Building with food
New competition favors everyday food items
We’ve seen cake and cupcake competitions, dessert-making contests and shows that combine cake displays with pumpkin carving, but what about all the other foods? (Won’t somebody please think of cheese and veggies!)
Happily, for those whose sweet tooth has been worn down by years of cake shows, a new food “build” competition series on Disney+ promises to branch out and explore other food groups as it lines up some edible construction materials for amazing works of art.
“Foodtastic” lands on Disney+ this Wednesday, Dec. 15.
Hosted by Emmy winner Keke Palmer (“Turnt Up With the Taylors”), each episode features three teams of contestants tasked with creating “whimsical, larger-thanlife, Disney-inspired works of art made out of all types of food, including everything from cheese and butter to fruits and vegetables.”
These works of culinary art will push the highly skilled food artists to their creative limits — and let’s be honest, that’s part of the fun with these types of competition series. But given that these food sculptures could be built out of some pretty strange food pairings, you’ll be relieved to know that the completed masterpieces will be judged based on design, technical skill and storyline rather than taste.
And if you’ve ever envied “Nailed It” contestants for having access to a well-stocked pantry, “Foodtastic’s” selection of recipe ingredients/construction materials should top that. (Rest assured, any unused food from each competition won’t go to waste — an important consideration this time of year when many food banks experience an uptick in need. Instead, the Endemol-produced show will donate the items to local food banks.)
New York’s City Cakes founder Benny Rivera and Flour Shop founder Amirah Kassem will serve as the food experts and judges on this one, and there’s a narrator, too: voice-over artist Anthony Mendez, whose run as the Latin Lover Narrator on “Jane the Virgin” earned him two Emmys.
All 11 episodes of “Foodtastic” will be available to stream on Disney+ beginning Wednesday, Dec. 15, so if you’re looking for a family-friendly, food-themed series to binge-watch this weekend, this could be it.