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Food Network Aims to Entertain With 2010 Lineup

YumSugar — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:30:20 -0800

Looks like Food Network's switching gears to focus less on cooking expertise and more on entertainment. On the roster for 2010: more Brian Boitano, and a new show, Worst Cooks in America.

Worst Cooks in America, which premieres Sunday, Jan. 3, features 12 "hopeless cooks" who are divided into two teams, one under the tutelage of network vet Anne Burrell and the other led by Arizona chef Beau MacMillan.

The show's premise: bad cooks undergo a five-week "culinary boot camp" where they will learn kitchen techniques from Burrell and MacMillan that they must apply in weekly elimination challenges.

After the contestants have been narrowed down to two, they will compete for a grand prize of $25,000 in a final challenge that has them preparing a three-course meal for a panel of food critics who think the dishes have been prepared by chefs Anne and Beau.

For even more entertainment, Brian Boitano fans should also stay tuned for the return of the Olympic medalist, who's back with a second season of the screwball show What Would Brian Boitano Make? in March. Will you tune in to watch either of these shows - or are they too far a departure from the classic cooking shows that once dominated Food Network?

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Emeril Hosts Atlantic City Stadium Show - Sort Of

YumSugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:00:05 -0700

Don't enjoy amateur cooks facing off on TV? Maybe you'll have different sentiments if you're watching them in person. At least, that's what Emeril Lagasse is hoping as he launches his new Atlantic City game show: Taste of Emeril's Cooking Challenge. It begins Oct. 21 at Caesars Atlantic City, and will run several times a week through Nov. 12.

Each night, the casino show will choose six members from the audience to square off onstage at two cooking stations, first competing in two teams, then facing elimination until the last two standing face off to take home the prize. Emeril will appear via the big screen to offer taped commentary and critique. While he admits the casino show is risky, the veteran culinary personality said he was looking for the right show that could be marketed to audiences at a reasonable price.

Tickets are only $35 each, but for that amount, I'd still expect to see more than video footage of Emeril. What about you? Do you see the "interactive cooking competition" being a success?

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What Would Brian Boitano Make? Is Off to an Oddball Start

YumSugar — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:45:04 -0700

Question: what would Brian Boitano make? Answer: a pretty ridiculously offbeat cooking show. The Olympic figure skating champion's Food Network series, which was first announced back in April, debuted yesterday, and it was certainly not what I expected.

The skater described his show as "goofy and funny," but that's an understatement. The theme song riffs on the South Park movie's satirical tune "What Would Brian Boitano Do?" and although his cooking skills appear to be legit, recipes are interspersed with hammed-up interludes of Brian biking behind rainbows, lounging in a velvet robe, and running from an animated goat cheese log. He throws out corny lines, like, "I'm gonna holla at my homegirl, my mother from another grandmother." At times, he's hilarious; other moments, trying way too hard. All in all, the show is very uncharacteristic of the Food Network.

The strangest part of the episode was the party's theme. Brian decides to throw a soirée for a bachelor friend and proceeds to round up 15 bachelorettes. The show nears an end when Tony, Brian's pal, turns beet red as he enters a "party" - really, just a room filled with more than a dozen single, dolled-up women.

In case you missed out yesterday, this video sums up the episode's screwball scenes. Did you watch? What did you think of the show?

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Kelsey and Spike Debut Their New Show on Food2

partysugar — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 13:05:28 -0700

During the last season of the Next Food Network Star, many of you thought perky blond Kelsey Nixon had serious star potential and were shocked when she got kicked off the show. But the spunky home chef assured readers she wouldn't be going anywhere when she announced she was getting her own show with Top Chef's Spike Mendelsohn on Food Network spinoff site Food2.

The enthusiastic contestant kept her word. Today, Kelsey & Spike Cook debuted on Food2's website with two episodes: one demo of easy-to-make steak and another featuring breakfast items. Unlike Food Network's other new show, 5 Ingredient Fix, I feel an instant connection with the duo - especially since we've gotten to know them on reality shows past.

They have a fun, lighthearted chemistry that holds my attention. Watch the video below and tell me what you think. Do you like the duo's dynamic? What do you think of the Food2 beta website and its other new shows?

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Should TV Chefs Be Responsible For Promoting Eco-Friendly Cooking?

YumSugar — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:00:26 -0700

When we recently disagreed with the assertion that cooking shows are too unrealistic, many of you seemed to share our opinion that food TV can actually be rather inspiring. Well, here's another question for you to ponder: Should TV chefs serve as role models?

In a Huffington Post article titled "Nasty Habits of Food Network Celebrities," columnist Isabel Cowles criticizes Food Network chefs like Giada De Laurentiis, Sandra Lee, and Guy Fieri for "encouraging wasteful, unhealthy behavior."Cowles derides De Laurentiis for using (and not recycling) nearly 1,000 square inches of aluminum foil on an episode of Everyday Italian. She frowns on Sandra Lee's use of packaged foods that come in more bags, bottles, and packaging. She doesn't approve of a chili recipe by Guy Fieri that calls for four pounds of meat from three animals, which, she maintains, encourages the reckless consumption of big-agriculture meat. Cowles argues:

The image these chefs are creating of our country's food ethos and practices wreaks of wastefulness, over-indulgence, and laziness. The Food Network and its celebrity chefs should inspire Americans to savor quality food and the entire process of making a meal . . . It's a shame that these chefs don't use their popularity to truly help improve how Americans cook and eat.

I'm curious to hear what you think. Are television chefs being wasteful? Is it their responsibility to serve as an example for the rest of us? Should cooking shows lead the way in encouraging America to reduce its kitchen carbon footprint - or is society expecting a little too much?

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Are Cooking Television Shows Too Unrealistic?

partysugar — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:50:52 -0700

In his blog on the New York Times, food journalist Mark Bittman makes the claim that food television - particularly cooking shows that teach a viewer how to make something - are too unrealistic. Unlike the real world, the chefs never make mistakes and each dish always comes out perfectly. He says:

When you watch most celebrity chefs go to work on TV it is a) baffling and intimidating, and b) a charade. Baffling and intimidating because nearly every ingredient is usually prepared in advance, and what isn’t is selected so that the chef can show off his (almost never “her”) knife skills, which are bound to intimidate nearly all of us who can never aspire (and why would we, really?) to chopping an onion with our eyes closed.

While I understand how the lack of miscalculation may isolate a viewer, I disagree with Bittman. I enjoy the Barefoot Contessa because her world is an escape from my reality: In her sunny Hampton house the food is consistently delicious. Rather than feel intimidated, I feel inspired! What's your take on Bittman's perspective?

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Sandra Lee to Debut New Food Network Show

partysugar — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 07:50:38 -0800

Both Ina Garten and Giada de Laurentiis premiered new Food Network series last Fall, so it's no surprise to learn that another of the network's biggest stars, Sandra Lee, is set to begin production of a new cooking program.

Sandra's Money Saving Meals will premiere on May 10 at 12 p.m. The show will focus on Lee's "triple A factor" of accessible, aspirational, and affordable food. She'll provide cost-saving tips for grocery shopping and feature innovative ways to use leftovers.

As more and more people look for inexpensive meal options, it's only natural for the Food Network to move toward a recession-friendly lineup. In a statement, Bob Tushman, the senior vice president of programing, said:

At this critical economic time, Sandra comes to the rescue by providing our viewers with creative ways to save money and time while cooking great meals at home. We appreciate the dedicated passion and in-depth knowledge Sandra brings to this topic, and we look forward to launching this new endeavor with her.

Although I've never really been a fan of Sandra's 70/30 semi-homemade philosophy, I'm curious to see her tips on affordable eating - after all, she was made from scratch! What do you think about the new series? Will you watch Sandra's Money Saving Meals?

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Eric Ripert to Star in PBS Cooking Series

YumSugar — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 10:15:40 -0800

Top Chef guest judge and Le Bernardin executive chef Eric Ripert can add one more thing to his résumé: TV cooking host.

This Fall, the world renowned chef will be joining the likes of Lidia Bastianich and José Andrés on PBS. At least 10 episodes of the show, titled Avec Eric, will debut nationally, and they will be shot in HD format on location in New York, Northern California, and Italy.

The show was more than likely inspired by Ripert's personal website of the same name, where the celebrity food personality shares his favorite recipes and techniques. Watch this recent clip. Does it make you hungry for more of Avec Eric?

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Would You Watch a 5-Year-Old's Cooking Show?

YumSugar — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:30:30 -0800

Last week The Oregonian had an interesting piece about a 5-year-old child who has his own cooking show. On Portland Community Media's show The Big Kitchen With Food, kid chef Julian Kreusser shows viewers how to make chocolate chip zucchini bread, a killer spaghetti sauce, and persimmon smoothies. To learn more about the pint-sized chef and check out a video of his show, read more.

It's possible that before he was teething, Julian was cooking. By the ripe old age of three, he was scrambling eggs and inventing recipes such as toasted green olives. The next year, he decided he wanted to cook on TV. And at his current age, he's already achieved his goal.

"He actually understands what he's doing. He's not just following orders," explains Portland Community Media executive director Sylvia McDaniel. In fact, all of the show's recipes are Julian originals - and so is the show's theme song. More importantly, viewers love him: "It has potential to be a national program," she says.

I'm not sure what to think. On the one hand, both Julian and the show are adorable, but on the flip side, I wonder if he should be on a playground instead of a televised cooking show. Watch the video below and tell me: What do you think of the kid chef?

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Kelsey Nixon to Star on Food Network's Web Show

partysugar — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:00:52 -0800

Kelsey Nixon, the perky blonde contestant on the fourth season of the Next Food Network Star, is getting her own show. In the November issue of Utah Valley magazine, she discusses her new role at Food Network:

I've been approached by so many production companies, but I think Food Network is the route I should go. I'm working on a project with them right now - a web show about teaching cooking basics. . . My co-host on the show is Spike Mendelsohn from Top Chef and we have a great time. I'm the one to do the 'by-the-book' classic methods, and he uses crazy ingredients from all over the world.

The show will be a part of F2 a new website the Food Network is launching in early 09. According to Kelsey they plan to shoot 65 episodes and have wrapped filming on the first 13. This is an interesting move for Food Network and I definitely look forward to checking out the chemistry between bubbly Kelsey and spastic Spike. What do you think of the unlikely duo?

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