Taking Down Sandra Lee

Published on Tuesday, July 24, 2007, by Tea / Edit Post

Is it me or is there naughty pleasure in watching someone take on a celebrity and take her down? Yeah, I thought so.

For your latest bit of guilty pleasure, head on over to Cooking … by the Seat of My Pants!, where blogger Jerry has an ongoing feature about the stable of celebrity chefs that is the Food Network. There are those he loves (Paula Deen, inexplicably) and those he hates. This week he takes on Sandra Lee, and I don’t think I need to tell you which side of the line she falls on.

Witness the scathing commentary (and this is just the stuff I thought wouldn’t get me in trouble with legal):

1. The old rule about never trusting a skinny chef doesn’t even begin to cover this woman. Sandra stopped being skinny and moved into the world of anorexic a long while back. This is most likely because her primary source of dietary nutrition comes from her cocktails, not the absolute slop she unleashes upon unsuspecting housewives everywhere. ...

7. Does anyone in the world follow Sandra’s lead by redecorating their entire home for each and every gathering? For each episode of Semi-Homemade cooking, her studio kitchen is completely color coordinated to match whatever her inspiration for the show happened to be that day. ...

10. Tablescape. I’ll never be able to hear that word again without feeling a bit nauseous. ...

12. Sandra does have a talent, however. She’s mastered the art of bouncing her head off of her shoulders when speaking in true ‘dumb blond’ fashion. … I’m sure she thinks that it makes her look cute, what with her ‘I’m just a girl from the Midwest in my Mary-Ann braids’ demeanor, but it actually comes across like she has a rather serious tick that should be treated before someone gets injured.

Ah, gotta love it.

Oh sure, we all throw some personal touches to store-bought food items from time to time, but Jerry has some good points on the sheer inanity of the show (along with some great trash-talking): “Sandra’s opening catchphrase is ‘Welcome to Semi-Homemade, Where everything is quick and everything is easy.’ What she should have said was ‘If you don’t feel like the people you’re cooking for are worth your time, try this!’”

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  • I can't even watch Food Network anymore...it's become so annoying. Sandra Lee has paved the way for more quick and easy meals programs with very very perky and tackey hosts. I've resorted to PBS for old school cooking programs.

    ANd it's true!! I thought I was the only one who thought she was an alcoholic. Her diet only consists of cocktails. No wonder she doesn't have the time and energy to...+READ

    I can't even watch Food Network anymore...it's become so annoying. Sandra Lee has paved the way for more quick and easy meals programs with very very perky and tackey hosts. I've resorted to PBS for old school cooking programs.

    ANd it's true!! I thought I was the only one who thought she was an alcoholic. Her diet only consists of cocktails. No wonder she doesn't have the time and energy to create a 100% home-made meal, she's too tipsy on her fru fru drinks. I'm getting a bit superficial, but I can't stand to watch her slouching witch-like figure. It seems like most of her weight comes from her chest. I'm not anti-skinny chef, but she's an exception.

    I shamefully did watch part of her biography on FoodTV and saw that she led quite a difficult life. I thought she came from a priviledged and spoiled home. Kudos for her for working her way to where she is. But it's just unfortunate that she chose the path of semi-homemade cooking. I grow nauseous with and cringe at her ingredients. There's so much things she's done that are full of msg, high fructose corn syrup, high salt content, and other extreme artificial mushy ingredients.... I admit that I sometimes use a semi-homemade method. But I prefer picking few premade items that actually taste good, made with ingredients I recognize and are sometimes found in Whole Foods or Trader Joes.

    I think the creators and producers of FoodTV forgot about what good programming is. They're EVIL!!

    Paula is on the borderline with me. She may not be doing 5-star gourmet cuisine. She might make things that I probably won't eat. But her theme is on Southern homecooking and she stays true to her philosophy. ANyway, I think she's entertaining and very warm.-COLLAPSE

  • Here it is July 26th, 2007..morning here in the panhandle of Florida...just woke up and focusing on this "laugh a second" page all about the one and only "Sandra Lee" what a way to wake up....duh seriously....if I had to decorate my house each day to "fit the food"...I think I'd be hauled off to the nearest mental ward. Her show is not even related to the others on the food network in my...+READ

    Here it is July 26th, 2007..morning here in the panhandle of Florida...just woke up and focusing on this "laugh a second" page all about the one and only "Sandra Lee" what a way to wake up....duh seriously....if I had to decorate my house each day to "fit the food"...I think I'd be hauled off to the nearest mental ward. Her show is not even related to the others on the food network in my opinion...it's like the black sheep of the family. It must be the sponsors who were able to swing this show...I have watched it yes...but it's too far out in fairyland for me to want to even make one of her recipes....I feel uneasy since it's so unreal...I'd much rather spend time watching the down and dirty chefs give me a couple hours of Bobby Flay cooking on the penthouse rooftop anytime with his Latin spices, steaks, chicken and don't forget the CHILES...enough from this motor mouth in the south....have a nice day Sandra Lee....are you wearing blue eye shadow to match the tablecloth and blueberry muffins...???-COLLAPSE

  • I am skinny, very attractive, and can eat WHATEVER I WANT!. I can cook too! But Sandra Lee gets on my nerves, she reminds me of the kind of cook Cher was in the movie Mermaids. I'm glad to see that others share my same sentiments, except for the comments (stereotypes) about skinny cooks.

  • I am skinny, very attractive, and can eat WHATEVER I WANT!. I can cook too! But Sandra Lee gets on my nerves, she reminds me of the kind of cook Cher was in the movie Mermaids. I'm glad to see that others share my same sentiments, except for the comments (stereotypes) about skinny cooks.

  • I love Paula too. Her dishes seem real, whereas Sandra Lee's are just inexplicable. I'm not trying to be mean or rude, but it seems like such trailer park food.

    And I don't trust skinny chefs either - Everyday Italian? I don't think so.

  • Aw, c'mon... how can you not like Paula? That laugh definitely gets to me, and FN is completely overexposing the woman, but you gotta admire what she's come through to get where she is.