$10 Dinners Melissa D'Arabian Next Foodnetwork Star premieres

[GrillingFool]

Ten Dollar Dinners with Melissa d'Arabian : Food Network

Anyone else watch it? I tuned in but was a bit distracted, so I only
caught bits and pieces. She seemed a bit wet behind the ears, but
has potential.

I seem to remember her divulging TWO secret recipes and did I catch
a subtle jab at Mother In Law?

Missed the beginning and end but she was cooking some potato pie.

 

[babetoo]

i thought she did just fine first time out. a little stiff but she will get over that. she is a good practical cook and for that reason i wanted her to win. tired of all the chef with big egos and not much else.

 

[Chile Chef]

i thought she did just fine first time out. a little stiff but she will get over that. she is a good practical cook and for that reason i wanted her to win. tired of all the chef with big egos and not much else.

I wished I caught her show, I really like her for the same reason and I like that shes still wet behind the ears "for an example" Still calling money Bux, instead of money, or off the hook and so on.



Hopefully I can watch a rerun of her this coming week.

 

[TheMetalChef]

Crap. That was tonight? Completely spaced it.

I like to give these new winners at least a couple episodes before I pass judgement. Of course, I didn't think much of Big Daddy, and look at him now... so I suppose my judgement isn't worth much at all....

 

[Arky]

I didn't care much for her during the competition, nor now on her new show.

She has a herky-jerky nervous energy level that drives me nuts! And, her smile comes across to me as being phony. I recall seeing that kind of fake smile on women who have just completed airline stewardess school.

 

[chestertime]

Liked the first episode. Ended up making the potato tort (delicious) later in the week. Second episode was equally stiff and less interesting.

 

[kadesma]

We have to realize she is new to all this. She will become more relaxed and easy to listen to as she comes along. She has great ideas, but we also must realize not every show is going to be what we happen to be looking for that day...I think she will become enjoyable and helpful to many woman and saving money, that is just what we all look for.
kadesma

 

[msmofet]

i missed it. i have food network on demand but i am not all that interested at the moment.

 

[larry_stewart]

What I find kind of funny, is during the whole selection process they kept telling her ( and everyone else ) to be themselves. But as I watch her shows, all I can see is her trying to be what they want her to be. It just isnt coming across as being natural or sincere ( IMO). As far as the food goes, some of the ideas seemed good. Ill attempt to make a vegetarian version of her Tunisian Meatballs.

Also, I think the $10 a meal thing assumes that u have all the spices she uses already. I remember when I became interested in Indian food, I looked at a recipe, and it called for about 10 spices that i didnt have on hand. About $80 later, I now have the spices, and will have them for years to come, since you only use about 1 tsp each time. But, what im getting at is some of the things that she assumes everyone has in stock, may not be the case. But this is just me being a skeptic.
I prefer watching Jacques Pepin, or the Julia Child reruns over the food network anyway.
larry

 

[BreezyCooking]

I caught part of her show yesterday & wasn't terribly impressed. She came across as a frightened rabbit.

Oh, & Larry - you won't have those spices you bought "for years to come". Dried herbs & spices lose their potency after about 6-8 months tops, depending on how they're stored, & need to be replaced.

 

[Elf]

I caught her show today, thought that she did very well for new comer. I am looking forward to watching next few shows. I think Food Network has found another winer if they don't screw her up. Guy seems to be the only one that has made it big, and that is because he is doing a travel log show. Big Daddy seems to fade in and out, so we shall see what happens to her.

 

[kitchenelf]

Well, since I'm not in the minds of Food TV I can't say that I can watch her and see ONLY what Food TV wants her to be.

Can't we give her a break here? She is new to being in front of a camera...I couldn't do it, nor could most of us, right out of the gate.

Even if you prefer to watch Jacques Pepin and Julia reruns, if you decide to cook any of their food you will still need to buy a few things/spices

Every time I watch a cooking program my main focus is to learn something new. Those programs I don't care for I simply don't watch.

 

[Xavie]

I like the show in itself but the $10 concept is very misleading.
One already has to have all the spices/oils and apparently it’s assumed that most of the items were on sale.
But gimmick aside, her recipes are really good.
I also loved her “tip” for keeping bacon in the freezer, so much easier to slice and lasts longer. I’m not very good in the kitchen, so didn’t know one could do that.

 

[kadesma]

I find it rather nice to have someone who is more like a neighbor than an actress all glamed up showing what she prepares for her family rather than a recipe you have to chase down the fancy ingredients for. While a fancy meal is a wonderful treat for loved ones or a special time, everyday foods really are more my way to go during the week. Her tip about the bacon really brought home my mom to me..I remember how she loved to give us the best and would wait for sales and then buy butter and bacon and store them in the freezer...Ahhh mom you were so loving and good.
kades