Norwitz Notions

Episode seven of the Next Food Network Star still takes place in Las Vegas and we’re down to 3 contestants: Aaron, Lisa, and Adam. Challenge #1: Prepare a 30 second promo for what could be their new show. Unlike in previous versions of this, each promo was carefully scripted (including wardrobe) by the Food Network […]

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Episode six of the Next Food Network Star takes place in Las Vegas and has each of the 4 remaining contestants doing a Throwdown, a la Bobby Flay.  Why is the show in Las Vegas?  Other than being able to cook outside in January, I haven’t the faintest idea.  The judges asked the contestants to […]

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Episode five of the Next Food Network Star is fun and is the first one really suited to figuring out if the contestant is someone who ought to have their own show. There was just a single challenge, but it was a long one.  Each contestant was paired with a Brownie (a girl about 8 […]

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I’ve been thinking about making pesto stuffed mushrooms for a while now, at least since considering the dish as worthy of a Food Network competition.  Then I was at the store and saw the beautiful criminis.  Usually they have the smaller ones, but sometimes they have ones almost big enough to be called portabellas.  If […]

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Episode five of the Next Food Network Star had some challenges that finally seemed worthy of candidates for a cooking show. Challenge #1: Using a mystery basket with 6 ingredients, create a dish using them, and prepare to describe the dish on camera. The twist was that each contestant had to switch baskets with another, […]

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Episode four of the Next Food Network Star; more speed, quick thinking, and some camera work. Challenge #1: Demonstrate a “basic skill” to the camera in one minute. I remember a couple of seasons ago the contestants had to show they knew some basic cooking skills by performing tasks in front of a judge (without […]

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