Next Food Network Star

I follow several reality shows now that I have such easy access to cable television for the time being.  One of theshows is "The Next Food Network Star."  Sunday night's episode was interesting, with the main challenge being to create a savory dish inspired by carnival sweets and junk food.  There were the obvious "lollipop" (salmon roulade with creamy cheese to help make the spiral effect) rolled up on a stick or the "candy apple" meatball on a skewer with a sticky chili sauce coating the outside.  There were also the less obvious "banana split" (three meatballs with sauces with crouton "bananas") and "funnel cake" (some sort of fritter with tandoori chicken on top).  There were also some real failures, some of which were exacerbated by complete obliviousness to the flaws in one's cooking, some of which were just general cluelessness.

Aside from the competitive aspects of the show, the creativity of the challenges and the contestants' responses are what interest me most.  I can't imagine responding to these challenges so creatively, certainly not with the time constraints and pressure that they are facing.  And yet they often come up with utterly fascinating dishes which are well worth revisiting--at least for inspiration if not actual replication.  I'm really thinking about that lollipop as something My Prince will like.  Indeed, I think we he would like all of the dishes that I mentioned here.  (Of course, he would.  They're all meat dishes.  And that makes me wonder how to redo these as vegetable dishes.)

Yes, a challenge to myself.  I can't begin to think of how I might respond to the challenge of using all four of these carnival inspirations in a savory dish, but I will try to meet the challenge for one of them.  Which one, I can't say.  I'll let you know when I figure it out.