Best Baker in America Season 2 Hosted By Scott Conant, Judged By Jason Smith and Marcela Valladolid

Photo - Multivu

The second season of Best Baker in America will premiere on Food Network on Monday, May 7th at 9pm ET/PT.  This season will be hosted by Scott Conant and Jason Smith and Marcela Valladolid will return as judges.

The nine bakers competing for the $25,000 prize are: Becca Craig (Philadelphia, Pa. – Executive Cake Chef); Kym DeLost (Chicago, Ill. – Pastry Chef)); Jeremy Fogg (New Orleans, La. – Pastry Chef); Frania Mendivil (Los Angeles, Ca. - Executive Pastry Chef); Leigh Omilinsky (Chicago, Ill. - Pastry Chef); Lasheeda Perry (Atlanta, Ga. – Executive Pastry Chef); Max Santiago (Miami, Fla. – Executive Pastry Chef); Jean-Francois Suteau (White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. – Executive Pastry Chef); Adam Young (Mystic, Conn. – Bakery Owner and Head Pastry Chef).

Jason Smith was the winner of Food Network Star season 13 and his assignments have been Best Baker in America and also Best Thing I Ever Ate on Cooking Channel.  Marcela Valladolid recently left Food Network's The Kitchen but returns to be a judge on Best Baker in America.

The press release about the show is below and here is more info from multivu:

Big Mama, Who Had Food Network Pilot, Passes Away at 76

Patricia Barron, also known as "Big Mama" passed away Friday evening at the age of 76 according to Omaha World Herald.  She was a restaurateur who owned Big Mama's Kitchen in Omaha, Nebraska.  That restaurant appeared on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives on Food Network in 2008 which brought Big Mama and her restaurant notoriety.

In 2013, the Food Network also decided to do a pilot called Big Mama's Kitchen that aired in December 2013.  They ultimately decided not to turn the pilot into a series, but if you are interested, you can watch the pilot here.

In looking at Big Mama's Kitchen YouTube page, it appears that Big Mama was battling cancer, but I am not sure if that is what caused her death.  The restaurant Facebook page posted the following message:

"On this Good Friday, the Lord has called home a Great Woman. Patricia "Big Mama" Barron has gone to be with Jesus.

Big Mama's last wish was for her daughters and family to carry on her passion for serving delicious soul food from the restaurant, Big Mama's Kitchen And Catering, which she so dearly loved. The restaurant will be open normal hours this weekend with a special Easter Lunch served on Sunday. Hours of operation this weekend will be:
Saturday, March 31st from 8-5
Sunday, April 1st from 10-3

The restaurant will be closed Monday - Thursday, April 2-5th to enable Big Mama's family & friends to celebrate her life and will reopen next Friday, April 6th at 11am.
In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests memorial contributions to the Metropolitan Community College Foundation, P.O. Box 3777, Omaha, NE 68103-0777 to benefit the Patricia "Big Mama" Barron Culinary Scholarship. Please indicate the scholarship name in the check memo line. Memorial contributions can also be given online at: https://webapps.mccneb.edu/waystogive/Give/ Indicate the scholarship name in the, "donation is in honor of" section."

Food Network's Katie Lee Got Engaged

Food Network's Katie Lee got engaged today while on vacation in Paris, France.  She posted the following picture on Instagram with the caption, "I said yes."

Katie Lee is one of the co-hosts on Food Network's hit show The Kitchen and also the host of Beach Bites on Cooking Channel.  Her new fiance is Ryan Biegel who is a television producer (credits) and was also an associate producer on Beach Bites.

This will not be the first time Katie Lee was married as she rose to fame after marrying Billy Joel in 2004 when she was 23 and he was 55.  They later separated in 2009.

Congrats to Katie Lee!

Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition Cast Announced

Photo - Multivu

Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition will be returning to Food Network on Sunday, April 15th at 9pm on Food Network.  The season will be six-episodes long and Anne Burrell and Tyler Florence will be mentoring the celebrities on their challenges.  The celebrities competing for a chance to win $25,000 for charity are: Catherine Bach, Maria Bamford, Nolan Gould, La Toya Jackson, Oscar Nunez, Bronson Pinchot and Ian Ziering.

If you don't recognize the names of all of them, as is usually the case with this show, here is what they are most known for:

• Catherine Bach - Daisy Duke in Dukes of Hazzard, also The Young and The Restless
• Maria Bamford - stand up comedian, also star of Netflix's Lady Dynamite
• Nolan Gould - Luke Dunphy on Modern Family
• La Toya Jackson - Being part of the Jackson family and Michael Jackson's sister, also Celebrity Apprentice.
• Oscar Nunez - Oscar on NBC's The Office
• Bronson Pinchot - Balki Bartokomous on Perfect Strangers
• Ian Ziering - Steve Sanders on Beverly Hills 90210

The press release about the show from multivu about the show is below.  Also, here are much longer than they need to be contestant bios.

Worst Cooks in America Winner - Season 12

Tonight at 9pm ET/PT on Food Network is the season 12 finale of Worst Cooks in America where the winner will take home a $25,000 prize.  The final two contestants are Hazell Mckenzie representing Anne Burrell's team and Steven Crowley representing Tyler Florence's team.


The episode description states, "The final two recruits face off in the ultimate challenge -- cooking a 3-course, restaurant quality meal for a panel of culinary experts. Anne Burrell and Tyler Florence coach their recruits from the sidelines, but it all comes down to the skills that the recruits have learned over the past 10 weeks. Judges Paulette Goto, Jordan Andino and Michael Chernow taste the recruits' dishes in a blind taste test and determine the winner of the $25,000 prize."


I will update this post with the winner once the episode airs and feel free to discuss the episode and season in the comments.

Kids Baking Championship Winner Crowned Tonight

Photo - Food Network

Tonight at 9pm ET/PT on Food Network is the season 4 finale of Kids Baking Championship where the winner will take home $25,000.  The final three contestants are Abby, Linsey, and Alex.  Going into the season each of the contestants were described as below:

• Alex - "Alex is proud to be the first Canadian on Kids Baking Championship. He wants to prove that people from Canada can bake. If he wins, he has his sights set on a dog."
• Linsey - "Linsey is obsessed with baking and competitive gymnastics. If she won – and unicorns existed – she would be buying a unicorn."
• Abby - "Abby wants to prove that great things come in small packages. Baking lets her embrace her inner perfectionist. She likes to create baked goods that are inspired by popular ice cream flavors."

I will update this post with the winner of Kids Baking Championship after the episode airs and you can discuss the season/final episode in comments.

Continue reading to find out the winner:

Food Network's March 2018 Programming Highlights

Photo - Multivu

Here are some of the highlights of the Food Network programming scheduled to air on the channel in March:

• The season finale of Worst Cooks in America on March 11th with the winner taking home $25,000. 
• The season premiere of Spring Baking Championship on Monday, March 12th.
• The season finale of Kids Baking Championship on Monday, March 5th with the winner getting $25,000.
• A Guy’s Grocery Games: DDD All-Star Tournament starting on Sunday, March 18th.
• New primetime episodes of Beat Bobby Flay, Chopped, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Guy’s Grocery Games and Ridiculous Cakes.
• A new season of Barefoot Contessa called Cook Like a Pro starting Sunday March 11th
• New daytime episodes of  Giada Entertains, The Kitchen, The Pioneer Woman, Trisha’s Southern Kitchen and Valerie’s Home Cooking.

A press release with episode descriptions and air dates is below:

Iron Chef Gauntlet Season 2 Premieres April 4th on Food Network

Photo - Multivu

Iron Chef Gauntlet will be returning to Food Network for a second season which starts Wednesday, April 4th at 9pm ET/PT.  The season will be six-episodes long and the seven chefs competing to become an Iron Chef are:

• Timon Balloo (Miami, Florida – Partner/Executive Chef, Sugarcane)
• Nicole Gomes (Calgary, Canada – Owner/Executive Chef, Nicole Gourmet)
• David LeFevre (Manhattan Beach, California – Owner/Executive Chef, Manhattan Beach Post)
• Dale Mackay (Saskatoon, Canada – Owner/Executive Chef, Grassroots Restaurant Group)
• Jeanie Roland (Punta Gorda, Florida – Owner/Executive Chef, The Perfect Caper)
• Hong Thaimee (New York, New York – Owner/Executive Chef, Thaimee Table)
• Kevin Tien (Washington D.C. – Owner/Executive Chef, Himitsu)

You may recognize some of the chefs from other TV shows; Timon - Iron Chef Showdown, Nicole and Dale - Top Chef Canada, Jeanie - Beat Bobby Flay, and Hong - Iron Chef America.

Once again, the last remaining chef will have to get a better score in "three rapid-succession Secret Ingredient battles" against Iron Chefs Alex Guarnaschelli, Stephanie Izard and Michael Symon to actually become an Iron Chef.  Stephanie Izard won season 1 of Iron Chef Gauntlet and was able to outscore her 3 Iron Chef's to become an Iron Chef.

A press release about season 2 of Iron Chef Gauntlet is below, plus there are contestant bios, pictures and episode descriptions on multivu.