Recently in FF4- Interpreted Category

Wow, Food Fight Four is complete, and Shauna has submitted a beauty to close it up! I've excerpted most of her post at Gluten Free Girl, but go to her place for the whole thing, along with lots of other great stuff.

Shauna drew MC's Northwest Salmon with a Twist"" as her dish to interpret, and she definitely took the ball and ran with it. Apricot sausage? Watermelon sorbet? Right on.

She also said some nice things about yours truly that I'm not sure I deserve, but I really appreciate it. When I formulated Survival Spice™ for production, I was a maniac about sourcing premium ingredients. I wanted to produce an all natural product because it tasted better than anything else I tried, not because I was aware of Celiac Disease at that point. Happily, when I checked with my suppliers, they each said their ingredients were gluten free, so I felt comfortable spending the money to have it verified by an independent lab. There are lots of good resources on Shauna's blog for those with Celiac disease, if you know someone please pass her site on to them.

Wow, an Elk Salad? After a brief flashback to "Anne Elk", the Monty Python bit, I decided that I'm game!

Meg substituted elk for venison, with great results, in her interpretation of Matt's "Melonhead's Venison Salad". I really dug the way she noticed that her sauce wasn't working, and the way she worked her way out of it.

Her post at I heart Bacon is here, and her blog and terrific recipe section are daily surfing for me.

(All photos: Mary, of TPC's Mediterranean Madness)

Okay, so I overdid it. Ana's entry really got me thinking about a style of food that I haven't prepared nearly enough, and it was time to correct that a bit. Ana's salad featured homemade falafel and pita bread, so I had to make those, but what else? Part of the charm of Mediterranean cuisine is all the wonderful side dishes- dips, spreads, salads, so I had to make some of those, too.

This was getting to be a lot of work, and I hadn't even gotten to an entrée yet! To keep it simple, I decided to grill a bunch of kabobs, chicken, shrimp and lots of veggies. Something for everyone, and some low/no carb options for those who requested it. I'll post some recipes later, lots of pics and comments are posted below. Thanks to Mary, a great photographer friend of mine, who took all these great pictures, despite inadequate lighting and all of us trying to steal food off the plates before she could shoot them.

Warning: Uncontrollable drooling ahead!

Oh, man. Ana has presented us with her take on Shauna's "Grilled Cheese with Amaranth Leaves and Blackberry Sauce". Made from a wonderful homemade bread, it's loaded with goodies.

(Photo: Matt's version of Diana's "Everyman's Edible Slider")

Wow, another great version of an original entry! Matt kicked up the chili sauce and ground his own beef tenderloin, resulting in a truly 'drool-worthy' effort. I dig the guitar pick, and the Les Paul in the last picture!

Matt's take on Diana's Everyman's Edible Slider is below the fold.

(Photo: MC's Grilled Gumbo)

Another entry in for the Interpreted part of Food Fight 4. MC drew the Gumbo I submitted and really made it his own. While 'tipping' the hat to the gumbos taught to me by my friends from Mississippi, Matt and Jerry, MC made it his own by using Northwest ingredients, incorporated his passion for grilling, and did a wonderful job of photographing it. Good stuff, Mac!

Matt has submitted his version of Diana's "Everyman's Edible sliders", which I'll post tomorrow, so that each entry has a full day to be ooh'd and aah'd over.

Here's Paul's version of Megan's entry.

Nicely done, Paul! I need to get one of those kickass steamer baskets so I can make this properly some day. The home grown bell peppers look amazing, too.

So Paul, by the way that Mojo was sniffin' the ginger, does this mean that Mojo is a "Mary Ann" kind of dog?

I have one more entry in so far, I'll post it tomorrow. Please remember, all entries should be in by next Monday, I need to get cracking on mine, too.

Our first 'interpreted' dish is in. Diana has submitted her version of Paul's Puffy Corn Omelet and did a great job customizing the original Gourmet recipe to the ingredients and kitchen equipment available. I really like the fact that she kicked up the heat a bit, but still kept the spirit of the dish.

She apologizes for the picture quality, but I believe her when she said it tasted great! Nice job, Diana!

Keep those interpreted dishes coming in by emailing them here. All interpreted dishes will be available in the FF4- Interpreted category in the side bar.

I'll open the voting on the 'Original' submitted dishes category tomorrow, so take a few minutes to review the entries!