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For the second time this year, Monmouth County Culinary Education Center of Asbury Park graduate Emily Chapman won top honors during a Food Network competiton.

Chapman defeated celebrity chef Robert Irvine, winning $40,000 in an episode of “Chopped: Impossible” that aired Thursday.

“Chopped: Impossible,” is a tournament of champions competition that featured 12 previous “Chopped” winners, including 27-year-old Chapman. The Ocean Township native won $10,000 during her first appearance on the show in January.

Chapman defeated five professional chefs and restaurant owners by making meals out of mystery ingredients like a “thousand-year-old egg” and fried brain sandwiches.

During the finale, Chapman went head-to-head with Irvine, host of Food Network’s “Restaurant: Impossible.” Her beef tongue, steak, and beef jerky-flavored soda dish was declared the winner by a panel of celebrity chef judges.

Chapman now lives in Brooklyn and is the sous chef at New York’s The Claremont Tavern.

“This is one of the greatest feelings of my entire life,” Chapman said, following the win. “It’s amazing the love and support I’ve been receiving not just from home, but from strangers all over the country. I did this for them, for everyone who has been there for me and everyone who was cheering me on. It means more than you know.”

The “Chopped: Impossible” finale will re-air on the Food Network throughout November. Check local listings for show times.

The Culinary Education Center, located at 101 Drury Lane in Asbury Park, is a partnership between Brookdale Community College and the Monmouth County Vocational School District.

For more information on the center call732-988-3299 or visit www.brookdalecc.edu/culinary.

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