"foodnetwork.com" news and stories

I know, I know, you're hating me already, right? How can I defend Sandra Lee when she seems to have more people that dislike her than Rachael Ray? Read on.

I've never understood why people dislike Lee. Is it the fact that she's beautiful and looks like one of Charlie's Angels cooking up a meal in the kitchen? Is it the fact that she doesn't do everything from scratch, and instead dares to use packaged foods from the supermarket? Is it something else that I'm not aware of?

I was watching Food Network on Saturday night (yes, I have a very thrilling social life) and I saw an ad for their All-Star Thanksgiving special that starts airing on November 18. Is that the special from last year or the year before and not a new special? I ask because Sara Moulton is featured on the show, and I'm not sure if this is a new special or a special from the last couple of years.

I used to love Cooking Live every night and think it was a bad move to cancel that show. Moulton went on to another show, Sara's Secrets.

Nicole reported last year that Moulton was leaving the network, so are these Sara Secrets episodes repeats? I can't tell from the schedule at the site. When I saw the ad for the Thanksgiving special, it made me cringe a bit, because I know that she's basically not doing much for the network anymore, unless the episodes of her show that are on every morning are new and not repeats? To be honest, I didn't even know the show was still on anymore, and I usually don't watch Food Network that early in the AM, so I'm not sure if they're new or repeats.

I was watching Ham on the Street a few nights ago (great show - I had never watched it before but it's quite entertaining), and the episode focused on pizza. He visited pizza shops, had a taste test to see if people on the street liked his toppings of carmelized onions and gorgonzola more than pepperoni, and made some pizza on pita bread that I have to try.

But the recipe on the show that I need to try right now is the Pepperoni Pizza Soup. What a great concept, pizza, but in a bowl! At first I thought it would be just some odd approximation of pizza, but this recipe actually sounds doable:

Have I told you about the watermelon obsession I had when I was a kid? I would hound my mother to keep buying watermelons when she went shopping. She would buy a giant watermelon - for the entire family, I assume - but I would take the whole thing, slice it up, sit down in front of the TV and proceed to eat the entire thing. Seriously. When others came to get watermelon, they'd find it gone. Usually the same day that mom bought it.

Is it just me, or were watermelons tastier years ago? Or is this one of those things that just seem different and better because I was a kid at the time?

Anyway, I got to thinking about watermelon drinks. Watermelon tastes great, and it's the perfect summer food (light, crisp, refreshing, not bad for you, and you can hold it in your hand), so I did some searching for watermelon-based summer drinks.

The Boston Globe has a list of watermelon coolers you can ask your bartender about, including an Iced Sunset and a Watermelon Martini; care2.com has a recipe for a Watermelon Mint Smoothie (made with yogurt and honey); here's a recipe for Watermelon Surprise, which includes Southern Comfort and chunks of fruit; Drinkoftheweek.com has Watermelon #3 (no watermelon per se but it does have Midori); and The Food Network site has a recipe for a Watermelon Flavored Syrup, to mix with club soda or seltzer.