Sandra Lee

One the events I was most excited about attending last weekend at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival was a happy hour hosted by Sandra Lee. It wasn't the hostess that I was anticipating, however, but the location: late fashion designer Gianni Versace's villa, Casa Casuarina. The party went from 5 to 7 on Saturday, and upon arrival, I was grossly disappointed. Not by the location, but by the hostess. It was pouring rain and the entire cocktail time was held outside. The bars were drenched, the guests huddled together trying not to get wet, and the waiters looked positively miserable. How could Lee not have taken into consideration the rain?! Luckily, the party gods were with Auntie Sandy, and the rain let up quickly. Only then was I able to enjoy the event and watch Sandra and her sister, Kimmy, parade around. There was also a best-dressed contest, a synchronized swimming show, and signature appetizers (fried ravioli, cucumber with smoked salmon mousse, and stuffed mushrooms).

Images can better describe the happy hour, so check out my pictures after the break.

• Tom Colicchio is shuttering his Manhattan flagship, Craftsteak, to make way for Colicchio & Sons Tap Room. — Eater National
• Putting 35 food items to the test in the highly-anticipated Sous Vide Supreme. — Serious Eats
• New York bartenders offer their best advice for getting over that mean holiday hangover. — Grub Street
• Oh, dear: Sandra Lee is now plugging Nintendo's Wii Sports Resort games. — Eat Me Daily
• Meet coquito, a Puerto Rican holiday tipple worth trying. — Endless Simmer
• Make your New Year's so very 2010 with a speakeasy themed party. — Chow
• Could this simple tip be the centuries-old secret to stellar pasta? — The Atlantic
• Yes, you can: Craft the best pizza you've ever had at home. — The Epi-Log

• Is it too late to save the world's seafood population?— The Atlantic
• Twenty-five reasons to love the spoon. — Mouthing Off
• Hosting a party in San Francisco? Consider having it at one of these restaurants. — 7x7
• Angelina Jolie is a fan of Sandra Lee's no-bake birthday cake. — Eat Me Daily
• Catch up with New York City chefs via Twitter. — Eater NY
• Haven't figured out what to serve on Halloween? Here are four awesome menu ideas. — Bon Appétit
• Did anyone attend Baconfest in Chicago? — Serious Eats

To promote her appearance as a celebrity volunteer on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, TV chef Sandra Lee chatted with Walletpop about the merits of jarred garlic, premade cosmos, and other random musings. But the Food Network star waits for the end of the interview to leave the biggest takeaway: Being a foodie isn't about snobbery.

"A lot of people think that foodies are this huge, elitist group in the sky that are there to critique and to judge. Can I tell you? If you eat, you're a foodie. If you have an opinion about what you're tasting, that makes you a foodie. Your job in life is to enjoy your life. So whatever makes it easier, faster, and more wonderful, that you can enjoy your life by, God bless you."

After watching Sandra defend her position with poise, I have to say I agree with her. Why are certain subsets of eaters more entitled to make judgments than others? Say what you will about Sandra Lee. She may not be the most popular of cooking personalities, yet she continues to take on her opponents with kindness.

Are you surprised by Sandra's public statement? Do you agree with her?

Figs are one of my favorite late Summer, early Fall fruits. Thus, after making bacon-wrapped dates, I looked for a similar recipe that used fresh figs. To my delight, I came across this Sandra Lee recipe that combines figs, goat cheese, and prosciutto. Inspired by her recipe but wanting to keep it simple, I came up with my take on her killer app. Rather than heat up the house, I decided to throw these tasty little bites on the barbecue.Although any variety of fig will work, I used Calimyrna and found that the easiest way to remove the flesh is with a melon baller. This delicious appetizer is perfect for a party because it can be prepped ahead of time and only requires a few minutes on the grill, so you won't miss any of the fun. With the salty prosciutto, sweet fig, and tangy goat cheese center, these nibbles are full of flavor and texture. If you want to impress your guests with figs in a blanket, keep reading.

The number of "I must make this, stat!" moments I have while watching TV chefs is getting out of hand. First it was Lidia's Neapolitan mac and cheese. Then Giada's Asian chicken salad. On another weekend, I made this herbed focaccia. I've never really tried any of Sandra Lee's recipes, since I tend to associate them with ingredients like canned soups and prepackaged spice mixes that play a role in her semi-homemade philosophy. However the focaccia, which I watched Sandra make on her new show, is different. It calls for refrigerated pizza dough, an ingredient that's reasonably fresh. I often keep pizza dough on hand, and happened to have some in the fridge. I'm grateful I seized the moment. The rustic bread, which I made with heirloom tomatoes and whole-wheat dough, is simultaneously soft and crunchy, with a nice acidity from the tomatoes. You, too, can make this easy, breezy recipe.

Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay, and Ina Garten took home top honors at the 36th Annual Daytime Emmys on Saturday night.

For the second year in a row, Rachael Ray won the outstanding talk-show prize for Rachael Ray, her daytime TV spot. Grill It! With Bobby Flay took home the award for best culinary program, beating out Barefoot Contessa, Giada at Home, Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie, and Simply Ming. But Ina Garten had her time to shine, too, prevailing with the award of outstanding lifestyle host for Barefoot, an honor bestowed on Giada De Laurentiis last year for her show, Everyday Italian.

But Giada De Laurentiis didn't go home empty-handed, either. Her newest project, Giada at Home, won for directing in a lifestyle program. Food Network's only Susan Lucci of the bunch? Sandra Lee, who lost both her nods — one in outstanding achievement in hairstyling and the other for makeup — to The View. Judging by her ultrapolished, Barbie-esque look at the awards, however, perhaps the Academy should reassess. Are you surprised to hear who the winners are?

If you haven't gotten enough of Sandra Lee from her new show, Eat Me Daily has discovered a YouTube compilation of Sandra Lee's most memorable quotes which, when taken out of context, sound rather suggestive.

The video reveals Sandy's ridiculous preference for the word "delicious," her affinity for vodka-spiked cocktails, and her mispronunciation of the word "espresso."

My initial reaction was what fanatic has this kind of time on his hands? But my second thought was to hit the play button again as soon as it was over — it's that funny. What do you think of the video — is it an accurate representation?