Personal Dork Assistant

FoodTV is a fun

FoodTV is a fun channel with some redeeming value even if you're just vegetating. It's possible to learn something through osmosis even if you don't go and try to replicate their recipes. Shows like Good Eats and The Naked Chef explains simple concepts well and makes cooking accessible. Iron Chef is way over the top, but the chefs manage to make great food (squid ink ice cream aside) under the spotlight with incredible time pressure. And Emeril is Emeril (BAM!).

Then there's Passion for Desserts, where an ernest Frenchman tries to convince you that it's all really easy. Sure, if you're a Meilleur Ouvrier de France. Considering that a butane torch is standard equipment and that recipes start out with first-aid instructions, it brings to mind Owen Wilson's infamous quote from the Shanghai Knights commercial, "What in our history together makes you even think I'm capable of something like that?" It would be easier to fly to Paris and have a pastry (and a plate of macaroons) at Ladur�e than making it yourself. Believe me, it's worth it, too.