How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Watch 'Bon Appetit' Videos

Plus: Rosie Perez, 'The Crown' and what's making us happy by Linda Holmes Welcome! It was the week when [Tiny Desk Contest winners Tank and the Bangas]( were nominated for a Grammy for best new artist. It was the week when [the National Book Awards]( went to Susan Choi, Sarah Broom and other deserving writers. It was the week when Holly Hunter was [added to a new show]( we were already pretty excited about. Let's get to it. Opening Argument Pop Culture Happy Hour listeners know by now that the thing I cited as making me happy this week is the video series Gourmet Makes from Bon Appetit, which [you can get on YouTube]( or on a Roku or likely on whatever other set-top box you use for streaming video. Gourmet Makes is a show where Claire Saffitz, one of the editors on the Bon Appetit staff, tries to make “gourmet” versions of mostly snack foods, like Cheetos and Oreos and M&Ms, except in the regular BA test kitchen with regular ingredients — as much as possible, real ingredients accessible to ordinary humans. Bon Appetit on YouTube I have watched a lot of these, or at least enough to know the shell on the M&Ms was very hard and that Ruffles were pretty easy. Her Pop-Tarts were very appetizing. Her Oreos (which she made with a mold created using actual Oreos, the way they might make a mold of your teeth for a night guard) were visually indistinguishable from the real thing. It’s not just these. I also love their series Reverse Engineering, in which likable and very persnickety BA deputy food editor Chris Morocco [tries to recreate a dish]( placed in front of him — one that comes from a celebrity chef. He can taste it, smell it, feel it with his hands, but he’s always blindfolded. He can’t look at it. Then he has to try to discern what’s in it and make his own version, as close to the original as possible. Projects have included Gordon Ramsay’s recipe for beef Wellington, Guy Fieri’s Trashcan Nachos, and most recently Snoop Dogg’s lobster thermidor. I cannot explain the relaxation I derive from watching Chris carefully try to figure out what the crumb topping on Snoop’s lobster is made from. Toasted bread? Torn bread? Buttered bread? (YOU GUYS, IT’S RITZ CRACKERS. He’ll never get it!) They’ve also recently published [a series on creating the perfect Thanksgiving dinner]( from the perfect turkey method to the right pie to the eternal question of how to make a Thanksgiving side dish that’s worth eating, given all the other stuff that’s already on the table. You can certainly watch a lot of cooking videos on cable TV, but a lot of the content at, say, Food Network has strayed pretty far from actually teaching people how to cook, or teaching them about food. You might wonder whether you really need to know how to make homemade Doritos, but a whole 47-minute documentary about the attempt winds up telling you a lot about industrial snack production, what makes foods craveable and addictive, and which elements of a commercially produced food are hardest to recreate. (Claire spends upwards of 10 minutes just trying to get the right spice mix. In the Pop-Tarts episode, she had to figure out how to make frosting anyone would want to eat that wouldn’t melt in an upright toaster.) There is something, maybe, about swimming in other people’s expertise. I find it so comforting — so satisfying! — when Chris Morocco puts his hands all over a plate of Trashcan Nachos and realizes suddenly that they’re made in a cylindrical mold. Or when even he, expert that he is, is unable to identify the cheese on Jamie Oliver’s Insanity Burger, which turns out to be Red Leicester. (The series loves a silly callback, and on episodes after that, when Chris goes to the store for ingredients, you’ll sometimes see him do a horror-movie take at the sight of his nemesis, Red Leicester.) I strongly recommend turning these videos on the next time you’re trying to wind down. The team will become your test-kitchen pals, and you’ll learn a lot that will come in handy if you ever want to make your own Hot Pockets. We Recommend Friend of PCHH and Bullseye host Jesse Thorn offered up this week [a conversation]( with Rosie Perez that’s warm and candid and moving, and that immediately moved into my list of favorite podcast interviews ever. I’ve really enjoyed catching up on Stumptown, ABC’s private-eye drama starring Cobie Smulders, Jake Johnson and Michael Ealy. It’s kind of wry and grubby in a very satisfying way. Airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. Eastern, and you can catch up on a variety of streaming platforms. By the time you get this, the ninth episode of [the final season]( of NBC’s The Good Place will have aired. Even if you’ve been iffy on the last season or two, it’s an episode that will hopefully restore your faith in the show and its ability to stick the landing in the next few episodes before it’s all [sniff] over. What We Did This Week ['The Crown' still]( Sophie Mutevelian/Netflix [Our Wednesday show]( brought friends Barrie Hardymon, Gene Demby and Guy Branum into the studio to chat with Glen Weldon about the third season of Netflix’s The Crown. [Glen reviewed]( Frozen II and its “Let it Go”-esque over-the-top ballad, “Into the Unknown.” [I talked a little about]( the Mad About You revival (did you know there was one?) and what it means about the future of niche programming. [Stephen wrote about]( Bon Iver, which is a thing Stephen loves to write about. He also popped in on All Things Considered for a [chat about the Grammy nominations](. And [on our Friday show]( Lyndsey McKenna and Aisha Harris joined us to talk about Frozen II and, yes, that same ballad. What's Making Us Happy Every week on the show, we talk about some other things out in the world that have been giving us joy lately. Here they are: - Glen: [@scarytoilet]( - Lyndsey: Haim’s new single [“Hallelujah”]( - Aisha: Classic Disney cartoons Three Little Pigs and Steamboat Willie now [streaming on Disney+]( - Linda: Bon Appetit’s [Gourmet Makes]( video series What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: [pchh@npr.org](mailto:pchh@npr.org?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback) Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can [sign up here](. Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Music, Books, Daily News and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Pop Culture Happy Hour emails. 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