And the winner is...

Mom and I arrived in LA early Friday afternoon. We rented a blue Ford Focus with an insane blind spot on the right side (sorry Mom!) and drove to the Los Angles County Fairgrounds where the cooking competition was being held. Our plan was to familiarize ourselves with the area and check into a hotel close by. Turns out we weren't the only ones. Aside from the cook-off, the fairgrounds were also playing host to drag racing finals and a home improvement and remodeling expo. Every decent hotel within a 20 mile radius was booked.

After driving around for what felt like hours, we finally found a vacancy. The Claremont Lodge was only a few miles from the fairgrounds and walking distance to downtown Claremont. On the outside, it looked a little seedy but we figured that as long as it was clean inside, we could handle it for one night.


Mom opened the door to our room - I was scared to look. I forced myself to open my eyes, and my fears were confirmed. The place was nasty, more fowl than turducken! I didn't know if I could even stay overnight...


We were tired and hungry, and we knew that finding another hotel with a vacancy would mean driving at least 30 minutes away. We decided that one night in the by-the-hour-esque slump probably wouldn't kill us. So we lugged our belongings up to the room, put on our bullet proof vests, and drove three blocks to downtown Claremont, which actually was very cute.

Amazing little tapas bar in downtown Claremont.

We ate, we drank, we went to a movie, we stayed away from that room as long as possible...

The kidnapper van parked right next to our room. 

My pillow, complete with a Dallas Cowboys logo - gross.

In the morning, we got out of there quick! We had a few hours until the competition started, and I still needed to pick up a few ingredients for my enchiladas. Aetna, the company sponsoring the event, was supposed to provide all of my ingredients but I wanted to make sure I had exactly what I needed just in case. We pulled over and asked a pedestrian for directions to the nearest Whole Foods. "The closest one is in Pasadena, about half an hour away." The man told us. Technically, we had time to get there and back before the competition started. After making a few stops at different grocery stores with no luck of finding my special enchilada sauce or tomatillo salsa, we decided to make the trip to Whole Foods in Pasadena.


The clock was ticking as fast as my heart. Once inside Whole Foods,  I could barely remember why I was  there. I was pacing the aisles and lost track of Mom. My phone was blowing up with messages from my friends wondering how things were going and I was distracted from the task at hand. I just needed to find my Mom. "What are we getting here again?" I asked her about my recipe. She led me straight to the salsa and the Hatch brand enchilada sauce that we drove 30 minutes to find. Equipped with the goods, we headed towards the fairgrounds. I was shaking.

We arrived early, just as the first group of cooks was finishing. It was nice because I was able to ask the other contestants questions and got a few great tips about cooking in the mini kitchens. I was led  backstage to look over my ingredients. Everything was fine except for the dark, leafy, bunch of dino kale that was supposed to be Swiss chard. This may have slipped passed someone who doesn't spend as much time at the farmer's market as I do. I pointed out the mistake to Chef Frank and he assured me that it would be taken care of before I started cooking, and it was.

It was finally my turn to cook! Chef Frank, who was very cute, gave me and the five other contestants in my group a lesson on how to use the convection oven. It was a little tricky and you had to be very careful with the stove top burners. They were set to a safety mode and if you picked up or moved your saute pan, they would automatically shut off. That happened to me about 75 times while sauteing my leeks and Swiss chard. Everything else was going well. The 90 minutes I had to prepare and serve my dish was flying by. The event was open to the public so there were people crowded around my kitchen asking questions about my enchiladas. I felt like Rachel Ray hosting '90 Minute Meals'.

There were only 15 minutes left on the clock when I put my enchiladas in the oven. I was freaking out! I cranked up the convection oven and started praying. I watched them carefully and the second the sauce started bubbling, I took them out and plated them. I had to present one main plate to be judged on presentation plus four additional taster portions to be eaten by the judges and scored on flavor. When I presented my dish, I introduced myself and explained my recipe to the judges. It was completely nerve wracking. Mom and I carefully observed each judge as they ate my enchiladas. They seemed to be enjoying them.

I had to fill out a survey and other paperwork with my information in case I won.

After the competition, Mom and I both needed a drink! There was a lovely Sheridan hotel on the fairgrounds campus - totally booked up, of course - but we decided to have a cocktail at the bar and make plans for the night. We were coming back the next day to watch the second half of the competition and meet Iron Chef, Cat Cora. While in Pasadena earlier that day, I told Mom about J-LO's restaurant, Madres. We decided to go check it out. I asked our cocktail waitress to recommend a hotel in Pasadena and she suggested the Westin. It sounded perfect! I had Betty, aka the GPS on my cell phone, take us straight there. We would have been so lost without Betty!

There was no kidnapper van in front of this hotel and the man approaching our car was a valet attendant, not a drug dealer. Andrew helped us with our bags and led us up to our 5th story room. Compared to the night before, we felt like we had just checked in to the Taj Mahal. Our room was gorgeous! There was a balcony with a great view and the pool was just around the corner. I could tell that Mom really liked this place.

We cleaned up and went downstairs, and I wasn't at all embarrassed to ask the concierge for directions to J-LO's restaurant. He laughed a little and told me that it was no longer in business. I guess Madres went under when J-LO became a madre herself.


Mom and I were having a blast. Since my Sister's baby was born last year, we haven't spent much time alone together. It was so nice to be away from everything enjoying some mother/daughter time. We went out to sushi, came back to our room, and opened a bottle of wine. We spent the rest of the evening making new friends and sipping wine poolside under the stars.

There was a young couple enjoying the hotel jacuzzi when Mom and I arrived on the scene. Anyone who knows my Mom also knows that she is not at all shy about starting conversation with strangers. Before long, the four of us were chatting about food, family, work, traveling, and more food. Turns out we had tons of things in common with Ame and Everett. Ame went to high school in La Selva Beach and both Ame and Everett work as child behavior specialists. Mom, being an aide to autistic twins, felt a connection with them immediately. While Mom and Ame talked work, Everett and I talked food. They are both vegetarians and plan weekend vacations around cities and towns that favor local, organic, farm-to-table focused restaurants. Of course my blog came up and before long I was encouraging them to start a blog of their own. I would love to read about the places and food they are experiencing.

Ame and Everett 

Our new friends invited us to join them at Le Pain Quotidien -an adorable bakery cafe in Old Town Pasadena- for breakfast in the morning. Of course everything on the menu was fresh, local, seasonal, and organic. Over breakfast, we talked about eating out while traveling and the fact that restaurants catering to the conscious diner aren't specified in the tourist dining guides. Sounds like a good blog concept to me!


The four of us commented on how much we felt like old friends. It was such a pleasure to have met Ame and Everett.  I think I convinced them to visit - and I cant wait for them to experience eating out in Santa Cruz... Consciously.

I ordered the leek, spinach, and gruyere quiche, it was delicious!

Mom had the avocado, tomato, and Swiss omelet. 

We said goodbye to our friends and had Betty escort us back to the fairgrounds to watch the final leg of the cook-off. I was really excited to meet Cat Cora. She is a chef whom I have respected for a long time. She was also the first female to earn the title "Iron Chef". I'm not going to lie, I also wanted to say hello to Chef Frank. The competition was in full swing. We arrived just before the first contestant was about to plate his Thai Ginger Turkey Burgers. There was just enough time for me to ask Cat for a picture. She was very sweet and TINY! I said hi to chef Frank and he wished me luck. A few of the girls working at the event were excited to see me back and asked for info about my blog. Mom and I watched a few more contestants present their food before heading back to the airport. The winner of the LA region was to be announced by 9pm. I would be on the airplane at that time. I checked my phone constantly until we took off and I had to turn it off. By the time we landed I would know whether or not I would be competing in the finals for $10,000.00 and the title of "America's Healthiest Cook."

 Iron Chef Cat Cora 

We landed in San Jose at 9:25pm. I nervously turned on my cell phone, zero new messages. I woke up in the morning to find this e-mail...

Hot off the presses!!

It's time to let all of our Pomona Aetna  Healthy Food Fight competitors know...

*****   Joni Hilton of Rocklin, California is our Pomona Winner!   *****

Joni competed with her recipe entitled
Sizzlin' Salmon Kebabs over Mango Brown Rice

I am very happy for the winner and wish her the best of luck. And, although I didn't make it to the finals, I truly had the time of my life trying!! 

Mom - thanks for everything, I love you so much.  Your words were too kind...Interview with Mom