Sister Alicia Torres was named champion on last night's special volunteer edition of Food Network's "Chopped," and she couldn't be happier to receive $10,000 as a way to help combat hunger.
The 30-year-old nun competed against three other contestants on this special edition Thanksgiving episode called "Thanksgiving Soup-er Stars."
"All four chefs in this special Thanksgiving competition dedicate their time and talents to soup kitchens," according to Food Network. "In the first round, the chefs each come up with distinctive appetizer concepts in response to the typical Thanksgiving leftovers found in the baskets. Then in the entrée round, the remaining chefs are surprised to see a theme emerging with the baskets. An ice cream cake and a starchy candy are two of the perplexing items to be dealt with in the final round."
She showed her skills when she turned the holiday leftovers into a Mexican-style quesadilla during the appetizer round, and these skills continued to shine in her Mediterranean-style dish for the main course round. Her curry turkey, sweet potato cranberry hash and goat cheese dipping sauce won the judges over for not only the creativity, but also the deliciousness.
"I live, pray and serve at the Mission of Our Lady of Angels in Chicago," Torres' Twitter profile reads. "My goal is to be a saint, and my desire is to do God's will! Peace!!"
In the end, her cooking skills helped her achieve her goal as she won the $10,000 for Mission of Our Lady of the Angels, which helps provide home-cooked meals for peoples in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood.
"The Lord gave me this talent," she told the judges. "I believe the kitchen is my canvas where I get to express myself creatively...Perhaps being on national TV and winning this competition will bring some attention to the issue of hunger and to the reality that God's love is so strong and so big, he can take this little nun from Chicago who never went to culinary school to compete. Literally nothing is impossible with God."
