re: What's the one cooking contest show you could hold your own?

None. I'm a paint by numbers cook (with a little improvisation here and there). But I consider myself a good cook because I've put together a good collection of recipes over the years that I enjoy cooking and that taste great. I wouldn't call it an art, but there's something to be said for knowing which book to pull off the shelves for a particular dish when a half dozen books have a different recipe for the same dish. And lots. Of recipes passed down from mom or grandma.
I can't freestyle much, but I'd put what I cook against what passes for cajun or creole by some of those guys (or what looks like shrimp creole plus okra in that N.Y. Gumbo thread).

Yea, maybe spend 6 months perfecting your duck enchiladas

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I'd have to learn how to use the ice cream maker and just make whatever I could out of the ingredients as ice cream.

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That's my wife. Every time we watched Chopped, when they get to the dessert round, no matter what the ingredients are she yells out at the TV, "Make ice cream." Cracks me up.

Same here. I can riff on things I have in my own pantry, but even the kids on Master Chef come up with stuff I've never made.