'Super Chef Battle: An Iron Chef America Event' Premieres January 3rd at 8pm
ET/PT
NEW YORK, Nov. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Food Network stars Mario Batali, Bobby Flay
and Emeril Lagasse travel to the White House to take part in an unprecedented
culinary competition in Super Chef Battle, a special two-hour episode of Iron
Chef America. Greeted by First Lady Michelle Obama, the chefs are joined by
White House Executive Chef Cristeta Comerford and receive their challenge:
create a meal for America using The White House Kitchen Garden's produce as
their secret ingredients. The special episode premieres Sunday, January 3rd at
8pm ET/PT.
"We are honored to showcase The White House Kitchen Garden in Iron Chef
America," said Bob Tuschman, Senior Vice President, Programming and Production
for Food Network. "This is the most intense culinary competition we've ever
shown. It's awe-inspiring to see what four master chefs can create from
locally-grown ingredients in the heat of Kitchen Stadium."
Iron Chef America commentator Alton Brown explains that the Chairman has sent
the three Food Network chefs to Washington, D.C. for a very special battle and
introduces Chef Cristeta Comerford, who will also take part in the
competition. The group is then greeted by the First Lady, who explains that
the chefs will be allowed to use anything found in The White House Kitchen
Garden to help them create their meals. After receiving their challenge, the
chefs are split into two teams: Flay and Comerford versus Batali and Lagasse.
The chefs immediately head to the garden where they are tasked with harvesting
their ingredients. Then it's off to Kitchen Stadium where the battle begins.
Each team must produce five dishes that showcase the ingredients they selected
from the garden and that represent the ultimate American meal. The judges
include: chef and best-selling cookbook author Nigella Lawson; Olympic gold
medalist Natalie Coughlin; and actress, author and designer Jane Seymour. Ted
Allen (Chopped) assists as a guest floor reporter. Iron Chef America is
produced by Triage Entertainment.
Installed in the spring of 2009 under the Obama Administration, The White
House Kitchen Garden measures approximately 1100 square feet and is located on
the west side of the South Lawn. The four-season herb, fruit and vegetable
garden features 75 varieties of seeds planted in slightly raised beds using
succession planting methods. Cultivated by White House staff and volunteers,
produce from the garden and honey from the adjacent beehives are available to
the White House Chefs for preparing meals for the First Family and for
official functions, and all extra food is donated to Miriam's Kitchen, a soup
kitchen near the White House.
FOOD NETWORK (www.foodnetwork.com) is a unique lifestyle network and Web site
that strives to be way more than cooking. The network is committed to
exploring new and different ways to approach food - through pop culture,
competition, adventure, and travel - while also expanding its repertoire of
technique-based information. Food Network is distributed to more than 98
million U.S. households and averages more than 9 million unique Web site users
monthly. Food Network programming is available internationally in more than
150 countries. Food Network is headquartered in New York, and maintains
offices in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and Knoxville, Tenn. Scripps
Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), which also owns and operates HGTV
(www.hgtv.com), DIY Network (www.diynetwork.com), Great American Country
(www.gactv.com) and Fine Living Network (www.fineliving.com), is the manager
and general partner.
SOURCE Food Network
Lisa Krueger of Food Network PR, +1-212-401-2430, lkrueger@foodnetwork.com
