### The Crucible
The clock started.
A sharp beep echoed through the grand competition hall, and with it, the kitchen came alive in a burst of movement and noise. Gas ignited. Blades danced. Pans hit burners with metallic certainty.
The theme loomed above them in blazing white letters:"Precision, Purity, and Perfection: Reinventing the Classics."
Charlotte blocked it all out.
She had her plan.
Reinvent the classic Coq au Vin—without the wine, the heavy fat, the butter, or the hours of braising. The richness would come from flavor layering, not cream or oil.
Her version would be light but bold. Chicken thigh, gently poached in a mushroom-vegetable consommé. Red wine flavor mimicked with reduced beet juice and pomegranate molasses. Instead of buttered mashed potatoes: cauliflower purée with roasted garlic and a whisper of truffle.
She wasn't trying to prove she was a professional.
She wanted to prove that healthy food could still seduce the palate.
