[billm]

im actually glad she made it..not my style cooking but always good to see the under dog win ..i mean she has no pro culinary training or background and cooked her way past many that did.
the other contender was a guy using weird ingredients from france ..basically ingredients that would just flat out be hard to find..
from Food Network/tv programming standpoint Melissa was the smart choice..

from the Bob guy..forgot his last name..

"Overall, Jeffrey’s food fascinated and delighted me. Except for a few notable flubs, most of his food had a spicy elegance to it. The ingredients that attracted him – and would have been the heart of his “Ingredient Smuggler” show – and the sophistication of his recipes wouldn’t have appealed to everyone. That’s OK; we do a range of shows.

Melissa’s bottomless trove of tips and tricks kept teaching me things, and I thought viewers would appreciate them too. But mostly, her food kept winning me over. It is exactly the kind of smart, sophisticated but accessible home cooking that viewers constantly tell me they want to learn from us. And her deep knowledge of budget and time-conscious recipes seemed perfect for these times."