What foodie among us doesn’t love watching the Food Network? Who among us doesn’t salivate over the gastronomic creations and, even more so, the gleaming, decked-out kitchens, the ease with which the stars whip up their homey, yet inventive meals, and the stress-free environment in which they serve them to their guests.
I love watching the Food Network’s porcelain-perfect cooking, and, in particular, Everyday Italian with Giada DeLaurentis. She is perfectly made up, coiffed, and dressed, and her football-field-sized kitchen is immaculate and stylish. Not only that, but the woman features mascarpone, whipped cream, and crème fraiche in nearly every show, which makes me feel like we are culinary kindred spirits. Word, Giada, word.
However, the bliss with which I watch this perfect landscape can’t help but be pierced by reality as it was last week when I watched Giada assemble pot-pie veggie pizzas in a snow-white, long-sleeved, finely-knit sweater. She looked wonderful, but as I watched her ladle tomato sauce into each ramekin, I shrank with apprehension, fearful that she would get a dot of tomato sauce on her sweater.
Naturally, she didn’t. But this fact is as much based in reality as the size, scope, and cleanliness of the kitchen and ease with which she prepares the food. Back in the real world, I like to take certain precautions against adorning my favorite Vince sweater with splattered grease, tomato sauce, batter, and the like.
If I’m cooking alone, I like to don my version of scrubs – some $2 Gap t-shirts that I bought on clearance 6 years ago and my black Wes pajama pants.
However, if I have company coming and have to be dressed for their arrival, I like to wear a cute, stylish apron. I know, it seems like a contradiction… aprons are matronly, practical, a relic of generations past, when women seemed more chained to their kitchens than inspired by them, but I’ve done a little digging and found a bunch of aprons at Anthropologie that are as cute as their clothes.
I’ve had one for many years, and no matter how mercilessly I subject it to the onslaught of spills and splatters, it comes out of the wash beautifully bright and ready for another round.
*Food photography in this post from the Food Network. Apron photography from Anthropologie.
That’s so funny, I also have a $2 Gap tshirt 🙂
One of my friends gave me the Jessie Steele apron – I love it! But I only use it when I have “company” and prefer the “scrubs” when I’m on my own. Funny how that happens, right?
Good informative blog. Good one on aprons. http://www.seymourdabull.com/BBQ-and-Cooking_c25.html