First of all, thanks to Will Harris for filling in last week while I was on vacation, and I am not surprised that you’re now hooked on this show. I still think it’s one of the best reality shows on television.
On to business. Last night the remaining eight contestants had two challenges. The first was a point of view challenge, where they had to show what they could do with a potato, and then present their dish in one minute of camera time. For the second challenge, they had to come up with a packaged product and then present that product to food buyers and to special guest judge Martha Stewart.
To streamline my summary, I’m going to go through each contestant individually, and then share the results.
Adam made cheese fries, a universally accepted food that he could not possibly undercook, and the judges loved it. His packaged item was a barbecue rub that he served over smoked chicken, and he improvised by using corn cobs as his smoking base instead of wood chips, which he couldn’t find in the store. The judges were mildly impressed, and he helped his cause by singing to Martha Stewart, which was pretty hilarious.
Kelsey made potatoes gratin, but undercooked the dish and was too energetic on camera. She made a sauce to be used as a sloppy joe sauce for her packaged item, but didn’t impress Martha very much. The judges said her presentation was animated, bordering on annoying.
Jeffrey made home fries but didn’t connect well on camera. He made a seasoned salt to be used on catfish for his packaged item, and that didn’t go over well with anyone.
Nipa made a curry dish with her potatoes, and the judges loved it and admitted that her point of view was very clear. But she failed at the next challenge, only mixing cayenne pepper and sugar, leaving the judges with a feeling that anyone can make that at home.
Aaron made a potato wrapped in bacon with a honey scallion glaze, which seemed to impress everyone. I don’t think there is any doubt that this dude can cook. His packaged item was a cider vinaigrette and that also went over very well.
Shane made a potato soup in the first challenge, but the judges were not impressed with the dish. He then made a cherry cognac sauce for his packaged item, and that didn’t go over too well either. Some of the judges made reference to the fact that “cherry-gac” is not a very appealing name…I’ll let you draw your own conclusions as to why!
Jennifer made a mashed potato pizza, which I have to admit sounds amazing. But the judges did not like her presentation, which was awkward and confusing. Her cream sauce was her packaged item and the judges were only half impressed with that as a whole.
Lisa made a potato dish with smoked trout and creme fraiche (is that spelled correctly? I’m just not versed in frou-frou language). The judges liked the food but her presentation was way too fast and not personal enough. Lisa’s packaged item was an orange marmalade with basil that is served over brie. This is also something I wouldn’t personally touch with a ten foot pole, but the judges, including her hero Martha Stewart, loved it.
The winner of both challenges overall was Adam, so he was declared safe. The best product was Lisa’s, and Martha Stewart’s favorite was Aaron, so they were also safe. Nipa and Shane were told that they both needed to work on some things, but showed enough promise to stick around. Kelsey, after melting down in front of the judges, saying how she’s wanted this since the show’s inception, was also safe. It was down to Jeffrey and Jennifer, and Jeffrey was sent home. This guy seemed like he had good ideas (soul food simplified) but he just wasn’t connecting enough with the judges and it cost him. Meanwhile, Jennifer knows she dodged a bullet and needs to step up her game.
So that’s it for this week’s “Next Food Network Star.” Will, I know you are hooked now, so feel free to post a comment below. That goes for the rest of you reading as well. Thanks and see you next week!
