It was a perfect day for a battle! A cooking battle, that is. This past Sunday, GLAAD held their Summer Fundraiser and we had Chef Jamie Lauren and Chef Rich Sweeney from Top Chef Season 5 battling out in front of GLAAD supporters and foodies. My friend Tim came with me to the event as I was attending as Press for FoodieInDisguise.

For those of you who recall, Richard and Jamie were 2/3 of Team Rainbow - the gays and lesbians of Top Chef 5. Patrick packed his knives in the first episode. Emceeing the event today was Paul McCollough. Some of you may remember Paul as a contestant on The Next Food Network Star. He owns and manages a catering company here in Los Angeles.

Richard and Jamie started the event with a Quickfire Challenge; dice 4 onions, chiffonade basil and slice 2 oranges Imperial style. The Quickfire was neck and neck but Richard prevailed. Next was the real challenge. They both had 25 minutes to create their dishes. Richard was making a Watermelon/Cucumber Gazpacho and Jamie presented a Tomato Salad with Feta and Watermelon. The judges for the event were Robert Gant, Elizabeth Keener, Wilson Cruz and Edison Briones. After the judges did their tastings, the VIPs at the event also got to taste the dishes and vote.

So who won? Who was presented with the big GOLDEN WHISK??

It was an audience tie, but the judge’s vote but Richard ahead and he wins the Top Chef Invasion Challenge! Congrats to Richard. The Watermelon/Cucumber Gazpacho was wonderful. Lite and sooo tasty! The winning recipe can be found at WannaBChef.com.

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More pictures to come!