Be My Guest with Ina Garten

Already five seasons airing on The Food Network, Max just got up to Season 4 of Ina Garten’s newest show, Be My Guest. The premise is simple. Ina invites one guest to her barn – the kitchen studio where she shoots her series. They talk career and life. Then they cook something together. And finally they take a trip somewhere in East Hampton where Garten and her husband live. I loved watching Laura Linney, Julianna Margulies, Rob Marshall and John DeLuca, and Nathan Lane. I realized however that the Nathan Lane episode got to a point where I didn’t care for what they were making. Other episodes I am not interested in the guest. So this is a hit or miss for me. I am looking forward to watching at least one more episode – Frank Bruni. After that, I’m good. This is feel good Ina in her element – her home studio,  showing off her interviewing skills, and her town. 3 out of 5 for Be My Guest with Ina Garten.

Be My Guest with Ina Garten currently streams on The Food Network, Discovery Plus, a ton of other streamers, and up to Season 4 on Max.

Chrissy and Dave Dine Out

Chrissy & Dave Dine Out  stars Chrissy Tiegen and David Cheng. The pair visit favorite restaurants in Los Angeles. Chrissy dines in front with buddy Joel Kim Booster and guests, and Dave checks out the chef and kitchen, before everyone reunites at the table. Great combination of foodies tasting amazing dishes and chefs’ outlooks on why and how they cook. Easy, breezy. And no subject is off-limits which makes the show lots of fun. I’m not headed to Los Angeles anytime soon, but this new series proves a great addition to the avalanche of food shows. 3.5 out of 5.

Chrissy & Dave Dine Out currently streams on Freeform and Hulu.

The Great British Baking Show: Collection 11

2023 welcomed back The Great British Baking Show (The Great British Bake Off in the U.K) in all its glory. This season harkened to more classic bakes which I love. The tent was full of an amazing set of twelve amateur bakers representing people from all walks of life, including the first hearing challenged (apologies if I am not getting that description correct) contestant. Thank goodness Prue and Paul are back. I adore Prue’s positive presence and Paul’s Dad-vibe energy. Fan favorite Noel is also back for his seventh season, welcoming new co-host Alison Hammond who literally acts as if she’s been there for years. It’s a perfect season. The bakers continue to lead with kindness and support their fellow contestants. I cry like a baby every year during the finale. Of course I am happy for the winner, but I end each season wishing the larger world would adopt the respectful and welcoming vibe this show has cultivated. It’s not that difficult to imagine a world mirrored after GBBS. Visualize helping your neighbor rather than fighting with them. Visualize spatulas instead of guns. Visualize opening yourself up to other cultures and ways of life instead of silo-ing in social media and fear. The finale was edited so perfectly, full of tension , and sweet excitement. Loved the winner. That’s all I’m going to say. Loved them! Another amazing year of the U.K.’s best amateur bakers. 13 years strong! Easy 5 out of 5.

Great British Baking Show Recipes

Are you tired of sitting on the sofa season after season while amateur bakers from around Great Britain compete to win on the Great British Baking Show (Great British Bake Off  (GBBO) in the U.K.)? I’m not. But if you’re more of a baker than I am, you might want to sink your fingers into various recipes featured on this season and previous seasons. The GBBO website’s got a whole section of recipes from Prue, Paul, and assorted contestants. My favorite? I’d love to try Prue’s custard cremes.

Or order some Great British Baking Show cookbooks for yourself or as gifts for the holidays.

Or be like me, Reel Charlie and continue simply sitting back and enjoying Alison and Noel say, “ready, set, bake!”
Explore the television series on Reel Charlie.

What I’m Watching: November 2023

Currently watching three series dropping an episode a week. They couldn’t be more different. And I’m thrilled.

The Great British Baking Show: Collection 11 makes me smile with joy as the baker’s continue to do their best while helping their fellow humans.
The Gilded Age: Season 2 continues the social clawing of the old guard vs. the nouveau riche. Delicious in a very different way from the above.
Fellow Travelers follows the heartbreaking love story between two men set smack dab in the middle of the McCarthy era… literally… one of them works for McCarthy.

   

The Great British Baking Show currently streams on Netflix.
The Gilded Age currently streams on Max.
Fellow Travelers currently streams on Showtime and Paramount+.

New Season: The Great British Baking Show: Collection 11 (U.S.)

Something delicious just dropped on Netflix this weekend. A new season of The Great British Baking Show. Collection 11 brings us another 12 bakers from all over England. We also welcome Alison Hammond who immediately meshes with star presenter Noel Fielding. Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith are back. The show makes me cry, it makes me smile, it makes me cheer on the contestants. I realized after all these years the main reason I love the show so much is because of the wholesomeness. It’s a wholesome show with wholesome people doing their best and enjoying their lives. That shouldn’t be a rare quality in entertainment, but it is. It’s also diverse and we are all better viewers because of the mix of contestants. Bravo to the showrunners for keeping my favorite competition show so fresh and addictive. I already can’t wait for next week. Look for my review in a little over two months. Meanwhile happy wholesome viewing to you all! Oh and there’s a surprise bake on the first episode that will have you grinning from ear to ear.

The Great British Baking Show (U.S. name for The Great British Bake-Off) currently streams on Netflix.

The Great British Baking Show: Collection 11 on Netflix – Rowan, Nicky, Amos, Cristy, Dan, Josh, Dana, Keith, Tasha, Matty, Saku, Abbi.

Great British Baking Show The Professionals Season 7

2022 brought us The Great British Baking Show spin-off, The Great British Baking Show The Professionals: Season 7. Netflix only has Seasons 6 & 7 of this series. It’s blasphemous, but I think this is the weakest of the baking shows from this family. The original is still and forever king. The Christmas specials get better and better. This one pairs up two professional bakers who join forces in an attempt to win the grand prize. Two things make this confusing for me. First, there are twice as many people to keep track of, and you never really get to know anyone intimately like you do in the original show. Second, half the teams compete first, then the second half, then they combine the top three to create the best six and whittle it down from there to a winner. Confused? I was for sure. The judges are annoying – aggressive and definitely not Prue and Paul. Cherish Finden and Benoit Blin are definitely enthusiastic and a bit comical, as well as dismissive. A true departure from the casual excellence of Paul and Prue. I still can’t figure out if I like them. This season had former Bake Off winner Liam Charles and Stacey Solomon as presenters. Stacey steals the show with her enthusiasm, gentle charm, and addictive smile. I definitely did not swoon over this incarnation the way I do over a new season of the original. Which by the way is headed our way in the near future. Meanwhile, I give The Professionals 3 out of 5.

The Great British Baking Show The Professionals currently streams on Netflix.

Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones

A fascinating 4-part docu-series, Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones looks at longevity around the world. Can we harness the secrets of living longer from different cultures and regions of the world? From the Blue Zones website,

In the early 2000s, Dan Buettner collaborated with National Geographic to reverse-engineer a formula for longevity. He scoured the globe for years in pursuit of places where people live much longer than average, and the concept of blue zones came to fruition. To date, the expeditions unveiled Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Ikaria, Greece; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Loma Linda, California, as blue zones with the highest rates of living centenarians. These five spots share some similar elements — a plant-based diet, natural movement, and putting family first — that have been proven to promote longevity and health in residents.

Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones takes members around the world to investigate the diet and lifestyles of those living the longest lives. Explore the original blue zones, be immersed in their culture and lifestyles, and see how Blue Zones is applying the research in communities across the United States. Buettner offers insight on how to benefit from following at least some of their leads, because the only thing better than looking good as you age, is feeling good as you age.

While not a perfect solution, Live to 100 is one person’s life work trying to make sense of how we create healthier, happier, more satisfying lives and in turn live longer. I did worry that some of the factors Buettner chose seemed sexy, in other words looked good in the series. What was his criteria? The follow up to this series would be to look at the holes in certain cultures. For instance the 7th Day Adventists in CA are not welcoming to progressives, including independent women and LGBTQ folk. Also, is there genetic data on these cultures that could factor in to longevity? Still, a good jumping off point. Well worth the time. 3.5 out of 5.

Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones currently streams on Netflix.

Philadelphia Summer

In case I don’t pre-load enough reviews to get us through the weekend, truth is Dennis and I are spending 4 days with our niece Lauren and nephew in-law J-B, the expectant parents. And of course the most beautiful princess of the house, Maxy will be luxuriating over her great guncles and their fawning. She’s big and floppy, but as you can see stunningly beautiful. She’s like a glam muppet. When not showing Maxy love, I am wondering if we will find a better ice cream (Joe Peri, are you reading this?) than at Bassetts or Franklin Fountain, two of our favorite haunts.

Maxy Hyppolite recently groomed and ready for her Great Guncles visit.

 

The Great American Baking Show: Season 6

Where The Great British Baking Show (original U.K. name: The Great British Bake Off), The Great American Baking Show has been aired and who’s been a part of the team is nearly as confusing as the import streaming for the original show. CBS had one season of the spin-off under a different name. Then ABC took over and had 5 seasons under the current name. Hosts and judges have come and gone. There’s been 7 hosts and 5 judges. And this year, The Roku Channel bought the current Season 6 and brought the two current U.K. judges Paul Hollywood, who’s been with the American version since Season 3, and my favorite Prue Leith who joins her co-judge Hollywood together again in this lovely season. I kept trying to figure out where in the U.S. it was filmed. Surprise! They flew the contestants to a studio outside of London for the duration. Which makes sense why the winner’s spouse was not there during the awarding of the glass cake stand. I can’t speak for the previous seasons, but this current season, Season 6 gave me the same warm and inviting feeling as the original, partly because of the judges and mostly because of the high caliber of contestants who not only baked their assess off, but exhibited the kindness and generosity which is the hallmark of the original show. I was thrilled with the top 3 who made it to the finale. I was shocked at the winner – in a good way. Yes, I love to cozy up to this show, these judges, the sincere contestants, eat my string cheese, and marvel at all the amateur bakes. 4 out of 5. Looking forward to Season 7 which just got greenlit.

The Great American Baking Show: Season 6 currently streams on The Roku Channel. You don’t have to have a Roku device to use the streaming service, and you don’t have to create an account. Just download the app on your TV, search, and play. Commercials are in there, but not an overwhelming amount.