Honoring the Flood of ’09 on the Food Network

Written by Emily Hanson Friday, 11 September 2009 08:00

When most people watch an episode of the “Food Network Challenge,” their mouths start drooling over the decadent cakes and culinary masterpieces being created. One can only envision what it would be like to contend in such a high-stress competition. For NDSU Assistant Professor of landscape architecture, Stevie Famulari, that vision has been a reality—four times. 

In the last three years, Famulari has competed in four Food Network challenges, including Christmas Ornaments, Cereal Bridges I, Mystery Client Cakes,and Cereal Bridges II. For Famulari, who received her master’s degree in landscape architecture and her pastry arts certificate while in New York, the invitation from Food Network to be part of a challenge came as a shock.

“I didn’t have cable. I had never seen the show,” Famulari said. “I never applied. To this day, I have no idea how or why they chose me.”

To Famulari, the opportunity sounded like fun, not to mention that the grand prize was $10,000. However, the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity came with short notice. After Food Network producers called Famulari with an invitation to her first challenge, Edible Christmas Ornaments, she had a little over a week to prepare for the challenge. 

While preparation for each challenge has been different, a lot has to be accomplished within the seven to 10 days. Numerous contracts have to be signed, sketches of structures need to be made and approved, materials and recipes must be prepared, baseboards must be made, bridges for the Cereal Bridge challenges must be approved, and rice cereal must be made ahead of time and then shipped. 

Food Network Challenge contenders are not alone in their fight to win $10,000. Each competitor is allowed one assistant. For Famulari’s first challenge, each participant was given a surprise assistant: her mother. 

After a whirlwind seven days of preparing for the challenge, contenders arrive at the Food Network Studio and jumped into action with an hour of pre-interviews. The night before the challenge, competitors set up their kitchens and spend time with the judges, asking questions about rules and regulations. 

The day of the competition is a whole different kind of whirlwind. Beginning at 6 a.m.  or earlier, the morning starts off with miscellaneous filming, including the introduction shots. After a number of fake start times, the clock officially starts and competitors have eight hours to complete the culinary task set out before them.

It’s a stressful eight hours, when things go right and things go wrong. If there’s one thing Famulari learned, it’s that whatever is going on in the kitchen, don’t lie.

“If it’s going well, you say it’s going well. If it’s going bad, you say it’s going bad,” Famulari said.

After an exhausting competition, the clock stops. The display tables are set up and competitors must move their structures to the tables. Then it’s time to face the judges. The day following the competition is filled with post-interview questions of “What were you thinking during that moment?”

For Famulari, sometimes the pressure is fine and sometimes it’s tough to handle. She doesn’t feel pressure from the judges or winning, but finds that the pressure comes to produce something she’s proud of.  

“I would rather have a fun experience and lose rather than have a crappy experience and win,” Famulari said.

Famulari is no stranger to Food Network disasters. In her second challenge, Cereal Bridges I, Famulari and her assitant, Adrienne Toubbeh, recreated the Seri Wawasan Bridge in Malaysia. Their idea didn’t quite go as planned and the structure collapsed during the final presentation.  The bridges were required to be four feet in length. Famulari’s structure was eight feet tall and needed reasonable proportion. The base wasn’t heavy enough to support the rice cereal, which was heavier than expected. 

 “We decided that if we were going to win big, then we’ll win big. If we were going to lose big, we would lose grand,” Famulari said. “It was dramatic and unplanned.”

That wasn’t the end of Famulari’s unplanned challenge disasters. The Mystery Client Cakes challenge brought on a whole different series of unplanned events. The mystery client for the challenge was none other than Famulari’s arch nemesis, Kerri Vincent, a judge for the Food Network Challenge. Famulari and Vincent have a history of not exactly seeing eye-to-eye. According to Famulari, Vincent has very traditional pastry art values. Famlari, on the other hand, feels that tradition needs to be questioned. 

“Kerri’s values are stuck in one way and she doesn’t appreciate beyond that,” Famulari said. “I don’t do what I do to please or to aggravate her.”

While Famulari was upset by the “surprise” judge, she didn’t let that stop her. Famulari’s concept behind Mystery Cake Clients was to explore sugar in all its forms and textures. As a grand finale to her cake, Famulari had designated small areas on her cake to be lit like candles. The grand finale was a little bit more than Famulari bargained for, as the cake became the first in Food Network Challenge history to require a fire extinguisher. The flaming cake has since been nicknamed “Flambé.” 

Perhaps Famulari’s most meaningful challenge was her latest, Cereal Bridges II, which recently aired on the Food Network. Producers called in the midst of the Fargo-Moorhead Flood. The only way Famulari would agree to take part in the challenge was if she could replicate Fargo’s Main Avenue Bridge. To represent the weather conditions of Fargo during the flood, Famulari used marshmallows to represent snow, and used an electric pump to flood the piece with white water to symbolize the flood. 

“I chose it because I love being part of this community and I am proud of the way the community handled the flood fight,” Famulari said. 

Despite collapsing bridges, flaming cakes, and a judge who isn’t exactly her best friend, Famulari has been proud of each and every one of her pieces in different ways. Perhaps the most rewarding moment was when challenge judge Patrick Coston said he respected what Famulari was doing. She wants to change food arts to explore what every other art form does, and not be stuck in the traditional values.

Although Famulari may be considered a seasoned veteran, the reality of being of the Food Network has yet to sink in.

“The minute a stranger comes up to me and says “Hey! I saw you on the Food Network!” is when I’ll know it’s real.”