SECTION B Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Was something really brew-ing betweenTiffany andEd?In one episode, Tiffany and

fellow “TopChef” contestant EdCotton seem to be getting awfulclose. The camera shows thetwo of them sitting next to eachother andEdpulling away fromTiffany, leading the viewer tobelieve somethingmight havehappenedbetween the two ofthem.Another contestant, Andrea

Curto-Randazzo, even said thatif Tiffany’s fiance knewwhatwasgoing on, Edwould be in

Monique Batson, Features Editor, (409) 880-0798, MBatson@BeaumontEnterprise.com; Section designed and copy-edited by Samantha Borger, Monique Batson and Kathy Moujaes, SBorger@BeaumontEnterprise.com

+' /577)/.)-We linked AudrinaPatridge and therest of the ‘DancingWith the Stars’ castall the way back toSETexas, &+

+' /57.#7)7.3!‘Check, Please’ getssophisticated withchopsticks,&+ 37- 57!#7)

BeaumontEnterprise.com/BEBE

Tiffany and husband Mark

Mitchell on their wedding day.

65/3!(!3,52

Beaumontnative inrunning tobe Bravo’s‘Top Chef ’

*.52#)0 1$ ")3.%)2 45!37HNolan@BeaumontEnterprise.com

(409) 880-0724

If you watch:

What: ‘Top Chef D.C.’When: 9 p.m. tonight.Where: Bravo.

Want company?

We’ll be watching, too. Headover to BeaumontEnterprise.com/BEStars for our live blog-ging of tonight’s episode.

SCRAPBOOK OF

THE STAR

From left: Louisa Austin and

husband Lloyd say they’ll be

glued to the television to-

night to see if their daughter,

shown with Louisa, makes it

to the finals on Bravo’s ‘Top

Chef.’ Little Tiffany Derry

made a great ballerina, but

it is her cooking that got her

to the top. While attending

Ozen High School, Tiffany,

now 27, played for the

volleyball team.

Photos courtesy of Louisa Austin

Beaumont pride:

Tiffany Derry works in Dallas and spent a few years inHouston, but she’s definitely not shy about her Beau-mont roots. Her mom, Louisa Austin, said there’s nodoubt her daughter is proud of her hometown.

She remembered a story Derry told her about awoman who was dining at her Dallas restaurant, the GoFish Ocean Club. The woman asked to meet the chefand asked Derry where she was from. When she saidBeaumont, the woman’s response was “Beaumont?”which she said with a little bit of disgust in her voice.Derry proudly replied, “Yes, Beaumont!”

She’s even given the city a few shout-outs on “TopChef.” Here’s a recap of the times Tiffany has men-tioned Beaumont on the show:

! Episode 1: The chefs have to create a dish thatrepresents where they’re from. Tiffany proudly saysshe’s from Beaumont and makes a cajun shrimp andcrawfish salad, chicken fried tomatillos and baconsherry vinaigrette.

! Episode 8: For the quickfire challenge, the chefsare asked to create an Ethiopian-inspired dish. Tiffanysays: “They don’t have many Ethiopian restaurants inDallas, Texas or in Houston. And definitely not in Beau-mont!” For the elimination challenge, the chefs have tocreate a dish based on one of the foreign embassies inD.C. Tiffany chooses Mexico because Mexican food isbig in Beaumont.

! Episode 11: The chefs’ elimination challenge takesthem to the Washington Nationals baseball park wherethey have to take over the concession stand. Tiffanychooses to make a meatball sub, which she says is in-spired by her favorite dish at the South Texas State Fair.

Love brewing?Tiffany’s husband says, ‘I didn’t likelast week with Ed in her dress’

ED, page 3B

What else is cooking in Tiffany’s kitchen?Want to whip up a meal like Tiffany? Find one

of her recipes from the show, 3BRecap Tiffany’s wins, 3BHow does ‘Top Chef’ work? 3BGet to know Tiffany a little better, 3B

From Pre-K to potsand pans, see moreof Tiffany’s familyphotos at BeaumontEnterprise.com.

Thehour Louisa and LloydAustinspend glued to the television tonightmight be one of themost intensehours of television they’ve everwatched.

TheAustins andmuchof the restof Southeast Texaswill bewatchingone of the final episodes of “TopChefD.C.,” rooting for their daugh-ter, TiffanyDerry, andhoping shemakes it through to the last roundof the show.

Derry, 27, is the executive chefof theGoFishOceanClub inDallas. She grewup inBeaumont,graduated fromOzenHigh Schoolin 2001 and is one of five chefs leftonBravo’s “TopChef,” a cook-ing competition show. It won anEmmyon Sunday forOutstandingReality Competition Program.“They picked 17 to go on the

show,” her father, LloydAustin,said. “To be in that top 17, and forher to still be there, that’s awe-some.”The show first aired in June

withDerry among 17 contestantsfromaround the country trying

TOP CHEF, page 3B

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BeaumontEnterprise.com 3BWednesday, September 1, 2010

KURT WARNER played inSuper Bowl XXIV, where thehalftime show was played byPhil Collins, who was on the“Naked Brothers Band” withGeorge Lopez who, on “LopezTonight” had...

AUDRINA PATRIDGE on asa guest, who was in “SororityRow” with Carrie Fisher, whowas in “The Blues Brothers”with John Belushi, who wason “Saturday Night Live” withSteve Martin, who was in“Bringing Down the House”with Queen Latifah, who wason “The Tonight Show” with...

MIKE SORRENTINO andwho also was in “Sphere”with Samuel L. Jackson, whowas in “Black Snake Moan”with Christina Ricci, who wasin “Cursed” with ShannonElizabeth, who was in “Eye onKenya” with...

KYLE MASSEY, who was onthe 2009 World Magic Awardswith Robert Wagner, who wasin “Wild Things” with Kevin Ba-con, who was in “Footloose”with Frances Lee McCain, whowas in “Scream” with Court-ney Cox-Arquette, who was on“Friends” with Matthew Perry,who is in “17 Again” with...

MARGARET CHO who wason “Ghost Whisperer” withJennifer Love Hewitt, who wasin “I Still Know What You DidLast Summer” with...

BRANDY NORWOOD, whowas in “Osmosis Jones” withLaurence Fishburne, who wasin “The Color Purple” with

Whoopi Golberg, who was on

“The View” with...

BRISTOL PALIN, whose

mother Sarah Palin was on

“Saturday Night Live” with

Josh Brolin, who was in “The

Goonies” with Corey Feldman,

who was in “The Lost Boys”

with Kiefer Sutherland, who

was in “A Few Good Men” with

Cuba Gooding Jr., who was in

“Snow Dogs” with...

MICHAEL BOLTON, who

was in “Back by Midnight”

with Ed Begley Jr., who was on

“St. Elsewhere” with William

Daniels, who was on “Knight

Rider” with...

DAVID HASSELHOFF, who

was in “The New Guy” with

Eliza Dushku, who is dating...

RICK FOX, who was in

“Blue Chips” with Shaquille

O’Neal, who was in “Scary

Movie 4” with Leslie Nielsen,

who was in “Naked Gun

33 1⁄3” with...

FLORENCE HENDERSON,

who was in “The Brady Bunch

Movie” with RuPaul, who was

in “To Wong Foo, Thanks For

Everything, Julie Numar” with

Patrick Swayze, who was in

“Dirty Dancing” with...

JENNIFER GREY, who was

in “Red Meat” with John Slat-

tery, who was in “Charlie Wil-

son’s War,” which was based

on late Southeast Texas U.S.

Rep. Charlie Wilson.

to make it past the judgesand to the next round. Sofar, she’s been one of thefavorites.She’s never had one of the

worst dishes and she’s wonfour challenges, $20,000 anda trip for two to Paris.Her success on the show

doesn’t surpriseherparents,who remember their daugh-ter as someone who hadsomewhat of a competitivenature growing up.Lloyd Austin remembers

his daughter as a quiet childwho was creative and lovedto playwith dolls.“She likedbeingoff toher-

self really,” said her mom,Louisa Austin, a stylist atShear Power in Beaumont.“She really always had agood little personality.”WhenDerry got older, her

parents said she kept busyafter school with several ex-tracurricular activities.Derry played the saxo-

phone in middle school,and was on the volleyball,basketball and track teamsatOzen.Shestartedtakingculinary

classes at the Taylor CareerCenter while at Ozen, whichher parents said is when shedecided she wanted to pur-sue a culinary career.Derry’s first job in the res-

taurant business was a wait-ress at IHOP on Eastex Free-way, Louisa Austin said.She was in high school at

the time, and came homeafter work one night aroundmidnight, sat on her mom’sbed and said, “I knowwhat Iwant to do. I want to cook.”When she first told Lloyd

Austin her plans to attendculinary school, hewas con-fused.“I really didn’t know any-

thing about it,” said Austin,a pastor at Universal Churchof theLivingGodandanem-ployee for the Motiva con-tractor Turner Industries. “Ithought it had something todowith flowers.”As graduation came clos-

er, Austin said some of hercoaches at Ozen tried tohelp her get scholarships forone of the many sports sheplayed.She instead chose to at-

tend culinary school at theArt Institute inHouston.“I said, ‘You’re gong to

have us pay all that whenyou can be going to schoolfor free?’ ” said Austin.While at the Art Institute,

Derry met Chef Mark Hol-ley, the executive chef at theupscale Houston restaurantPesce.Holley approached Derry

and asked if she’d be inter-ested in joining their team.Sheacceptedhisoffer and

worked for five months inthe kitchen as an intern.After that, she decided to

stay with the restaurant foranother two years.“Tiffany had a clear un-

derstanding of what shewanted out of Pesce and thekitchen,” Holley said. “Shehad a good grasp of the fun-damentals, and she was afast learner.”Derry had high expecta-

tions of herself, Holley said,so he pushed her harderthan the other chefs in therestaurant.She succeeded in the

kitchen and because of that,he said, she is amuch betterchef.After two years at Pesce,

theownersof that restaurantasked Tiffany if she’d liketo move to Dallas to workas executive sous chef of arestaurant they had there,GrottoCucina.When that restaurant

closed, she went to teachclasses at the Art Institute inDallas.There, her father said she

met the people who weretrying to open the Go Fish

OceanClubwhere she’s cur-rently executive chef.

9>B@?)8>$$#1

Derry left to start filming“TopChef” inApril, her hus-band, Mark Mitchell said,and he was one of the fewwho knew where she wasgoing.The network allowed

the contestants to tell theirspouses what they would bedoing for the next six weeks,he said, but she couldn’t tellanyone else.She told her restaurant

that she was going overseasto study.Her parents and her

19-year-old brother, Quin-ton,didn’t findoutuntil Junethat she was a contestant onthe cable television realityshow.Derry told them she was

doing something excit-ing and that they would beproud of her.“She was like, ‘I can’t

talk about it, I can’t tell youwhere I’mat, I can’t call you,’” Louisa Austin said.“It botheredme because I

didn’t know where she wasgoing. She would call everytwo weeks or something. Inormally talk to her everyday.”Derry signed a million-

dollar confidentiality letter,and Mitchell said she hasn’tcome close to letting some-thing slip.“I try toget itoutofher,but

she won’t tell me anything,”he said. “My friends call meor Facebook me and ask mewhat happens. I don’t knowand they say ‘You’re lying.’ IfI knew, I’d be rich. I hear Ve-gas bookies are taking betsonwho’s going towin.”Derry and Mitchell mar-

ried in Costa Rica on July17 (fellow “Top Chef” con-testants Arnold Myint andTamesha Warren attended)and Mitchell said it’s pos-sible Derry already had wonthe show.She’s currently out of

town, but Mitchell isn’t sureexactly where she is or whatshe’s doing.Her family thinks the“Top

Chef” producers have donea good job of portrayingDerry as she is in real life.“I think most people that

know her know that’s howshe is,” Louisa Austin said.“They’re all so excited forher.”Derry helps other contes-

tants out when they need it,she says what’s on her mindand she doesn’t let anythingdistract her.On two occasions, she

gave other chefs tips on howto fix theirdishes in theelim-ination challenge.Both times, she said she

didn’t want to win becausesomething went wrong withsomeone else’s food.“That’s her exactly,”

Mitchell said. “That’s whatreally turned me on abouther when I first met her —how genuine and down-to-earth shewas.”Already famousIn the few times she’s

made it back to Dallas for avisit, Mitchell said it doesn’ttake long for people to rec-ognize Derry. She spendsa lot of time signing auto-graphs and posing for pic-tures, he said.The Austins also have

been recognized for theirdaughter’s television fame.A few weeks ago, one of

her customers told Louisashe has a friend in Michi-gan who’s a Beaumont na-tive and a huge fan of herdaughter.When the friend came in

town for a visit, Louisa saidthe customer brought herfriend in tomeet her.“I was at the shop and I

heard the lady asking herfriend, ‘Do you think shewill mind if I take her pic-

ture?’ ” Louisa said. “So Itold Tiffany’s husband, ‘Youtell Tiffany she’s not the onlyonewhohas fans.’ ”Lloyd’s co-workers are

proud of his daughter aswell, he said, and generallystart the day after the showtelling him, “We did goodlast night.”When the show first start-

ed, Lloyd said one of hisco-workers called him outat a safety meeting, saying,“Your daughter is on ‘TopChef’ and I think it’s a shameyoudidn’teventellus.That’ssomething to be proud of.”The conversation shifted

from work topics to “TopChef,” Lloyd said, until theperson running themeetingstoodupandsaid, “CanI fin-ishmy safetymeeting?”

-65 A@# ;>54

Tonight, Derry will com-pete against the final fivechefs for achance to travel toSingapore to film the show’sfinale. If she wins in Singa-pore, she’ll get $125,000, afeature in Food and Winemagazine, a showcase at theAnnualFoodandWineClas-sic in Aspen and the “TopChef” title.Her family said everyone

they’ve talked to thinks Tif-fany can win the “Top Chef”

title.They’re confident, but

also a little nervous.Holley, on theotherhand,

isn’t worried.“She has an excellent

chance of winning,” he said.“She works well under pres-sure, and she’s very level-headed.”Derry also seems to un-

derstand the concept andstrategyof the game,he said,and she’s a good cook.“She brings excitement to

the show with her personal-ity,” he said. “I think that asfar as personality, she hasthe most uplifting personal-ity. That counts for some-thing on that show.”Herparentswill bewatch-

ing from the sofa in their liv-ing room, their feet proppedup on the coffee table untilsomethingmakes them ner-vous.Then Louisa will grab

a towel and twist it in herhands, and Lloyd will sit upa little straighter.“Some people are like

‘Well, what if she gets elimi-nated?’ and I’m like, ‘Wellto us she’s already our topchef,’” Louisa said. “It was ablessing from God just forher to be on that show.”

trouble.Tiffany’s parents, Louisa

andLloydAustin, almost fellout of their chairs.

“When Ed leaned overand looked like he was kiss-ingher Iwas like, ‘Tiffanydidhe kiss you!’ ” Louisa said ofher conversation with herdaughter after the episodeaired. “She was like, ‘Mom-ma! It’s a TV show. That’swhat theydo—makepeopleact just like you’re acting.”

Austin said Tiffany toldherEdwaswhispering to tell

her he didn’t like workingwith another guy.The cameras don’t pick

upwhispers, Tiffany said.But Mark Mitchell, who’s

now her husband, said hewasn’t worried for a second.“I knew itwasTV,”he said.

“I trust Tiffany amillion per-cent. Iwouldbecomfortablewith Tiffany in a room with20 guys and I know I don’thave to worry. Her valuesare too strong to let anythinghappen.”In the limited conversa-

tions he had with Tiffanyabout the show, he said she

told him she and Ed wereclose.“She told me everybody

thoughtitwasweirdbecauseher and Ed became friends,”he said.“Everyone else wanted

to talk about the show andbrag and boast about theircareers.“They talked about me

and about his girlfriend,normal stuff.”He was a little surprised,

he said, when last week’sepisode opened with Edwalking around thehouse inTiffany’s yellowdress.

“Ididn’tlikelastweekwithEd in her dress,” he said.“That dress is history. I

was like, ‘Hey, Ed, we’re tak-ing it a little too far.’ Thatwasone of my favorite dresses,too. Yellow is my favoritecolor.”

In last week’s “TopChef” elimination chal-lenge, the chefswereasked to take over theWashingtonNationalsconcession stand.Tiffanymade an Italian

meatball subwith fennel,basil pesto and freshmoz-zarella, inspired by herfavorite dish at the SouthTexas State Fair. Here’sthe recipe. It requires amoderate skill level, andtakes about twohours tomake.

Italian meatball sub

with fennel, basil

pesto and fresh

mozzarella

Makes: 4 ServingsIngredients:

Meatball:

! 1 lb ground beef(80/20)

! 1 lb ground pork! 1 bunch flat leaf

parsley! 4 cloves garlic! 1 Tbl lemon zest! 2 Tbl fennel seeds! 1 Tbl cumin seeds! 1 Tbl paprika! 1 Tbl chili powder! 1 Tbl cayenne! 3 Tbl salt! 2 Tbl black pepperTomato Sauce:

! 2 cans whole peeledtomatoes, crushed by hand

! 4 cloves garlic,minced

! ½ cup white wine! ½ bunch flat leaf

parsley! 1 Tbl red chili flakes! ½ cup chicken stock! ¼ cup fresh basil,

chiffonade! ½ cup extra virgin

olive oil! Salt and pepper, to

taste

Peperonata:

! 1 onion, sliced! 1 red bell pepper,

sliced! 1 green bell pepper,

sliced! 2 Tbl oil! Salt and pepper, to

tasteGarnish:

! Italian bread baguette,toasted

! Pesto sauce (can usestore bought)

! Fresh mozzarella,sliced

! Grated parmesanFor the meatball:

1. In a food processor,puree parsley, garlic, andlemon zest. In a large bowl,mix all remaining ingredi-ents.

Add puree mixture andform into a small ball.

2. Taste by cookinga small ball on a grill orsauté pan to insure properseasoning. Form balls andcook over flattop or grill.

For the tomato sauce:

1. In a saucepot, sweatgarlic in olive oil until aro-matic. Add wine, parsley,and chili flakes, and reduceby half.

Add chicken stock andtomatoes, and allow to sim-mer for 15 minutes. Adjustflavor with salt and pepper.Finish with basil.

For the peperonata:

1. On griddle, cook allvegetables until al dente.Season with salt and pep-per.

To Serve:Place a couple meatballs

in inside Italian bread. Topwith tomato sauce andthen peperonata.

Garnish with mozzarella,then pesto, and finallygrated parmesan.

Source: BravoTV.com

Tiffany’s

Italian

meatball

sub with

fennel,

basil pesto

and fresh

mozzarella

Photocourtesy ofBravo.com

Want to cook like ‘TopChef ’ Tiffany Derry?

9,* -:(&' Parents didn’t know she was on show at first

(+' ‘Her values are too strong to let anything happen’Continued from page 1B

Continued from page 1B

The Associated Press

The two-hour season premiere of ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ airs

Sept. 20 on ABC. The new lineup of stars, from left, Brandy,

David Hasselhoff, Jennifer Grey, Kurt Warner, Margaret Cho,

Kyle Massey, Audrina Patridge, Rick Fox, Florence Henderson,

co-host Brooke Burke, Bristol Palin, and host Tom Bergeron.

.% 3!>A?>65 .8651KBland@BeaumontEnterprise.com(409) 880-0752

The six-ish degreesof a ‘Dancing’ castWe can tie the new cast of ‘Dancingwith the Stars’ to Southeast Texas;And yes, we’ve got Kevin Bacon, too

ONLINE We’re tunedin to local folks on TV atBeaumontEnterprise.

com/BEStars

CHECK, PLEASE

If you reallywant to feelcontinental, sushi is agood choice for lunch.If you canuse chopsticks,

you are taking themeal toanother level.When Iwent toOrange

Seafood and SteakHouse, Iwas able to feel continentalwhile surroundedby thecomforts of Southeast Texas.There aren’t verymany

placeswhere you can see analligator on top of a bamboosushi bar.Unapologetically true to

its roots, this Cajun/Asianrestaurant offers awide vari-ety of food.Not ready to fully commit

to a foreign palette? You canorder etouffeewith egg rollsor have an order of edamamewith fried chicken.My eyewas caught by an

alligator appetizer. It’s friedand served in a familiar redplastic oval-shaped basket.Alligator is not as tough or

gamey as I thought it wouldbe. It remindedmeofwhatI think a fried oyster-shrimphybridwould taste like. Thedishwasmade better by acocktail sauce thatwas remi-niscent of salsa.Don’t like alligator? There

is a baby octopus salad thatmight be right up your alley.For themain course, I

ordered off the sushimenu.I ordered the Tokyo,which

is spicy salmon and avocadoinsidewith snow crab andspicy tuna on top, andOr-angeCounty, which is tem-pura shrimp and avocadoinsidewith salmonon top.

The rolls were plateddecoratively. The shrimptails protruded fromeitherend of theOrangeCountyroll in an artful way. Pointsfor style.The rolls werewrapped

tightly and cut inmanage-able pieces. I did not have tousemyopposite-of-suavetrick of cutting a piece in halftomake it amanageable size.Both rolls were prepared

with Sriracha hot chili sauce,one ofmy favorite condi-ments.If you’re looking for cos-

mopolitan farewith familiarCajun flair, giveOrange Sea-food and SteakHouse a try.If you get nervous once

you get there, you alwayshave the option of ordering acheeseburger and fries.

Eat sushi, feel continentalwhile dining in Orange

08#7 /2#Alexandra.McGuffie@BeaumontEnterprise.com

(409) 880-0793

If you go

Orange Seafood &Steak House3104 Edgar Brown DriveOrange, TX 77630-5348(409) 670-1900

What else is on the

plate?

BeaumontEnterprise.com/checkplease