The Kitchen - General Discussion

[buttersister]

Well, somethings in the air. I enjoyed the segments I caught. First, whether it’s pregnancy or chilling in her house, Katie’s voice did not grate. Ryan looked very fetching. And those peanut butter popcorn squares looked good. Besides 9x13 Pyrex dishes, I have a 7x11—use it all the time.

Looks like Alex has her makeup under control and a ponytail is definitely the way to go. Also, I’m Team Ava. True knife skills, hilarious attitude and a great FU I’m with ICAG t-shirt. LOL! 

[annzeepark914]

The kids were on today's show & they were really good. Usually I don't care to see the kids of a show's star. Lorenzo worked well with his dad making the pizza. Geoffrey's daughters were also such naturals. Ava was also very good (but has that typical teen whatever that she'll eventually get over). I really enjoyed seeing these kids--they all know how to prep food & cook.

[Aunt Catfish]

When is Katie going to have her baby?  Enquiring minds want to know!!!

[Ashforth]

I agree, all of the kids were good on this episode. It was nice to see Ava finally show some personality instead of standing there like she's in a hostage video. Now if she will trim those bangs!

[Irlandesa]

3 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

I just read an article online re: people complaining about Katie's odd foods (e.g., carrot hot dogs). Some of the comments were about her not being a good cook, wondering how/why she's on Food Network.  I have one of her cookbooks and the recipes are good...so I wonder what she's doing.

Have they tried the roasted carrots in a bun? One of my favorite sandwiches is just roasting beets and putting it on ciabatta.  It sounds weird to a lot of people but for people who like beets, they found they liked it. 

However, as for having a cookbook, I suspect she might have a cookbook the same way GZ's daughters have a cookbook--there's a ghostwriter.  That's not necessarily uncommon even for well known chefs. 

3 hours ago, jlc said:

I have always thought she could not cook, but she is a very good friend of Bobby Flay and that is how she got on Food Network. 

She got a job as host of Top Chef in its first season.  While she was married to Billy Joel at the time, I have a hard time believing he'd have the clout to get her a job on Bravo.  He might have had the clout to get her a publishing deal.  It is a mystery to me how someone with little food cred gets so many food shows. 

And now for a random insecure aside.  Ryan is hot but I hate when people say that they're not sweets people.  I love to bake and I end up feeling so judged. 

Edited August 15, 2020 by Irlandesa

[Coffeewinewater]

39 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

Have they tried the roasted carrots in a bun? One of my favorite sandwiches is just roasting beets and putting it on ciabatta.  It sounds weird to a lot of people but for people who like beets, they found they liked it. 

However, as for having a cookbook, I suspect she might have a cookbook the same way GZ's daughters have a cookbook--there's a ghostwriter.  That's not necessarily uncommon even for well known chefs. 

She got a job as host of Top Chef in its first season.  While she was married to Billy Joel at the time, I have a hard time believing he'd have the clout to get her a job on Bravo.  He might have had the clout to get her a publishing deal.  It is a mystery to me how someone with little food cred gets so many food shows. 

And now for a random insecure aside.  Ryan is hot but I hate when people say that they're not sweets people.  I love to bake and I end up feeling so judged. 

Aww, don't feel judged lol. I always say that I'm not a sweets person because when I find something delicious I want to the other person to see how much I really like the sweet. 

I'm really craving pineapple on pizza now.

Poor katie she sounded out of breath lol, the end of pregnancy is incredibly tiring.

I wish I had cooked more with my mom and my older kids when they were young. But like my  mom,  I am a bit of a control freak and like doing things on my own in the kitchen 🤷🏽‍♀️.

No cooking from sunny?

 

 

[cameron]

6 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

The kids were on today's show & they were really good. Usually I don't care to see the kids of a show's star. Lorenzo worked well with his dad making the pizza. Geoffrey's daughters were also such naturals. Ava was also very good (but has that typical teen whatever that she'll eventually get over). I really enjoyed seeing these kids--they all know how to prep food & cook.

I'm sorry but Ava really needs to cut back on her food intake.  She just gobble that skewer down.  Already larger than her mom.  Not healthy.

[Yeah No]

11 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

She got a job as host of Top Chef in its first season.  While she was married to Billy Joel at the time, I have a hard time believing he'd have the clout to get her a job on Bravo.  He might have had the clout to get her a publishing deal.  It is a mystery to me how someone with little food cred gets so many food shows. 

I'm convinced that Katie Lee used her association with Billy Joel to cozy up to a lot of influential people that could help her career, and God only knows why they found her worth it.  Before "Top Chef" she had done really nothing noteworthy at all other than working in food stores and restaurants and starting a food-related website that folded in less than a year.  Even Rachael Ray didn't land a highly visible role like Top Chef when she was discovered by Food Network.  And as it is, Lee only lasted one season on Top Chef so they obviously saw the error of their ways.  But she is nothing if not persistent.

 

[Jaded]

8 hours ago, cameron said:

I'm sorry but Ava really needs to cut back on her food intake.  She just gobble that skewer down.  Already larger than her mom.  Not healthy.

[Ashforth]

On 8/15/2020 at 11:06 AM, buttersister said:

Ryan looked very fetching.

I know that looks aren't everything, but great googly moogly, that man is handsome. Katie Lee is so pretty too, I can only guess that their child will hit the beauty lottery.

On 8/15/2020 at 3:27 PM, Coffeewinewater said:

No cooking from sunny?

She apparently doesn't have children, so she got put in the corner for this episode. As a child-free person, I found it a little offensive.  

14 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I'm convinced that Katie Lee used her association with Billy Joel to cozy up to a lot of influential people that could help her career, and God only knows why they found her worth it.  Before "Top Chef" she had done really nothing noteworthy at all other than working in food stores and restaurants and starting a food-related website that folded in less than a year.  Even Rachael Ray didn't land a highly visible role like Top Chef when she was discovered by Food Network.  And as it is, Lee only lasted one season on Top Chef so they obviously saw the error of their ways.  But she is nothing if not persistent.

Well, the first season of Top Chef was a crapshoot, so it wasn't really a high-profile role at the time. They had no way of knowing that it would become such a powerhouse of a show. But she was weak as the host.

I'm convinced that Katie Lee must have some in-person charisma that just doesn't translate to the screen. That being said, she doesn't bother me the way she does some people. She can't help it that her voice is nasally. I find her pleasant and sometimes rather charming. Much more so "at home" than in The Kitchen studio.

[annzeepark914]

Whenever Katie Lee's name appears in articles, her first two cookbooks are mentioned but never the third, Endless Summer Cookbook. Her novel is also usually mentioned (can't recall the title). I bought Endless Summer and it has some decent recipes. 

Re: Sunny not cooking on yesterday's show? Really odd. They could've had her mixing up a summer beverage. 

 

[Ashforth]

47 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

Re: Sunny not cooking on yesterday's show? Really odd. They could've had her mixing up a summer beverage. 

I know, right? I get that the theme was that the children were cooking, but if on other episodes they're going to showcase Alex slicing fruit and Katie Lee making arugula lemonade from storebought lemonade, why not have Sunny make some easy recipe that kids could do themselves? She could talk about what she made as a child when she was learning to cook. Women are not less-than if they don't have children. 🤬

And I'm not even a fan of Sunny. I just think this sucked.

[annzeepark914]

1 hour ago, Ashforth said:

I know, right? I get that the theme was that the children were cooking, but if on other episodes they're going to showcase Alex slicing fruit and Katie Lee making arugula lemonade from storebought lemonade, why not have Sunny make some easy recipe that kids could do themselves? She could talk about what she made as a child when she was learning to cook. Women are not less-than if they don't have children. 🤬

Yup. I don't have kids of my own and I felt *something* when Sunny said that she didn't have any children. No regrets here,  but it's that thing about women who don't have their own...

[Gramto6]

I don't know if Sunny has siblings, maybe she could have cooked with a niece or nephew? If not that, a best friend's kid that she was "mentoring" or just hung out with often? Or like mentioned above make an Summer beverage. Leaving her out was just wrong.

Edited August 17, 2020 by Gramto6

[Maverick]

Maybe Sunny was able to do a segment this week and they decided to do this theme because of that.  Do we know for sure she was just excluded?

[Irlandesa]

Since it was focused on kids, my guess is they wanted to run the segment when all the kids were on set and that meant one less recipe---and Sonny was out.

But she could have done a kid friendly dish just as easily as Katie.  Here baby won't be eating popcorn for a few years anyway.

[Gramto6]

Yeah, it is just odd, both Sunny and Katie should both have  been excluded if it was strictly "cooking with your kids" neither one of them have kids at this point in time if that is their reason for excluding Sunny. Just shameful.

Edited August 17, 2020 by Gramto6

[Yeah No]

I haven't watched the episode yet, but is it possible that Sunny might have offered to sit this one out?  I'm not doubting that the show would sideline her, but is it possible that she may have been OK with it?  I never had kids myself and I think it would be awful if they did that.  But they've included her on "kid friendly recipe" episodes before, like this one:  https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/the-kitchen/episodes/kids-eats, and this recipe from yet another "kid friendly" episode:  https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/sunnys-easy-english-muffin-spinach-alfredo-pizza-5399560.  There have been several more episodes focusing on kids since the series began, and she was included in all of them.

Also, have we seen her cook inside her home kitchen?  I've missed a few episodes so if she has I haven't seen it.  Maybe she didn't want to think of a kid friendly recipe that could be made on the grill.  Just speculating.  I still wonder why we haven't seen her cook indoors.

[Koalagirl]

I guess they had Katie “cook” because this is her final episode before taking time off to have her baby, and that Sunny’s time was allocated to the parenting advice and mini shower at the end of the show. 

[bichonblitz]

 Jeff's son Lorenzo is adorable. I just love his personality. GZ's girls are lovely, too. 

On 8/15/2020 at 3:36 PM, Irlandesa said:

It is a mystery to me how someone with little food cred gets so many food shows. 

Katie is also consistently on her buddy's "Beat Bobby Flay" show . I guess it's all about who you know. 

[HyeChaps]

I will never get tired of hearing Lorenzo declare the winner by anominous decision.

[Gam2]

I don’t understand why some people always expect or believe the worst. We have no idea why Sunny wasn’t on this show with the kids. Perhaps she asked for some time off, perhaps she was sick, perhaps a family member/friend was sick and needed help, perhaps her grill died, perhaps anything could have happened.

[Gramto6]

Sunny was on the show, she hosted the clip show of other kids themed shows from the past and Katie's virtual baby shower.  She just didn't cook anything. My brain is a sieve these days, wasn't the only thing Katie cooked popcorn treats (popcorn with peanut butter & marshmallows drizzled with chocolate)? 

[annzeepark914]

8 hours ago, HyeChaps said:

I will never get tired of hearing Lorenzo declare the winner by anominous decision.

That Lorenzo is a chip off the old block.

[Ashforth]

4 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

Sunny was on the show, she hosted the clip show of other kids themed shows from the past and Katie's virtual baby shower.  She just didn't cook anything. My brain is a sieve these days, wasn't the only thing Katie cooked popcorn treats (popcorn with peanut butter & marshmallows drizzled with chocolate)? 

You are correct!

[Yeah No]

5 hours ago, Gam2 said:

I don’t understand why some people always expect or believe the worst. We have no idea why Sunny wasn’t on this show with the kids. Perhaps she asked for some time off, perhaps she was sick, perhaps a family member/friend was sick and needed help, perhaps her grill died, perhaps anything could have happened.

Yeah, I didn't automatically assume that she was sidelined.  It could have been due to anything.

5 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

Sunny was on the show, she hosted the clip show of other kids themed shows from the past and Katie's virtual baby shower.  She just didn't cook anything. My brain is a sieve these days, wasn't the only thing Katie cooked popcorn treats (popcorn with peanut butter & marshmallows drizzled with chocolate)? 

Yes, I finally watched the episode and when I saw that I reverted to my theory above that perhaps she couldn't think of anything to cook on the grill so they just aired an old segment with her instead.  Or maybe her grill ran out of gas during filming and they scrapped it, who knows?  LOL 😀

[annzeepark914]

I continue to be amazed by what Zoom can do, has done, during the pandemic. And I must say that I'm enjoying a number of cooking shows now, thanks to how Zoom affects each of the hosts... especially on this show. IMO, GZ always came off as arrrogant, cold, etc. Yet, in his home kitchen (& esp around his adorable children), I'm seeing and liking a very different person. As we've noticed, Katie's "unique" voice seems to be a bit less irritating in her own kitchen & yard. Being home seems to tone down or warm up the whole crew. I like this format and I like the effect of Zoom on some other cooking shows as well.

[bichonblitz]

19 hours ago, Gramto6 said:

My brain is a sieve these days, wasn't the only thing Katie cooked popcorn treats (popcorn with peanut butter & marshmallows drizzled with chocolate)? 

Yup. That was it. 

[WritinMan]

Alex is channeling her inner Rachael Ray, making a giant burger that's almost too big to get in your mouth.

[annzeepark914]

Oh gee...when Alex referenced "my fiance" right off the bat, I immediately thought of this group and burst out laughing. 

[MerBearHou]

3 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Oh gee...when Alex referenced "my fiance" right off the bat, I immediately thought of this group and burst out laughing. 

I did the exact same thing!!  According to Alex, her fiance schooled her on turkey burgers.  Oh please.

[buttersister]

Alex was 35 when she married the first time (and has been divorced for five years). At 48, with a teen daughter, she may have thought her new fiance days were over. I wish a gf could tell her to breathe. And avoid a year or more of "my husband" because you're a grown-ass woman.

[Irlandesa]

I really wish Katie had made the stone fruit french toast she was eating at the end of the episode as opposed to what feels like another zucchini bread.  I know all recipes have been done but zucchini bread has been really well and done. 

[annzeepark914]

BLT's using sliced strawberries instead of tomatoes? I dunno. But I am very interested in GZ's grilled mango salsa & grilled swordfish. What kind of industrial blenders are they using? Sunny broke apart a cucumber, tossed it in the mega  blender, along w/ other stuff & waa-laa, it made green gazpacho! Alex used the same kind (but she was only blending watermelon). GZ made a comment about Niagara Falls & for some reason, I thought he said they lived there. Maybe I heard it wrong. I must try his technique for peeling a mango--it may involve lots of cursing at chez P914, though 🥴

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 8/16/2020 at 7:07 PM, Gramto6 said:

I don't know if Sunny has siblings, maybe she could have cooked with a niece or nephew? If not that, a best friend's kid that she was "mentoring" or just hung out with often?

That would have pissed me off because we'd all be better off if people weren't in extended contact with anyone other than the people they already live with.  People aren't any less susceptible just because they're related. 

 

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

BLT's using sliced strawberries instead of tomatoes? I dunno.

It sounded delicious to me, and I didn't even grok that he wasn't using tomatoes.  Which I hate.  And I love strawberries.  So maybe my reaction was subliminal.  And I'm a BLT (or a BL in my case) on toasted white bread strict adherent, and he may have won me over on the idea of using untoasted honey wheat bread.  Color me surprised.

I also was looking closely at his back yard, and I love it.  I'm so used to people on House Hunters bitching about no privacy in their back yards, and here he is with one that looks almost like it's a communal back yard for sister wives or something.  I'm not sure how the neighbors feel about it when they have a rollicking game of foosball going on, but at least you can SEE them playing foosball and not just let your imagination run wild about what's going on behind the privacy fence.

Anyway, it looks lush and green and inviting.

 

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

GZ made a comment about Niagara Falls & for some reason, I thought he said they lived there. Maybe I heard it wrong.

He said he was in the Niagara Falls area, but didn't make it really clear whether that's where his house is or not.  Stands to reason, since they showed him on a boat, too, but I didn't hear anything explicit.

I'm a sweets person, and Alex's watermelon looked wonderful, if a serving is four or five of those little glasses.  However, she said "literally" three times.  "I'm going to use a fork to scrape the ice" is fine; it doesn't need to be "I'm literally going to use a fork to scrape the ice."

I was unsuccessful in getting a look at Zakarian's legs.  I'm wondering if they're spindly and he's using his biceps to compensate.

 

[chessiegal]

3 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I'm a sweets person, and Alex's watermelon looked wonderful, if a serving is four or five of those little glasses.  However, she said "literally" three times.  "I'm going to use a fork to scrape the ice" is fine; it doesn't need to be "I'm literally going to use a fork to scrape the ice."

The tendency of using literally when it is redundant is becoming too common. I find it annoying. People seem to think the unnecessary literally adds some emphasis, which it doesn't.

[annzeepark914]

I asked if GZ lived in the Niagara Falls area earlier today. Later on this afternoon my phone is overrun by ads promoting Niagara Falls as a vacation destination. Creepy.

[Jaded]

5 hours ago, StatisticalOutlier said:

I was unsuccessful in getting a look at Zakarian's legs.  I'm wondering if they're spindly and he's using his biceps to compensate.

My Mom used to love getting a look at legs on men that had larger upper body features while having what you described as spindly legs. The way their upper and lower bodies can be so disproportionate kinda drove her crazy and fascinated her at the same time.

[bichonblitz]

Katie is so adorable pregnant. Is losing your breath so easily after each sentence normal in pregnancy? Anybody else notice that? I've never been pregnant but have been around enough women that are and I never noticed that.  

[MerBearHou]

4 hours ago, bichonblitz said:

Katie is so adorable pregnant. Is losing your breath so easily after each sentence normal in pregnancy? Anybody else notice that? I've never been pregnant but have been around enough women that are and I never noticed that.  

It is definitely normal to be out of breath -- I sure was right at the end of my pregnancies.  Nothing is easy when you're trying to move around and it's so darn hot!  She does look adorable -- happy for them and it will be fun to hear of their baby's arrival.  It's interesting how the pandemic, being pregnant, filming from home has made Katie seem so, so much more genuine and relatable (and I liked her before!).  

Edited August 31, 2020 by MerBearHou

[Koalagirl]

Katie had her baby!

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/katie-lee-gives-birth-welcomes-1st-child-after-infertility-struggles/

[MerBearHou]

1 hour ago, Koalagirl said:

Katie had her baby!

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/katie-lee-gives-birth-welcomes-1st-child-after-infertility-struggles/

Such happy news!  Love her name -- Iris Marion Biegel.  Congratulations to Katie and Ryan!

[annzeepark914]

2 hours ago, Koalagirl said:

Katie had her baby!

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/katie-lee-gives-birth-welcomes-1st-child-after-infertility-struggles/

Such a pretty name--Iris. My hairdresser's toddler's name is Lily. So, is it too much to hope that this young generation is reverting to the classics when naming their babies? Fingers crossed!!

[Ashforth]

So sweet! Beautiful mom and baby. Congrats to Katie and Ryan.

[Gramto6]

What a sweet lovely photo of mom and daughter! Congrats to mom and dad.

[Ashforth]

I tuned in to the show that aired yesterday after it had started, so I didn't see the beginning of Alex's tomato/mozzarella salad. I was intrigued by dredging the fresh mozzarella slices in chopped herbs - that looked like it would be delicious. I didn't see whether she salted the mozzarella slices first - for me, that would be a must, because fresh mozzarella tends to be bland, and the herbs alone would not fix that for me. I know she salted the whole salad at the end, and seemed to be kind of apologetic/defensive about it ("we chefs salt everything"), but dammit, tomatoes and mozzarella need salt to bring out their flavors and that's the truth.

The finished gigantic platter of salad looked fantastic. It cracked me up when she said it would serve one (she was kidding).

[Spunkygal]

10 minutes ago, Ashforth said:

I tuned in to the show that aired yesterday after it had started, so I didn't see the beginning of Alex's tomato/mozzarella salad. I was intrigued by dredging the fresh mozzarella slices in chopped herbs - that looked like it would be delicious. I didn't see whether she salted the mozzarella slices first - for me, that would be a must, because fresh mozzarella tends to be bland, and the herbs alone would not fix that for me. I know she salted the whole salad at the end, and seemed to be kind of apologetic/defensive about it ("we chefs salt everything"), but dammit, tomatoes and mozzarella need salt to bring out their flavors and that's the truth.

The finished gigantic platter of salad looked fantastic. It cracked me up when she said it would serve one (she was kidding).

You would have laughed at another comment Alex made at the very beginning of the show when the hosts are doing their group zoom chat. The subject was how they were celebrating Labor Day and Alex replied that she was going to hollow out a watermelon and fill it with vodka for a party of one! 

[Ashforth]

1 hour ago, Spunkygal said:

You would have laughed at another comment Alex made at the very beginning of the show when the hosts are doing their group zoom chat. The subject was how they were celebrating Labor Day and Alex replied that she was going to hollow out a watermelon and fill it with vodka for a party of one! 

Hmmmm so where was her Fiance? Trouble in paradise?

That was a funny comment, though, not hating on her for it.

Edited September 6, 2020 by Ashforth

[Spunkygal]

27 minutes ago, Ashforth said:

Hmmmm so where was her Fiance? Trouble in paradise?

I sure hope not....she seemed so happy. Maybe he doesn’t drink? But I’m not speculating. I want everyone to have some happiness during this crappy year.

[chessiegal]

3 hours ago, Ashforth said:

Hmmmm so where was her Fiance? Trouble in paradise?

Isn't he a chef? He could have been working.