Author Archives for Have Fork, Will Travel

About Have Fork, Will Travel

Office by day, home cook/baker by night, maker of many things. Food groupie always. Life is too short for bad food.

New Pajama Talk Pals podcast episodes on YouTube

It’s been a busy year. Now that I’ve completed my degree, I can start working on my passion projects. Namely, this website/blog, making cooking videos, doing research, and FINALLY getting my cookbook collection sorted and cataloged. I’m sure my husband will be happy when the stacks of books have found their way to the bookshelves. Well, until I pull more off to go through. Such is the life of a book dragon.

For a brief recap, I’ve been creating the unofficial Worst Cooks in America bingo cards since January 2020. You know, the year the world shut down. That summer, Allison, the season 15 winner reached out to join her on her Instagram live talk about the show. We added another person, Matt, to the mix and have covered every season of Worst Cooks since then. I still make the bingo cards (unofficially!) before each new episode and post on this website. That’s another thing to add to my to-do list: re-watch past seasons of WC and made bingo cards.

Our reviews/talks have evolved into Pajama Talk Pals on Instagram. We’ve also been reviewing other shows like TOC, BBQ Brawl, 24-in-24: Last Chef Standing, and now wrapping up the season of 100 Cooks. I’ve started adding the Instagram talks to my YouTube so anyone can find them easily in one spot. I work a regular full-time job in an office, so this all happens after work is done for the day. The current season of 100 Cooks wraps up on July 19th, with our finale recap around July 29th. The next show we will be watching and discussing is another new one by Food Network, Pitmasters, with Andrew Zimmern at the host. I like that Food Network is trying out new shows with new hosts and chefs. Their current lineup has been hours and days of the same shows (not that I dislike Guy’s Grocery Games or Chopped). I was hoping that they’d bring back America’s Best Cook and have actual home cooks, not influencers or people that have culinary school training. I want to see someone like myself, a home cook and baker that is passionate about food.

Anyhow, I’m looking at 2026 is a wrap-up year for some projects and a springboard for others. Check back often because there are some exciting changes coming!

TOC All*Star Christmas

Food Network knows a good chef competition will catch people’s attention. Tournament of Champions is no exception. This go-round has the chefs pairing up to battle for money and prizes. One of the newer parameters for this season is since there are two chefs, so they need to make two dishes. As always, the Randomizer has the last laugh with the combinations. The season starts on November 5th on Food Network. Click on the picture below to get a print-friendly bracket to pick your teams.

New episodes every Wednesday. Season runs 11/5/25-12/10/25. Make sure to catch the Instagram live feed with Michele, Allison, and Matt each week as we discuss the show!

It’s time to play the HFWT Home Game!

October means that fall weather is in the air, and also time for the Big Fresno Fair (BFF). For whatever reason this year, I simply ran out of time and energy to get all my entries completed before the turn-in day. I have 18 items between baked goods and crafts, so hopefully most of them won ribbons. I’ll do another post after we go to the fair with the results. In the meantime, here’s the 2025 HFWT Home Game card to print out and take with you to try to find my items. I only ask that you don’t tell me how they did before I get a chance to go.

fresno fair entry card listing items submitted for the 2025 fair

Summer fun 2025

How’s everyone doing so far this summer? In central California, we’ve had a mostly (almost) balmy time of it with only 11-12 days over 100 degrees. This time last year, we were over 30 days. The trick is to stay inside as much as possible, keep hydrated, and do your errands as early as possible. I work on campus as a staff member, so we’re there all year round. The professors are off for the summer, so they travel, research, and spend time with family. The administrative support is taking care of room reservations, schedule planning, ordering books, and anything else you can think of regarding ending one school year and preparing for the next.

My summer has been mostly uneventful, but Allison, Matt, and myself have been reviewing the Season 6 episodes of BBQ Brawl on Food Network. We each chose our top 2-3 pit masters from the three chef mentor teams, and evaluate the cooking challenges, the food cooked, any drama, or whatever else catches our fancy that week. There are only a few weeks left in the season. It will be interesting to see if one of our dream team chefs win it at the end.

The most recent filming of Worst Cooks will air on Monday, July 28th at 9pm. This is Anne Burrell’s final season on the show due to her sudden passing in June. As of this post, the list of new recruits hasn’t been posted yet. We do know that Gabe Bertaccini will be the blue team chef against Anne’s Rockin’ Red Stars. Anne and her red sharpie will be missed severely. Here’s to Anne and the joy she brought to the cooking world.

There are a few new things in the works, so check back to see what adventures I’m able to go on. Allison, Matt, and I are continuing the Worst Cooks Pajama Talk on Instagram before each of the new episodes. You can catch them on my page at @forktravel.

Student Cupboard Milestone – 10-years

One of my passions on the Fresno State campus is the Amendola Student Cupboard. I’m a little partial since I’m both student and staff, however, I can attest that it has made a huge difference towards improving student food security. The coordinator that runs the pantry is Michael Ballin, who was one of the students when I worked with the MSW (Masters of Social Work) program. It has been very rewarding to watch him grow as a person and manager while using the skills learned in the Master’s program.

There was a ceremony on campus today, along with a proclamation from the City of Fresno, about the impact of the pantry for the campus and students. In my estimation, the student cupboard and essential services provided to the Fresno State students are some of the best. It’s a giving time of year and if anyone would like to make a donation to a truly worthy cause, please consider donating to the Student Cupboard. They accept monetary as well as food donations. If you want to check out the food security project to learn more about it, click here.

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