Rachael Ray, Cubed

Hi there! Well, just last week I got the chance to make another appearance on The Rachael Ray Show! So that's 3 times, and at the infancy of my food television life, I'm totally counting. :-) Before the show airs tomorrow, I thought I'd give you some behind the scenes stuff like this ....
That's Jeanette, she works in Rachael Ray's in-studio kitchen and greeted me with a smile and early morning calories. She asked if I Tweeted, I said no (while feeling very wack) and then told her I do the snail-mail equivalent ... blogging. Anyway, she says I should give you the link to the kitchens, I agree .... Rachael Ray's Show Cooks Tweet! Please, if you do this thing called tweeting, let Jeanette know in 140 characters or less that I loved the mushroom soup! Here's a better view ...
From the left, pea soup with ham chunks, my fave- the mushroom soup, pumpkin soup, then beneath them are lil focacia paninis. That's my coffee over there and ... i used all the sugar packets. I remember having a chat about my muddy coffee practices, here's proof. Did I really need 4 sugars? Nope, did I use them? Yep. Anyway, I've blogged about RR Show food for the green rooms, it is hands down the best guest food I've ever had.

When Jeanette came to greet me with the tray of food, I was sitting in the hair and make up room ready to get presentable. This is the before photo ...
Look at all that make up!!! That's Robin Watson, if you watch the show, you may have caught one of her make-over segments. In the background is equally talented Randall Tang. We had such a good time chatting and gossiping. They should also get credit for calming jitters. The small talk really helps take your mind off the task at hand. Totally like going to the hair salon. Then it was time for me to get to work. Here we are when Robin is done with her magic ...
Oh wait, did I tell you what the show is about? It's the Daily News' 5-Alarm Cook-Off finale. The finals were held right in her studio kitchens, but it began a while back with the preliminary contests. I was asked to participate and judge a few months back, but then Rachael Ray's team decided they wanted to put the firefighters on a national stage instead of just the local judging. Our time came to judge and we were summoned to her set to tape a show. Who is we?? Well that ends the post, it's the last picture I have ...
That's fellow judge Iron Chef Michael Symon and another chef, whose name totally escapes me and I hate myself for it. EDIT! :-) ... I'm so sorry I forgot his name, but upon watching my DVR, I have it ... It's Stanton Social owner and chef, Chris Santos. He was really funny and guess what? He is allergic to shellfish, but still took bites of everything, it seems most of us really thought we'd have 5 bowls of chili to judge that day. Tough guy, but a nice one. This is a shot of us mid-deliberation. Each borough of NYC was represented by one fire fighter and the competition was pretty stiff. Those guys eat pretty good stuff, I'd say if you are a single, non-cooking type, find yourself a firefighter. They are brave and can cook!

The Rachael Ray Show airs tomorrow. Check here to find your local listings. In NYC it's on ABC at 10AM. Congrats to all the firemen, what a brave profession and I am more than thankful for your service! May the best cook win!!!