Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

I read Matt's letter and all of the comments on this thread, and have come to a conclusion. I am the target audience for the Food Network. I work full time, have a family addicted to fast food and casual dining, and only cook on occasion. Please don't kill me!

I love watching people make something out of nothing. I love seeing how they take seemingly unrelated ingredients and make fabulous food. I like the back-stories. I like traveling with Guy all over the country to little places that aren't on the map - and have made a point to find them when I am on the road.

Sure the Ace of Cakes doesn't teach me how to bake, but since whatever I do is coming from a box with a red spoon on the cover, who cares! It is the fun and fantastic things they do with the cake that entertains me. Rachel is extremely informative but sometimes I have to mute all that enthusiasm. I know Ina Garten is a fantastic chef, her show puts me to sleep.

TNFNS is dreck, but it is like watching NASCAR - a wreck is gonna happen, and don't you want to see what happens when it does?

Please don't kick me too hard for this. Serious Eats offers me a perspective I obviously lack, but sometimes you guys take it all too seriously. FN is entertainment about food. They never said it was going to be all serious all the time. They need to find a good balance. The reason that the prime time programming is full of air is because people like it that way. I am not spending my two hours in the evening watching Ina Garten or even Emeril/Mario. I don't want to think that hard and pay that close attention. I'll buy their cookbook instead.

I like Michael so far - but haven't watched last nite yet.
Brett gives me the creeps and I don't like Debbie because she would not take the heat for her bad decisions until forced to do so.

One of the country's best supermarket chains - Publix - has their own dairy plant and makes their own ice cream! They make a Tiramisu that is wonderful, and a peanut butter cup that is fantastic. If you are ever in the Southeast and can find a Publix, check out their in-house ice cream flavors.

My all-time favorite chocolate dessert is old-fashioned hot fudge pudding cake, still warm from the oven.

only one more serving of chocolate?? Oh, the agony...

If one was all I could have, then it must be a warm, fudgy brownie with dark chocolate chunks. It would have a light dark chocolate glaze over the top, not enough to be called icing, just enough to complement the decadent goodness within.

Followed by a cold milk chaser.

Thanks for the recommendations, I hope we can find some of them.

Our family is pretty traditional and always celebrated Easter with ham. Mom used to make cracklings from the skin and fatty layer, then dot the ham with cloves. When I was young, it was may job to place the cloves on the scored surface of the ham. I can still remember standing on a chair to reach the counter to help Mom make Easter dinner.

Sinfully delicious, dark chocolate with just a nuance of sweetness is my first choice, but chocolate in all forms is acceptable.

A tender filet is my first choice in steak, primarily because it is the perfect size and texture for me. Of course, having it wrapped in bacon is the ONLY way to prepare it, along with some delicious herb butter.....my mouth is watering at 6 a.m.

Our enduring Christmas tradition - breakfast at my mother's house. We all pile into our assorted cars and travel the 20 miles to gather at Mom's for a feast. There is quiche, scrambled eggs, baked ham, cinnamon rolls and whatever else is brought to the table.

It is a time to count our blessings, love each other and celebrate another holiday together. The guests are older now, with all of the grandkids as adults, but the festive atmosphere remains undiminished. We open our $10 gift exchanges and bask in the warmth of love.

Mom and my stepdad, Sam, are 81 and 91 respectively, and as we celebrate every moment with them, we say a prayer for their continued good health.