Nigella and her Cookery

Hello. Happy Monday. Perhaps you are "on holiday" today (doubtful if you are living in England). Anyhow, I would have tried to make it to the computer this weekend and post, but the nice weather got the best of me. Gotta enjoy those weekends while they last.

I did manage to catch the 2nd episode of "Nigella Feasts" yesterday, though. I'll apologize in advance and say that I am admittedly biased in my review as I wasn't given the chance to experience Nigella and her other television shows before viewing the oft-compared U.S. programs on the Food Network.

That being sad, I still don't really dig the opening animated theme.



There's floating peas and asparagus in it; it doesn't seem to fit the overall theme of the show. Perhaps I shouldn't care so much, as the majority of the FN's opening themes (i.e. - Semi-Homemade's, 30-Minute Meals', Paula's) are pretty awful.

Speaking of, I wonder if the FN will catch on to the trend of not having opening titles. As you may have noticed in network sitcoms, dramas, etc., few have the "Mary Tyler Moore"-like openings anymore. A full 30 or 45 seconds of characters turning toward the camera with that "oh, hello!" look on their face while their name flashes underneath. Maybe that was Full House. Or 90210. Still, it's gone.



So, after the brightly colored opening, we see Nigella in front of this incredibly bright background. Was it frosted windows or something? It was so bright I couldn't even tell. It made it hard for me to even look at her or the food. I need to figure out the brightness settings on my TV or something.

The food in this episode--a chicken & sausage bake (no thanks), garlic roasted potatoes (perhaps), some lettuce and pea concoction (too much butter and other things), and a chocolate honey cake (now we're talking)--just didn't really do anything for me. It reminded me of exactly what I expect the food in England to be-- a little heavy and unimaginative. Sorry!

Call me a stuck-up American, but something else that bothered me was the non-stop conversions Nigella had to keep referencing when adding any ingredient. Is it a teaspoon or a milliliter? An ounce or a gram?



I do feel bad for Nigella, as she probably has no idea what the conversions for her recipes are or how to accurately guess what a "cup and two tablespoons" really is. Not a major deal, but for a cooking show where so much importance lies upon the recipe and the measurements, it kind of got in the way. In my humble (and correct) opinion. :-)




Not even going to go there.

Nigella's kids are amusing. The little boy has some spunk and could possibly be his own television personality.




Her kids definitely seem willing to try new things. At one point, her son actually ate a cooked clove of garlic.



I know, I know. They say they're "sweet" after cooking that long. Still, no American child would do this:-) (Do they?)

Finally, Nigella is credited for the way she speaks about food while she's cooking, and how soothing, relaxing, etc. it all is. She even likes the way lettuce "squeaks" while cutting it.



Ummm... I'll buy that. I don't know if I'll ever just drift off by staring into a "relaxing pot of green," though. Maybe just Americans inability to relax.

I do admit that Nigella is a talented TV personality and I understand why she has such a following. For me, the show didn't exactly thrill me the way I hear others speak of her. Still, I will continue to give her a chance and try to understand why so many people love this crafty cookery of Ms. Lawson.