Friday Confessions: Give me Bayless, or give me death (not really, I 'm just being dramatic)

Alright fine. I’ll admit it. I’m crushing on Rick Bayless. Okay, maybe not so much the man as the chef, if those two can even be separated. And maybe minus the facial hair and necklaces. Is it possible to just have a crush on the food? Infatuated with food? I think that sounds even worse so I’ll just stick with my original confession.

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When I first stumbled upon Rick’s (we’re on a first name basis now) cooking show, Mexico -One Plate at a Time, I’ll be honest, I thought he was a looney toon. His exuberance over Mexican food just seemed berserk. And I didn’t like how he made my own tacos and burritos seem so un-authentic and goopy. Come on Rick, just slap come beans and taco meat on it and call it dinner for the love of guacamole!

But I’ve slowly changed my opinion after a one-day marathon viewing of his show. Isn’t that the way all crushes go . . . repeated exposure leading to fascination. And now if I notice Rick is on, I get a little giddy. I just want to jump through that T.V. screen and rip that fresh salsa right out of his cilantro covered hands. Come on people! He prefers to use rendered pork fat in his homemade flour tortillas. If that’s not drool worthy I don’t know what is.

Now I know he can be totally cheesy, but at some point in your life you’ve got to acknowledge the power of cheese and welcome it into your life, whether that be manchego, queso fresco, or a man whose shirt says “Bacon is meat candy.”

I don’t want to sound desperately hungry or anything, but I sure wish he would invite me over for dinner sometime. I’ll bring the Husband and the kiddos along. It won’t be awkward at all.

Don’t worry Husband. Your beans and rice will always have sentimental value to me. And since I just publicly revealed to the blogosphere that your wife has cheating taste buds, I will allow you one chef crush as well, as long as it’s not Giada.

Now go out dear readers and have some proper Mexican food this weekend and send me a generous tip.