Okanagan College Media Release

A second-year Okanagan College chef apprentice is making a name – and money – for himself internationally with a recipe that takes Florida tomatoes and gives them a Louisiana flavour.

Vernon resident David Colombe, who works at the Armstrong Inn, has just been named the grand prize winner of the Florida Tomato Committee’s 20th Annual Best of the Best Recipe Contest.

His creation – Fire Roasted Florida Tomato Gumbo – impressed a panel of experienced chefs and food writers with its Cajun approach to a classic soup. Besides the fame, he earned $2,000 for the recipe.

Okanagan College Culinary Arts Instructor Mike Barillaro was responsible for organizing a student competition in the teaching kitchen at the College’s Kelowna campus. That contest among students qualified Colombe’s entry into the international competition.

The contest, according to a press release from the Florida Tomato Council, is the longest-running competition for student chefs and is open to entrants from the U.S. and Canada. The judges are presented with six recipes – three from each country – and then asked to choose winners and grand prize winner. Recipes are judged on the basis of taste, appearance, originality, use of fresh tomatoes and how easy they are to prepare.

Colombe’s recipe draws on flavour derived from fire-roasting the tomatoes to intensify their taste, and then is ramped up with cayenne pepper and andouille sausage and fresh rosemary.

The inspiration for the recipe?

“I took a classic and updated it. I’m a big fan of Cajun food and this was a way to make it more flavorful and different,” said Colombe, who received the news of his victory the same day another piece of good news came in. Just before the phone call from New York (where the contest is judged), he received news that his work permit was being renewed. Colombe is an American citizen who came to the Okanagan for his chef’s training at Okanagan College.

A self-described mature student, Colombe had decided to make a career change after a decade in the music business.

“I have always been in love with cooking and food, and I’d thought about culinary training after high school, but I was worried about turning something I loved into an occupation. I was worried that if it were a job, I’d end up hating cooking dinner for myself.”

After a decade, the passion for cooking hadn’t subsided, so the career change decision was made. Why the Okanagan?

“I wanted a situation where the culinary school was in proximity to a wine region.”

The choice came down to Napa, California or the Okanagan. Okanagan College won out, not just for reasons of cost, but because there are great things happening in both industries here, and in the fusion between the two, said Colombe.

As for the next recipe coming out of Colombe’s kitchen? 

"I like to focus on fresh, vibrant flavours,” said Colombe, “and I am putting together a small collection of them, in a self published book, hopefully to be released by this fall."