‘Top Chef’ recap: The ladies won’t be foiled again

The women are proudly killing it on this season of “Top Chef.” In Wednesday night’s episode, Kristen Kish, a.k.a. Twiggy, smoked the competition in both the quickfire and elimination challenges -- and looked way too good doing it.

For the quickfire challenge the chefs were asked to cook whatever they wanted with one catch: All the pantry ingredients were covered in foil and once you opened an ingredient, you had to use it. And just to make things a little more interesting, the chefs were required to use foil as their cooking vessels.

Twiggy won with the only dessert, an almond and chocolate sponge cake with buttered apples. Other highlights included Sheldon Simeon’s lemongrass smoked shallots and tomato and shallot salad, Stefan Richter’s hot smoked salmon with German potato salad, and no clue how he managed it, but John Tesar made a beef egg drop soup with braised pineapple. Stephanie Izard, the only woman to win “Top Chef,” acted as guest judge.

For the elimination challenge the chefs cooked with berries in head-to-head battles. Twiggy, who had immunity, cooked without an opponent. She won the challenge and $10,000 with her matcha goat milk custard with macerated tayberries. Simeon’s ahi poke strawberries with sweet chili sauce and Brooke Williamson’s spicy, smoked chocolate pudding with blackberry tapioca and salty graham cracker crumbles were also need-it-in-my-mouth worthy.

The judges sent Danyele McPherson and her thick eyeliner home for her less than stellar chicken pine nut terrine with blueberry mostarda.

Best moments

--Noticing that Josie Smith-Malave always seems to be under the influence of something. How did I miss this before? Judge Gail Simmons flat out asks if she’s high and Joshua Valentine, a.k.a. “The Stache,” admits, “It hurts my soul when Josie laughs. A little of me dies every time.”

--Richter dissing Tesar’s chorizo dish with “I wouldn’t even flush my poop with it.” Nothing like a little bathroom humor on a cooking show.

--The Stache making light of doing poorly the last couple weeks with, “I don’t have any underwear on, I think my ass ate them all.” Apparently going commando leads to failure in the kitchen.

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