Ever since America’s first TV network cooking show aired back in 1946, food on the tube has drawn a hungry audience — and a strangely gluttonous one for culinary combat these days. How exactly we went from NBC’s genial I Love to Eat — hosted by James Beard himself nearly 80 years ago — to today’s flashy lineup of gastro-wars starring dueling chefs, pedantic judges, and “pack your knives and go” catchphrases is anyone’s guess. But as bingeable as Top Chef, Chopped, and Guy’s Grocery Games might be, food at its best will never be about competition at all.
It’s about those other two Cs.
“I love celebrations and I love connecting with people, and I’m sure that’s a big part of why I’ve always been drawn to cooking,” says Elizabeth Poett, host of Ranch to Table — the sort of deliciously warm and welcoming cooking show in an idyllic setting that we’d like to think Mr. Beard would’ve really dug, too.
“I’m not a classically trained chef, I didn’t go to cooking school, and I’d never call myself a chef,” Poett says. “At my heart, I’m a rancher who just loves to cook—and I want to be able to share that love because it doesn’t have to be stressful. It shouldn’t be stressful. To me, the only thing stress brings to cooking … is stress.
“I think that preparing food should be fun, light, and creative—something to truly savor and celebrate,” she adds. “Just
