Friday, January 15, 2010

BTW and Didja Know ...

BTW ...

I met the newest member of the Iron Chef America fam yesterday at Food Network. Did you watch the Next Iron Chef? I caught a few episodes, but my 1st impression of Jose Garces' was made at the NYC Wine and Food Festival. Remember when I told you I had a spot under the tents right across from the Iron Chef set up? Well, the first day I went to the festival I met him and tried his dish because EVERYONE back in the kitchen was talking about it. It really was yummy! If you are in Philly, you can catch his flavors at Amada.

We were both at the Food Network studios to tape 2 minute segments for CW 11 and their affiliates. Here we are in Studio B right after I finished my recipe demonstration and before he started his ...
Then I caught a picture while he was prepping his mise en place ...
That ladder is there for the camera man to either get a top view, or for the lighting guy to mess with the lights. I don't know what he cooked because I left so he could concentrate, but I did some recipes for the big game day and some Valentine's Day recipes that should pop up on CW stations across the country and online. If you want some game day ideas, check out my FOOD NETWORK BIG GAME DAY PREP VIDEOS. Guy Fieri has some up on that link as well ... check us out!

and Didja Know ...

Jose Garces has his first battle as an Iron Chef this weekend? Sunday night at 9PM!!!

aaaaand Didja Know ...
A restaurant I love for a cheesy reason will be featured tonight on Best Thing I Ever Ate? It's starts at 10PM!! DVR it and enjoy! If you are interested in any of the places featured on the show tonight, check the Cheesy episode page.

Hope you have a great weekend!!!

18 comments:

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

I think I'm gonna like him!

Have a great weekend.

Lys said...

I adore Jose Garces - Amada is the bomb and he's got other restos here in town (Chifa, Tinto, Distrito etc.) The man is brilliant (and crazy busy!) When you are in Philly, you must check out his spots Sunny (after your cheesesteak run of course)

Great segment on BTIEA btw! Showed great diplomacy in rating that Mac & Cheese ;)

Kase said...

Hey Sunny,

This is the 1st time I ever dropped a line in a blog. Just wanted to say that I luv your show. I work 80 hr weeks so I have to DVR you, but am never disappointed. Ms. Sunny, you be putting your foot in those recipes. Everything you make looks very good. I can't wait to try that Airman's Anderson chicken. You look fab on every show, but you know that already:c). Keep up the good work.

Much luv from Jacksonville,

DeVon

tamilyn said...

I'm excited that I have next Sunday off and can watch when the first Minnesota chef is going to on Iron Chef. It isn't all hotdishes and Jell-O salads here in MN :-}

Carolyn said...

Hi there! I'm from St. Louis and I love your show! I have a question for you. I couldn't help but notice the pots you used for frying the wings in your Viva Papertowel commercial. I LOVE them! After a little research I think I've narrowed them down to teal Le Creuset pots. Where did you find them? I can't find the teal ones sold anywhere but the UK. Help! lol. Maybe yours are Carribean Blue but just look a lot like teal. Thank you so much!!!

Sunny Anderson said...

mary, he's really nice, but what's really great is the hand and mind he puts on his food. very good!

lys, i'm going to check his spot out, but i gotta tell ya .. i love a fancy meal, but a hole in the wall, family joint or street cart is my friend. glad you caught btiea, that mac n cheese, is reeeeeealy good. i think it's meant to share, but i never have lol.

kase, yaaaay! welcome to the comment section! thanks so much for watching and especially with such a heavy work week!! i used to do the 60-70 hour work week long ago and i know what it's like to barely have time to run your life, much less relax a bit. so thanks for squeezing me in, i'm really honored. and thanks for the compliment, you'll find if you hang here more, i have no idea what i'm doing with my appearance, but i'm in love with the food part :-).

tamilyn, was that a diss on the jello salad? lol ... i love me a good jello mold! i was the kid in school that loved the jello with fruit the cafeteria pumped out, those days were great for me. none of the other kids liked it, so i always got extra! go minnesota!

carolyn, hey i have old radio buddies in st. louis ... dwight stone! ever heard of him? anyway. you are correct they are le crueset and i'm sure it's the carribean blue because when we got them the culinary staff was all excited they were new and hard to find. lemme check with them to make sure it is the name of the color and if it is, i won't say anything here. if it isn't i'll post in comments the color of the pots. btw, omg ... they are soooo expensive!!! look around on shopzilla.com for them, or another engine that culls info from several sites. it's a great investment, but omg ... the cost!

Carolyn said...

Sunny - awesome, thank you! I think you can get the Carribean Blue ones sort of easily (I saw them come up a lot in my quest to find the teal ones), so maybe the ones you have ARE the teal ones, if they were "hard to find"... lol! And yes, I saw the price, totally expensive! I'm assuming if you say they are a great investment, then you think they are worth the cost? But yeah, I'll definitely be saving up to buy those! haha! And thanks for the tip on shopzilla! :)

Sunny Anderson said...

carolyn, ok, i double checked and they are carribbean blue. when we got them to shoot, i think they were hard to find or new, but now ... like you said, not so much. i like the red myself, but the blue is different and pretty on my set. as for the value, i mean they are pricey, but for the weight and heat conductivity, the heavy lid, i mean everything is high marks from me. that being said ... i had some, then they were stolen in a home invasion. so i've cooked without them for more than a year to great success. i'm not buying a new set until i remodel the kitchen. it's a color thing lol.

Carolyn said...

Thanks so much Sunny! Wow, how cool that I am chatting back and forth with you! You are so great and its totally made my day! Thanks for double checking for me, I'm definitely going to put those on my list of "someday, when I can afford them..." items to buy, lol! I agree, I love the colors too! And yes, in answer to your previous question, I think I have heard of Dwight Stone! I think he was on 100.3 last I heard? Anyway, thanks again!!

Sunny Anderson said...

carolyn, no prob. that's why i'm here and more than anything i appreciate you watching and supporting the show. btw, my culinary producer says it's just "caribbean" no "blue" in the name description. and yeah, dwight's station was flipped and another guy i know from the biz now runs it. hope dwight lands somewhere good, he's an amazing mixer and host.

Kase said...

Sunny,

You seem to enjoy Spanish dishes from looking at your blog and show. Do you have a Latino background, just was curious. I love latin food. Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic are a couple of my hot spots. A restaurant I always visit in San Juan is Metropol in Isla Verde. It's right next to cock fighting pit. I always get the Stuffed Cornish Game Hen with black beans and rice. I have never eaten a hen so large anywhere else. It is to die for, I always joke it was last night's loser at the pit next door. Also, another quick question. What do they do with the food that is cooked on the show? I have always been curious. Hope you are having a great day.

Thanks,

Kase

Sunny Anderson said...

kase, well i spent time in texas, so i have tex-mex in my history and currently i'm dating a dude that reps pr, so i cook for him, but really before that i had a spanish lean. but, to be real ... a lean all over the place and love all kinds of food, so i try to reflect that on the show. i'm so glad you watch! and welcome to the blog! as for the food, some goes to the crew, some sits around waiting on a photo shoot and is then discarded. the kitchens also donate to city harvest.

jen @ one curly fry said...

I love watching Iron Chef!

One of these days I'll make it to Jose's restaurant here in Philly. Hey Sunny - next time you're in Philly let me know and we'll check it out ;)

Sunny Anderson said...

jen, i'll try to remember to post before my next philly trip, just keep an eye out and we'll meet at max's!!!

Unknown said...

Do you happen to have the recipe, or method at least, for the mac and cheese from cafe des artistes? It looked like they "boiled" or cooked the dry pasta directly in the cream instead of boiling it in water the traditional way first. I can't find a link to the video or any similar recipe anywhere. I did find a recipe from the chef at the cafe, but it doesn't mention cooking the pasta in the cream. Any ideas? I'm just dying to try it, but I live in Austin, TX... nowhere near LA! :) Thanks!!

Sunny Anderson said...

traci, i think i may be able to get the recipe because i remember they had it during production. let me make a few calls and send a few emails, if i get it, send me your email addy in comments and i'll send it to you that way. glad you watched the show, it's so much fun for me to watch as well, neat to see what everyone else is eating! btw, i think he cooked the pasta al dente before the bake.

Unknown said...

Hi Sunny, After seeing The best Thing I Ever Ate, the Mac and Cheese at cafe des Artists I too long for the recipe, you made my mouth water!

Theodora said...

Hi Sunny, did you ever get that recipe for the mac & cheese at cafe des artistes? I'd love to try it for thanksgiving.