Food Network Addict Year in Review 2009 -- Part 2

And now! The exciting conclusion to my 2009 Year in Review. Check out Part 1 below.

IN JULY...

I met up with former Next Food Network Star contestant Kelsey Nixon and Top Chef's Spike Mendolsohn at his DC burger joint Good Stuff Eatery:


It was great getting a chance to meetand talk with Kelsey and I do wish her the best.

... we saw that sign language that comes along with 5 Ingredient Fix, I visited Paris and London (didn't see Ina Garten OR Nigella Lawson)...



...I gave you my 5 reasons why I thought Melissa d'Arabian was going to win The Next Food Network Star, and we checked out Sandra Lee's spread in Out magazine.



IN AUGUST...

Melissa d'Arabian was crowned the winner of The Next Food Network Star, we saw how her set might have been recycled from season three winner Amy Finley's one-season show...



... runnerup Jeffrey Saad got a "mini-series" webisode deal on Foodnetwork.com called "The Spice Smuggler" and we haven't heard anything since, we saw how funny pictures of Pat Neely can get snapped at book signings...



... Noah Starr disappeared on Ask Aida, Ina Garten, Rachael Ray, and Bobby Flay won Daytime Emmys, and we saw—yet again—what money has done for Rachel Ray:



IN SEPTEMBER...

We got our first inkling that Anthony Bourdain's worst nightmare might come true (it did) when it was rumored that Scripps Network Interactive (the parent company of Food Network) might buy a controlling stake in the Travel Channel, we saw Nigella Lawson doing her best Dita Von Teese impression...



... we found out that Paula Deen's line of cast iron pans for QVC might crack or shatter during cooking--woops!, and we learned that it was never really Alton Brown's goal to be on TV.

IN OCTOBER...

We saw the first pics of Mary Alice's amazing weight loss...



... it was announced that FLN was changing to The Cooking Channel, I hit up the NYC Wine and Food Festival...


... we got our first glimpse of the JUST RENEWED new show by Alex Guarnaschelli, and we got some baking tips from Charm City Cakes' Adam Goldstein.

IN NOVEMBER...

Aunt Sandy hit up Wendy Williams...



... Emeril Lagasse hinted at bringing back Emeril Live to some network other than Food Network, Martha Stewart acted like a jealous jezebel when Rachael Ray appeared on her talkshow, I posted a guest review of Food Network's first game for Nintendo Wii, the episode of Barefoot Contessa that I was a guest on reaired, and Paula Deen got hit in the face with a ham.



IN DECEMBER...

I found out where Dave Lieberman had been hiding...


... just-about-to-debut-a-new-show Anne Burrell got sued for discrimination, Dr. Phil made a move on Cat Cora, and George Duran got a job!

*******

Overall, it's been a very fun year--a much busier one than other previous blogging years for me, I'd say. When I started this blog I was in a very different place in my life: recently out of college, working for a job I didn't love, needing a writing outlet that interested me, and just learning how to cook for myself for the first time.

Now, honestly, I find myself watching HGTV more than Food Network. Ha! I guess that's the progression of life. First you learn to cook, then you look for a house to cook in.

I still love my Food Network peeps and don't plan on giving it up, though. I hope everyone has a happy, safe, food-filled, drink-filled New Year's Eve. See yah in 2010!