I was watching The Food Network this afternoon; I watch it whenever I feel stumped for a new recipe. I caught 30-Minute Meals today and it was a rerun, but it was revealing.
In the beginning, Rachael Ray was an overly-bubbly girl-next-door who was like the other Food Network cooks, in that she could cook anything and make it seem easy. The difference was that she had a personality that was sweet, endearing, friendly, and confident. Not all of them, but many of the FN chefs have this slightly stuck up personality; it's as if they have a show because they want to show off and not so they can teach the viewer to cook.
I loved Rachael Ray a few years ago. I loved that she was sweet, she loved to cook, and it seemed like she wanted others to cook as well as she could. I thought that perhaps the reason she was more fun to watch, was because she wasn't an actual chef. She never went to culinary school and can credit everything she knows, to good ol' family cooking.
However, I have noticed, most notebly today that she has changed. She used to be all smiles on 30-Minute Meals and the rest of her shows. She even used to giggle a bit. There'd be some jokes and goofs to keep it all light and fun.
As I am typing this, as I am watching Rachael Ray's Week in a Day "Make it Work" episode. I am 7 minutes in and I haven't seen her smile once. She did say "delicious" in a tone that seemed like a throwback to Rachael Ray of 2003. Before this episode went to commercial, she threw some pasta in the water and I thought I saw a grin, but not the trademark RR ear-to-ear-love-to-cook-smile. When we came back from commercial, she still hadn't smiled. She cooked away, got a little something in her hair, and we went to commercial again smile free. And I'm sure that little something will be magically gone when the commercial break is over.
I think she has just become too big and it's taking its toll on her; there's so much responsibility that it's no longer fun. She has multiple cooking shows, she has a talk show that I'm sure wears her thin (She smiles on the talk show, but there is a live audience). She has a magazine that she's on the cover of every month, so photo shoots. She has an entire line of kitchen essentials, which uses up her time as well. Not to mention, she has a world of cookbooks; $40 dollars/day cooking, 30-Minute Meals, 60-Minute Meals, cooking for kids, light cooking, veggie cooking, burgers, cooking for a crowd, cooking for kids, 365 days a year cooking, easy cooking, desserts, and a biography. There may be more out there. She is also the spooksman for various things. Nabisco needs those smiles too.
(To Update: we are 32 minutes into Week in a Day, and she grinned and giggled for only a moment)
No matter who you are, once you get too famous, there's no room to enjoy what you're doing anymore. But hats off to RR for keeping it all going. While she's not fun to watch anymore in my opinion, the food still sounds wonderful!
I just wish that she hadn't lost the bubbly...
In the beginning, Rachael Ray was an overly-bubbly girl-next-door who was like the other Food Network cooks, in that she could cook anything and make it seem easy. The difference was that she had a personality that was sweet, endearing, friendly, and confident. Not all of them, but many of the FN chefs have this slightly stuck up personality; it's as if they have a show because they want to show off and not so they can teach the viewer to cook.
I loved Rachael Ray a few years ago. I loved that she was sweet, she loved to cook, and it seemed like she wanted others to cook as well as she could. I thought that perhaps the reason she was more fun to watch, was because she wasn't an actual chef. She never went to culinary school and can credit everything she knows, to good ol' family cooking.
However, I have noticed, most notebly today that she has changed. She used to be all smiles on 30-Minute Meals and the rest of her shows. She even used to giggle a bit. There'd be some jokes and goofs to keep it all light and fun.
As I am typing this, as I am watching Rachael Ray's Week in a Day "Make it Work" episode. I am 7 minutes in and I haven't seen her smile once. She did say "delicious" in a tone that seemed like a throwback to Rachael Ray of 2003. Before this episode went to commercial, she threw some pasta in the water and I thought I saw a grin, but not the trademark RR ear-to-ear-love-to-cook-smile. When we came back from commercial, she still hadn't smiled. She cooked away, got a little something in her hair, and we went to commercial again smile free. And I'm sure that little something will be magically gone when the commercial break is over.
I think she has just become too big and it's taking its toll on her; there's so much responsibility that it's no longer fun. She has multiple cooking shows, she has a talk show that I'm sure wears her thin (She smiles on the talk show, but there is a live audience). She has a magazine that she's on the cover of every month, so photo shoots. She has an entire line of kitchen essentials, which uses up her time as well. Not to mention, she has a world of cookbooks; $40 dollars/day cooking, 30-Minute Meals, 60-Minute Meals, cooking for kids, light cooking, veggie cooking, burgers, cooking for a crowd, cooking for kids, 365 days a year cooking, easy cooking, desserts, and a biography. There may be more out there. She is also the spooksman for various things. Nabisco needs those smiles too.
(To Update: we are 32 minutes into Week in a Day, and she grinned and giggled for only a moment)
No matter who you are, once you get too famous, there's no room to enjoy what you're doing anymore. But hats off to RR for keeping it all going. While she's not fun to watch anymore in my opinion, the food still sounds wonderful!
I just wish that she hadn't lost the bubbly...
