New on Food TV

Something happened on Food Network this weekend that hasn't happened in at least four years: it debuted a show that was worth watching.

The network -- which isn't a network, by the way, it's a channel. i hate that -- has a reality show going on to find its next star. This is not the show worth watching. On it, they are constantly talking about a culinary point of view. This is season 4, I have watched every episode. No one has had one yet. Some contestants don't seem to realize that television is a medium that requires speaking to convey thought. One contestant thought that a good product to inflict on the American public was a mix of salt and cayenne, because who could do that on their own? One contestant seemed legitimately stunned when the glass jar she was violently beating against the countertop broke, spilling juice over everything. (Read that last sentence again. Think about it. Let me assure you that it actually happened. No, I can't explain it.) The show is a collection of contestants -- I'm sure they are all very nice people -- who are either good cooks or are potential TV personalities. Some have been neither, but no one seems to be both.

Anyway, the show I saw that really seemed to be worth watching was called Secrets of a Restaurant Chef. I hope everyone starts watching it, because it is the first show in forever that seems to address people who know how to cook, but want to do it better. Or stretch their muscles a little. I really enjoyed the host, Anne Burrell, who seems to have a blast making a TV show.

On Sunday's debut, she made bolognese, which is one of my favorite things of all time. it's a meaty pasta sauce. For the recipe, click here. Be forewarned, while it's not really complicated, it does take a long time. You have a weekend project now.

Burrell is a spiky-haired force-of-nature type who seems to really know what she's doing. She's clearly an accomplished chef. She has a restaurant in NYC and has Mario Batali joints on her resume. She's a little rough as a TV host, and I hope she stays that way. If they wanted to polish her delivery, they might tell her to tone down the exaggerated body english. They might tell her to control the crazy Peewee Herman voice inflections. They might tell her to stop making up words (excessivo? crudness? olive earl?). They would be wrong. She was a riot and I hope that she doesn't get remotely sanitized. (Although, when discussing food, probably best to not talk about "browning the crap out of vegetables." But maybe I'm wrong.) She'll get better at it as she does it, assuming she gets the opportunity, but I hope she does it on her terms. Because it was the first time I can remember smiling at a new instructional show on the channel in I don't even know how long.

One thing that gave me pause: I have never seen anyone add salt to a dish by the handful. I've heard of a "pinch" before. But handful? Wow. I suspect it was for effect. Point taken. Use plenty of salt. But not a handful.

I was hooked on the channel in the days when the lineup was Emeril, Flay, Batali, the Tamales. I guess that kind of lineup didn't work for everyone. But did it really work for no one? I understand why the current lineup of debutantes and doyennes who are more inclined to brand than braise is popular. But they do nothing for me. It was one thing when they had Rachel Ray run over to the fridge and overload both arms with all her ingredients so she only had to make one trip. Now they have an army of cooks, all with the same THIS-IS-EASY! YOU-CAN-DO-IT! format. I want to watch shows that make me want to do something I haven't done, or at least, in a way I've never done it.

So, point your DVR to the Food Network on Sunday morning at 9:30, and let me know what you think.

More Rachael Ray in 30 minutes

Are you one of those people who think Rachael Ray is in danger of over-exposure? The Food Network would disagree. I do wonder if she ever regrets the cheesy photo shoot for FHM magazine.

The network has just ordered 60 new episodes of "Thirty Minute Meals," plus agreed to two years of a new show! Another show! Can you imagine?

"Rachael’s Vacation" debuts at 9 p.m. on Jan. 12. The Yum-o Queen will take us along to eat tapas in Barcelona, hoist a pint or two at a Dublin pub or peruse a farmer's market in Bordeaux. She’ll also visit bookstores, shoe shops, boutiques, museums and street festivals.

Her network talk-show has been renewed through 2010. No word on how long she'll be pushing Ritz crackers and Dunkin' Donuts. 

New chef for TradeWinds

TradeWinds chef
The TradeWinds Island Resorts’ Sandpiper Hotel & Suites in St. Pete Beach has announced the appointment of new executive chef Dale Ford. Ford comes most recently from a long stint as executive chef of Amelia Island Plantation, overseeing all seven restaurants there, and before that as banquet chef for the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Mich.

He aims to make incremental changes at the TradeWinds’ restaurants.: “I want to add whimsical surprises for the guests, so they experience something they haven’t seen before.”

First on his agenda: a new menu for Palm Court Bistro, which launches in June. Next up: an overhaul to Bermudas. “It will still be steaks and seafood, but with more of a 'wow’ factor,” Ford says.

Reservations: toll-free 1-800-249-2501.

-- Laura Reiley, Times food critic