Sugar Showdown!

­­­Last night we stopped by Poste Moderne Brasserie at the Monaco Hotel for Sugar Showdown, a friendly competition of seasonal desserts among some of DC’s top pastry talent.  

The chefs faced off using one connecting ingredient: roots: culinary roots, community roots and actual roots. Attendees were able to sample all desserts and vote for the crowd favorite; the overall decision was by the evening's judges, NBC4’s Eun Yang and Brainfood Executive Director Paul Dahm.  

All the desserts were fantastic, but our favorite was by 2941 chef Caitlin Dysart, who served a ginger root budino carrot walnut cake on a carrot confit. We snapped her flanked by Reach Inc’s Kelly Wardle and NORC’s Lauren Rice. 

Participating pastry chefs included Poste Moderne’s Casto Unson, who served a purple yam éclair with candied kumquat and rosemary oolong tuile, and Trummer’s On Main’s Deborah Brown, who served a carrot pecan cake with a citrus glaze and a cream cheese parfait.

Brainfood opened its doors in 1999 in Columbia Heights and has since expanded to Chinatown and Youth Garden at Mt. Vernon Square, serving over 150 teens, with staff who offer year-round, food-focused programming in three commercial kitchens. Here, AARP’s Tom Martin, DC Gov’s Darin Schaffer, Brian Slade, and Honeywell’s Tony Baptista. 

Brainfood's after-school and summer programs promote active learning, self-reliance and healthy living to empower youth. Here, Northrop Grumman’s Jessica Huckabee and Alion Science and Technology’s Taren Asselin.