Cooking Shows A-Z

This is the only my second weekly rant but it is not a rant in the tradition sense of the word. Have any of you considered the number of cooking shows there are on Food Network, The Travel Channel, Fine Living and DIY? I spent a few minutes counting the list on the Food Network today and came up with 81 cooking or food related shows. My question for the week is, "Who in the world needs 81 cooking show options?" I admit that I am a foodie and have been ever since my parents treated me to filet mignon, lobster, rare roast beef stuffed with garlic gloves and homemade ravioli. Some of these mouth-watering meals were prepared by my Italian mother, grandmother and aunts as well. But seriously, 81 shows!

Here's a brief rundown from A-Z:

$40 a Day, 30 Minute Meals, 5 Ingredient Fix, Ace of Cakes, All-American Festivals, Ask Aida, Barefoot Contessa, BBQ with Bobby Flay, Behind the Bash, Big Daddy's House, Boy Meets Grill, Chefs vs. City, Chic & Easy, Chopped, Cooking for Real, Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, Down Home with the Neelys, Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello, Emeril Live, Everyday Italian, Extreme Cuisine with Jeff Corwin, Feasting on Waves, Food Detectives, Food Network Challenge, Food Network Specials, Giada at Home, Giada's Weekend Getaways, Glutton for Punishment, Good Deals with Dave Lieberman, Good Eats, Grill It! with Bobby Flay, Guy Off the Hook, Guy's Big Bite, Ham on the Street, Have Fork, Will Travel, Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger, Heavyweights, How to Boil Water, How'd That Get on My Plate?, Hungry Detective, Inside Dish, Iron Chef America, Next Iron Chef, Jamie at Home, Molto Mario, My Life in Food, Nigella Bites, Nigella Express, Nigella Feasts, Party Line with the Hearty Boys, Paula's Best Dishes, Paula's Home Cooking, Paula's Party, Quick Fix Meals with Robin Miller, Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels, Rachael's Vacation, Recipe for Success, Restaurant Makeover, Road Tested, Al Roker on the Road, Sandra's Money Saving Meals, Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee, Sara's Secrets, Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, Semi-Homemade, Simply Delicious with Ingrid Hoffman, Sugar Rush, Ten Dollar Dinners with Melissa d'Arabian, The Best Thing I Ever Ate, The Chef Jeff Project, The Cooking Loft, The Essence of Emeril, The Next Food Network Star, The Next Iron Chef, The Secret Life Of, Throwdown with Bobby Flay, Tyler's Ultimate, Ultimate Recipe Showdown, Unwrapped, Viva Daisy!, What would Brian Boitano Make?, and Will Work for Food.

I love many of these chefs and their shows. It does make me laugh however when I see that certain celebs get their own shows--such as NBC's Al Roker and former skater Brian Boitano. I guess I naively believed you had to have some cooking expertise or formal culinary training to land such a gig. And while I regularly tune in to Anthony Bourdain (Mr. Snarky) and Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel, Iron Chef, Bobby Flay, Chopped, Guy Off the Hook, Unwrapped, and the Next Food Network Star, I find myself wondering how many recipes I could find for a fabulous Chicken Piccata on the websites of these networks. More than I care to try. So for now I will continue to tune in if only until my mind goes numb or until I prepare 5 of the recipes in my own cookbook collection. Once a foodie, always a foodie. Hey, just give me a hunk of bread, a wedge of sharp cheese, kalamata olives, soppressata and a glass of $2 Buck Chuck and I'm a happy camper. But if you're a serious wannabe I understand if, "You have the cooking know-how and a personality that pops, now is the time to apply to be on Season 6 of The Next Food Network Star." I might even apply myself unless Danny DeVito gets his own show first...