And Swampscott’s ultimate chef is…

SWAMPSCOTT – They shopped and chopped; there was searing and cheering, and a little more than a year after his restaurant reopened after a devastating fire, a Marblehead chef took top honors at the second Annual Chefs Throwdown at the Swampscott Farmer’s Market.”I’m totally psyched,” said Chef Barry Edelman of 5 Corners Kitchen in Marblehead. “It’s been an incredible year, we’ve been so busy and it’s been better than ever.”Three local chefs competed in this year’s Throwdown at the Swampscott Farmer’s Market Sunday: Edelman; Gregg Brackman, chef / owner of G Bar & Kitchen, and last-year’s winner; and Craig Hawley, private chef / caterer and owner of Bar-B-Que Bistro and Fish and Fowl Supper Club.Each were allowed to bring up to five different pantry items from their own kitchen, while Whole Foods of Swampscott provided basic pantry items such as salt, pepper, oils, etc.The chefs were also given $35 to spend at the market, 15 minutes to shop (with community assistants helping to carry food) and an hour to prepare their dish for tasting.The starts were staggered; and the chefs drew straws to see who would go first and get first pick at the vendors.The secret ingredient – live lobster provided by market vendor Rowan’s Fish Market in Beverly – was revealed to each chef as his shopping period began.”It’s survival of the fittest from the very beginning,” said Swampscott Farmer’s Market Volunteer Lisa Julien-Hayes. She noted Edelman got first pick and pretty much wiped out the fresh thyme. She said fresh, field-grown tomatoes were also a hot commodity.”They shop very differently than how regular consumers do,” Julien-Hayes observed. “They do a lot by smell and feel.”Hawley provided the cooking apparatus; his mobile Bar-B-Que Bistro, a food truck and trailer equipped with grill, smoker, burners and music.”We’re big fans of those Throwdown shows on the Food Network, we love these things, and we love the farmer’s market,” said Swampscott resident Laura Kabel while among the crowd watching the chefs at work and picking up cooking techniques.As Edelman finished his dish, the smells started.”I’m glad I’m on this side of the table and you guys are out there,” said fudge and event host Kim Carrigan, as she sampled Edelman’s pan-roasted lobster with creamed leeks over a vegetable fricassee.Carrigan and two other local restaurateur judges evaluated the dishes on four factors, giving each a score of 1 to 7 with a latter being the highest. The categories were how well the dish incorporated items from the farmers market; the appearance and presentation of the dish; the execution of the dish; and, of course, how it tasted.It was a close finish with three very different dishes.Brackman earned 71 points for his lobster salad over cocoa-espresso-flavored, grilled acorn squash.Hawley earned 74 points for a smoked lobster in aioli sauce.But Edelman edged out the competition with 75 points for his pan-roasted lobster. He described it to the judges as a pan-roasted lobster with creamed leeks over a fricassee of radish, turnip, corn, fennel and grilled romaine lettuce, with caramelized cauliflower finished with a vinaigrette including white miso and creme fraiche.Asked what he would call it on his menu, he replied, “lobster.”Based on the quickness with which audience samples disappeared, all of the dishes were excellent. And if they spark your taste buds, you can check your local restaurants.”We wanted the community to come out and come together and wanted local businesses to come out and show what’s going on in the community,” said farmer’s market volunteer Suki Ellsworth. “There are so many businesses in town that people don’t know about.”