'What Would Brian Boitano Make?' - Cooking in Spanglish

by Michael Thomas Hastings, Posted Sep 14th 2009 @ 11:00AM

Brian Boitano, living to entertain. Photo: Food Network

Is it just us, or is Brian Boitano already running out of ideas? After just four brief episodes, the figure-skater-turned-foodie is so strapped for a reason to entertain, he throws a finger-food party for a Spanish-American friend with a 6-month-old baby. Why? Because she "made it."

We'll ignore for a moment what the alternatives might be for mothers of newborns. Maybe that's the beauty of "What Would Brian Boitano Make?": The man needs no excuse -- or even a reason -- to whip up a few frilly themed appetizers. Or rather, his show is the excuse.

This week's installment was pure stream-of-consciousness Brian -- a day in the life, if you will: Wake up, fire up your vintage Wedgewood oven and make a Spanish tortilla, which reminds you of your Spanish-American pal Yvonne, which in turn prompts you to learn about making paella from her mother.

From there, you're just a brief Frisco grocery trip away from a series of bite-sized dishes -- some more appetizing than others -- "inspired" by paella ingredients.

While Brian may provide some useful tips for the first-timer -- steaming mussels in a white wine broth, for instance -- other dishes are offbeat concoctions. Case in point: His crispy saffron rice cakes looked carb-tastically delicious, to be sure, but since when are frozen green peas a "secret ingredient"?

And of the admittedly tasty looking treats served up, we could not in good conscience claim that Brian's ground-chicken-and-scallop burgers were among them. (Maybe that's why the recipe isn't listed on the Food Network's site?)

No matter -- Brian will live another day to dream up a new scenario for serving up some quasi-international cuisine. And we, gluttons for vicarious dinner parties that we are, will be there to virtually sample them.

Filed Under: Television/Film
Tags: brianboitano, foodnetwork, mussels, paella, saffronricecakes, spanish tortilla, SpanishTortilla, wedgewoodoven, whatwouldbrianboitanomake