the restaurant, with the contestants having to pick exactly what they wanted in a 10-minute prelude.
Upon completing each course, the dishes were then presented to the three judges – Bahrain TV’s celebrity culinary expert Chef Yousef Iqlem, Bahrain Radio host as well as self-confessed foodie and former GulfWeekly columnist Marie-Claire Honeywill, and event host and general manager of the restaurant’s parent company, Peter Lyons.
After scathing criticism and sarcastic witticisms (with an occasional smattering of praise), the judges then dissected each contestant’s dish and scored them out of five in four different categories: presentation, taste, authenticity and technical skills.
Kevin’s menu began with a starter of scallops on a bed of zucchini noodles, before following it up with a main course of Filetto Milanese, a breaded fillet cutlet pan-fried with bread crumbs.
However, it was the delectable dessert which proved to be the game changer, as Kevin’s perfect pud saw him overhaul his competitors at the final hurdle. After the event, he shared the recipe of his masterpiece exclusively with GulfWeekly:
“First, I collected the dry ingredients which are ¾ of a cup of corn starch, ¾ of a cup of flour and one cup of sugar. I then sieved all of these together into a bowl, before gently softening a pound of butter and adding it into the mixture. I then beat three eggs into a bowl, adding one at a time into the dough until it was nice and chunky.
“After the dough was done, I add half a cup of dark chocolate, half a cup of strawberries, a few almond flakes and folded them all carefully into the batter. I then poured the mixture into a small dish greased with butter and laced with flour.
“I left it to bake for 20 minutes, then let it cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. During this time, the top puffed up considerably so I chopped it off with a bread knife and dusted off the crumbs before adding a dusting of sugar.
“Finally, I garnished the cake with a strawberry cut into a rose shape, orange zest, chocolate shavings, toasted almonds, and orange twist and a little strawberry jam which I made when the cake was baking.”
Thanks to his expertise, Kevin took home a wide array of prizes, including a copper cookware set, a professional chef’s knife set, various other cooking appliances, a year’s subscription to GulfWeekly, a return flight to Milan, Italy, and, most importantly, the successful sweet will be featured on Cucina’s menu throughout 2015.
He added: “I’ve never been to Italy before so I’m really excited about that, and it’s an honour to have my dish featured on the menu. This competition has inspired me to try even more things and come up with new creations, so hopefully I can find more contests to enter!”
