Top Chef Masters 2: The Contestants & Cook-offs We Wanna See By Joanne [46 more lists]

Top Chef Masters Season 2 is only days away, and we're already drooling over the list of contestants. Of course, we can only hope the challenges will be worthy of this year's crop of cooks. Just like we can only hope that stick-thin Kelly Choi might actually eat something this time around.

In the meantime, as we eagerly anticipate the first course of the second season of Top Chef Masters, we've cooked up our own list of the challenges we'd like to see this year's contestants take on. Of course, we know this isn't exactly how Top Chef Masters works. But hey, a foodie can dream, right?

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1

Graham Elliot Bowles

The nation's youngest four-star chef, Bowles has a reputation for being a bit of a badass when it comes to combining cooking with his - ahem - creative sense of humor. Hence the caesar salad with brioche twinkie (yes, twinkie) that graces the menu at his flagship Graham Elliot restaurant. And, in summer 2009, Bowles was the official culinary ambassador for rock music festival Lollapalooza.

This makes him perfect to match up against another badass with a rock & roll background and a bit of an - ahem - creative sense of culinary humor: Alice Cooper. Cooper's Cooperstown restaurant in Phoenix made it onto the international culinary map when "No Reservations" host Anthony Bourdain ate there on national TV, enjoying a big plate of the Big Unit - a 22" hot dog whose name was no accident.

We'd love to see Cooper and Bowles go head to head - or twinkie to hot dog - to see who could come up with the craziest culinary use of a phallic symbol on national TV. And yes, size does matter.

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2

Govind Armstrong

Govind Armstrong is a culinary dreamboat known for two things - his creative, California cuisine and his incredibly good looks, which certainly didn't hurt when he was peddling his bestselling cookbook "Small Bites, Big Nights: Seductive Little Plates for Intimate Occasions and Lavish Parties."

Of course, the ultimate match-up would have Armstrong facing off against another fresh-faced young chef with a seductive spin: The Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver. They wouldn't even have to cook. They could just stand there, staring at the camera and looking pretty. We're sure that show would still get better ratings than Table 8 did when it opened in New York.

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3

David Burke

David Burke isn't just a world renowned chef. He also happens to be an inventor. In fact, he's responsible for the creation of such world changing items as the David Burke Fat Free Flavor Sprays, which Time Magazine named the "most amazing invention of 2005."

So, of course, Burke could only be paired with another inventor of his caliber. And we pick the person responsible for inventing that other pantheon of culinary perfection - the brand new KFC DoubleDown Sandwich. Because nothing makes for a more epic battle than the guy who invented fat free bacon flavored spray squaring off against the guy who put bacon and cheese in between two pieces of fried chicken and called it a sandwich.

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4

Jody Adams

Executive Chef of the Rialto Restaurant and Bar, Jody Adams is known for her fusion of Italian food and signature New England ingredients. The James Beard winner is also known for her Guerilla Grilling program, which connects restaurant staff with the farmers responsible for the food they cook and serve.

Of course, any farm to table fan knows exactly who we would want to see Adams go up against - the Queen of farm to table herself, Alice Waters. And not just because we'd love to see what kind of damage Adams' guerillas could do to Waters' edible schoolyard. Or what kind of other puns we could describe to dish the dirt on this not-so-garden-variety battle.

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5

Jimmy Bradley

Bradley is known as the "cook's chef." And this epicurean everyman runs two popular New York restaurants - Red Cat and The Harrison. Bravo calls his food "straightforward and occasionally irreverent." Which makes this silver fox the perfect pair for another silver-haired, straight shooting New Yorker with a penchant for occasional irreverence - Anthony Bourdain.

We'd love to see these two down to earth dudes take each other on for a dinner service. Forget the food, the back and forth banter would be well worth watching alone. Although maybe not for the network censors. . .

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6

Wylie Dufresne

Wylie Dufresne is the master of molecular gastronomy and Alton Brown is the host of Good Eats, Food Network's show on the science of cooking and food. Wylie Dufresne looks like Squidward in Spongebob Squarepants and Alton Brown guest starred in 2008 on the Nickelodeon TV series. It's every food geek's fantasy pair-off.

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7

Susan Feniger

Susan Feniger is no stranger to TV. Known for her popular TV show "Too Hot Tamales" with partner and friend Mary Sue Milliken, Feniger is also a leading authority on Latin cuisine in the United States. We say she should be put back on the small screen with Mary Milliken, this time not as partners but competitors.

There's nothing reality competitions can do better than ruin friendships and there has got to be enough bottled up aggression between these two tamales to make for a solidly spicy showdown. Because isn't brutal backstabbing between best friends what reality TV is supposed to be about anyway? And there's only so much mileage we foodies can get out of those darn Deen brothers.

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8

Debbie Gold

Debbie has won numerous awards for her nationally recognized restaurant The American Restaurant. And that's saying a lot for a restaurant in Kansas City. So, it's only fitting that Debbie should also be paired with an American icon who has risen from the middle of nowhere - Lady Gaga.

After all, they both emerged from the depths of obscurity to dominate in their fields. So they know what it means to claw their way to the top. And, of course, we'd love to see the outfits Lady Gaga could cook up to actually, well, cook in. Vinyl cone bra with built in leather apron, anyone?

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9

Carmen Gonzalez

Puerto Rican chef Carmen Gonzalez made her mark on the Miami food scene with Carmen: The Restaurant. In fact, her signature flavors are so famous that she's practically got first name recognition in the Latin food scene. Which makes her the perfect match for another famous Puerto Rican whose name is synonymous with Latin flavor - J.Lo.

And yes, J.Lo did have her own restaurant - Madre's in Pasadena. And yes, Madre's did close in 2008 after a somewhat lackluster run. But hey, nobody said it had to be a fair fight. Just a fun one to watch. And we'd love to see these two feisty foodies fight it out.

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10

Maria Hines

James Beard winner Maria Hines is best known for her certified organic restaurant Tilth, where she serves New American cuisine in a casually elegant atmosphere. With her fondness for farmer's markets and her love of all things outdoors - especially rock climbing - Hines is the ultimate emblem of the Northwest's down to earth fine dining scene. Which makes her the perfect match for that other famous Seattleite - Tom Douglas.

We've been itching to see Douglas compete in more televised cooking competitions ever since his epic victory over Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto in Battle Wild Salmon. And we think the opportunity to cook against rising star Maria Hines might be just the lure we need to hook Douglas right back into a cable cooking competition.

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11

Susur Lee

Susur Lee is a worldwide leader in Asian fusion cuisine and Ming Tsai is the face of "East Meets West."

It's a match made in culinary competition heaven. Lee was also once a guest chef on Ming's Food Network show, so a cook-off on Top Chef Masters would just be Ming's way of returning the favor. Lee was also only the second Canadian ever to appear on Iron Chef America. And Ming Tsai was named #16 on People's Most Beautiful People List a few years ago. Not that either of those facts has anything to do with anything, but we're sure there's a joke about Canadians in there somewhere.

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12

Ludo Lefebvre

French-born Ludo Lefebvre is best known for his pop-up restaurants LudoBites, where the bad boy brings his bold flavors to the palettes of his droves of adoring fans across Los Angeles.

Which is why his perfect pairing would be Robert Pattinson - another bad boy from across the Atlantic with a reputation for bites that bring out droves of adoring fans. We'd love to see the two of them square off to see who could play the brooding bad boy better - especially while boiling, broiling and baking.

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13

Tony Mantuano

Tony Mantuano, chef/partner at four-star Italian restaurant Spiaggia in Chicago, focuses on authentic Italian cuisine and casual, welcoming hospitality.

Sound familiar? That's right, this Italian chef's perfect pairing would be none other than Iron Chef Mario Batali. Who else could go to clog to clog with someone so well known for rustic Italian fare?

Ten points to Tony for every shade of red he can get Batali's face to turn while they cook - bonus points if he can get him to turn the same color as his crocs.

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14

Rick Moonen

Rick Moonen has got himself in a very specific niche in the culinary world: sustainable seafood and environmental chef-spokesperson. If Top Chef Masters partners him with Jeremy Piven, you know there'll be a marketing sponsorship in the works. Think frail and sickly Piven on our TV screen speaking out about salmon and mercury overdoses. And us? Another free opportunity to laugh out loud at the guy who OD'd on sushi.

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15

Mark Peel

Los Angeles has got Mark Peel's name stamped all over it. With ventures such as the award-winning restaurant Campanile, The Point, The Tar Pit, and La Brea Bakery throughout the city, Peel may be a smart competitor for Wolfgang Puck, a chef/celebrity who has walked the red carpet of LA many a times. Wait, what's that? Peel also started his career working under Puck? Did someone just say great TV?

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16

Monica Pope

Monica Pope is the only Texas woman chef to be named a Top 10 Best New Chef by Food & Wine Magazine. She's a strong southern woman with a love of local ingredients, a restaurant named Beaver's Ice House and the lesbian following that you'd expect from an out gay woman who runs a restaurant by that particular name.

That's why we'd love to see Monica compete with another strong southern woman who also happens to have a large lesbian following - the out and proud Iron Chef Cat Cora. Cora's Mediterranean-infused soul food would match up perfectly with Pope's slow cooking ways. And. we'd love to see these two first ladies of food take each other on.

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17

Thierry Rautureau

Thierry Rautureau is the owner of Rover's Restaurant in Seattle and is a James Beard Foundation Award recipient. His signature look is a hat, and he's been affectionately known as "The Chef in the Hat." So it's a no-brainer that he should be matched up with Ronald Conzonire, the president of popular Southern Californian fast-food restaurant The Hat. Wordplay. It never gets old.

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18

Marcus Samuelsson

Marcus Samuelsson was the chef responsible for preparing Barack Obama's first state dinner in 2009. He prepared a mostly vegetarian meal that was met with the same kind of critical acclaim that the rest of his restaurant career has earned him. He's a celebrated chef, and a true icon of the culinary world. And that's why there's really only one person we'd like to see him cook against.

That's right, we want to see Samuelsson take on his one-time patron, Mister President himself. Because if the past year has taught us anything, it's that Obama has no problem taking the heat. So we'd love to see what he can do in the kitchen.

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19

Ana Sortun

Known for her creative fusion cuisine and her home-spun Mediterranean flavors, Ana Sortun is a critical darling of the culinary world. Her commitment to the farm to table movement is legendary, and she lives it every day, with a family farm that furnishes her restaurant and bakery with food.

That's why we'd love to see her take on another famous farm to table chef - Dan Barber, of Blue Hill Restaurants. Of course, if this were really Top Chef Masters, we wouldn't just put two great green thumbed chefs in a kitchen with a bunch of seasonal, local produce and let them have at it. No, that would be too easy.

Instead, we'd love to see these two compete in the classic vending machine quickfire first introduced in Top Chef Season 2. Let's see what these two locavores can do with fresh, quality ingredients like Cheeto's and Cheese Nips. Hey, if Michael Midgley could do it, anyone can.

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20

Rick Tramonto

Rick Tramonto is executive chef/partner at Tru, and culinary director of Tramonto's Steak & Seafood, RT Sushi Bar, and Osteria. Along with all of that, he's also had life's more than average share of troubles. From discovering his dad was a mobster to losing his mom, marriage, dog, and house in a whirlwind of situations, Tramonto has had a lot of trials that have tested his Christian faith.

If he's our modern-day Job, then God's final test should be the devil himself, Gordon Ramsay from Hell's Kitchen. Ramsay better watch it though. Tramonto could just reach back to his mobster roots and show Ramsay what a Kitchen Nightmare really is.

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21

Jerry Traunfeld

Jerry Traunfeld is executive chef of The Herbfarm and his love of gardening makes him the male Martha Stewart in this crop of chefs. So we say, why not bring in the big M herself? She'll teach him the proper way to decorate his herb bouquets and he'll be something juicy for her to look at.

Trust us, it's a good thing.

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22

Jonathan Waxman

Aside from being a successful chef, restaurateur, and author, Jonathan Waxman (Chez Panisse, Michael's, Jams, Washington Park, Barbuto) is also a professional mentor to amateur chefs. This role of his makes him the perfect chef to go head-to-head with none other than Tim Gunn, the guidance counselor of the fashion designing world. Gunn doesn't have much of a culinary experience, but we're sure he'll "make it work."

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