From our tv blog, "Happiness is a warm tv"

Cheryl Baum, a 31-year-old bride-to-be from Cary, started off making a Rachael Ray recipe per day to impress her fiance Prav, but she ended up impressing Rachael Ray, too.

"This is the most flattered I've ever been in my life," Rachael told
Cheryl on the show that aired today. "That food looked better than when
I cook it."

Read more here.

North Carolina is now home to a new food group: cereal made by Malt-o-Meal.

The Minneapolis-based company today officially opened its first East Coast manufacturing plant, a 350,000 square-foot facility in Asheboro, about 75 miles southwest of Raleigh.

The factory's 133 workers are producing Frosted Mini Spooners and Frosted Flakes, cold cereals sold by Walmart, Dollar Tree, Lowes Food, Family Dollar and other retailers.

The plant has room to add more production lines. At some point, the factory could produce the company's iconic hot, wheat cereal.

Malt-O-Meal was lured to North Carolina by financial incentives worth nearly $4 million from Randolph County and a state grant worth as much as $1.1 million. The company first announced plans to expand in Asheboro in late 2006.

Founded in 1919, Malt-O-Meal makes more than 25 types of cereal and has annual sales of $6.5 billion.

The Zebulon Dash-N convenience store, at 1312 N. Arendell Ave., has been known best for its hot dogs. They have been serving hot dogs and other kinds of food for more than 15 years. On May 1, they decided not to sell any more food. The reason for this is because the Wake County Health Department wanted the convenience store to be remodeled. According to Garry Yousef, the owner, it would cost more than $25,000 to remodel the store.


“We just can’t afford it,” Yousef said. “So we decided not to sell any more food.” So next time when you walk into Dash-N, try not to feel so disappointed that you cannot get a hot dog with mustard, ketchup, chilly, onions and coleslaw.

Cheftography (8pm, Food) - A bio show that profiles accomplished chefs. Tonight you meet Pat and Gina Neely (left) of Tennessee's famous Neely Bar-B-Cue chain. At 9pm, Guy Fieri is profiled.

Shark Tale (8pm, ABC) - The 2004 animated film about a fish who runs up against a fish in the Mafia. Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese and Angelina Jolie lend their voices.

Shark Tank (10pm, ABC) - A repeat of last weekend's premiere episode, featuring the Mr. Tod pie man, and Cary CEO Mark Flannery.

Shark Week! (Discovery Channel) - Terrifying patrons of death, or misunderstood creatures of the sea? Either way, it's the most exciting TV week of the summer. Lots going on, beginning with "Blood in the Water," a two-hour special dramatizing the 1916 New Jersey shark attacks that killed four people and inspired Peter Benchley's novel, "Jaws."9pm. More about Shark Week at  Discovery.com. 

The Storm (9pm, NBC) - James Van Der Beek is still trying to save the world in the conclusion to last week's big two-part disaster movie. Also stars Treat Williams and Luke Perry.

Defying Gravity (9pm, ABC) - The premiere of a new series about eight astronauts (four men, four women) preparing for a six-year mission to Venus. It's been described by some cynical critics as "Grey's Anatomy in Outer Space." Whether or not that's a good or bad thing for you should help you decide if you want to watch.

The Next Food Network Star (9pm, Food) - In the season finale, Alton Brown helps the two finalists film pilots of their dream shows. The winner is announced before a live studio audience.

True Blood (9pm, HBO) - Stackhouses in trouble! Sookie's in serious danger with the Fellowship of the Sun folks, and still trying to summon Bill to help her. Meanwhile, Jason has some serious troubles of his own. 

Drop Dead Diva (9pm, Lifetime) - Raleigh native Sharon Lawrence stars as the mother of Deb (the "dead" model whose soul now resides in the body of attorney Jane). Deb's mom is represented by Jane in divorce proceedings, while Grayson represents her dad. We're hoping real hard this is a recurring role for Lawrence.

Leverage (9pm, TNT) - Nate's team takes on a thieving felon by commandeering the floor of a hospital and staging a deadly virus outbreak.

Throwdown with Bobby Flay (9:30pm, Food) - In case you missed it back in May, a repeat of the episode featuring Bobby's trip to Raleigh to challenge local pitmaster Ed Mitchell of The Pit restaurant to a barbecued rib cookoff. The cookoff was filmed outside of Haywood Hall in downtown Raleigh. Go Ed!

Holidate (10pm, Soap) - Maybe all you need to do to find Mr. Right is fish in a different pond? This new 10-episode dating show tests that premise by having two successful but unlucky-at-love women switch towns in hopes of changing their luck at finding a man. While spending time in their new towns, the women will date men specifically chosen for them. A different pair of women will be featured each week. Tonight, an LA model switches places with an NYC entrepreneur.  

See an audio slide show from the Farm to Fork picnic, featuring local chefs, artisan cooks and area farmers. Photos and audio by News & ... more

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