Winner will appear in Taste of Home magazine, cook with Carla Hall, and take home $25,000
32 years of delighting palates and creating memories. I love seeing empty plates and happy faces. Cooking is my passion.
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My signature dish is *Bacalao al pil-pil*. This dish is an icon of Basque gastronomy; it consists of cooking cod with confit garlic and dried chilies, emulsifying the gelatin released from the cod skin with olive oil by gently rocking the pan back and forth until the sauce achieves a luscious, unctuous consistency, yielding an exquisite and incomparable flavor.
Who is your culinary inspiration?My family and friends
What would you do with the $25,000?My priority would be to help my family in Cuba achieve a better quality of life. I would invest in my immediate professional future by opening a small restaurant, highlighting the flavors of my native Cuba fused with appetizing dishes from Basque and Mediterranean cuisine—all with my own authentic and personal touch.
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