Gilligan's Island Potato Cooking Tip

You’re gonna love this one.

It’s safe to say that on my BEST day, the Tim Moore blog may be interesting or funny, but rarely is it USEFUL.

Today is the exception.

If you’re a cook, you’ll love it—and even if your job in the kitchen is to stay out of everybody else's way, you may still find this interesting.

The source of the following potato cooking(or perhaps more accurately-PEELING) tip is none other than Dawn Wells the actress, best known for her role as “Mary Ann” from the Gilligan’s Island TV series.

Growing up, guys were often asked the question: “Ginger or Mary Ann?”

That was it. No other explanation was needed, cuz we watched the show and knew EXACTLY who these two characters were. Ginger was the “movie star”—voluptuous, glamorous and basically a sex kitten. Mary Ann, on the other hand, was the girl-next-door, the naturally beautiful and don’t-need-makeup-to-look-good kind of person. The answer to the question always defined a guy’s taste in women. If someone answered , “Mrs. Thurston Howell III”, then that was another matter entirely. But I digress.

For me, it was always Mary Ann. Wholesome, cute but not ravishing, she seemed approachable, likeable and a better fit.

Now, I see another entire side to the actress whose career was defined--and in fact limited-- by that one role. It is evident that Dawn Wells has aged well—and her tip for Idaho spuds may have you saying: “Gee, wish I’d known about this 20 years ago!”

Check it out:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4W0qIPJmoo

Thanks to Rick Cooper, faithful blog reader and co-owner of a couple of Chicago’s finer restaurants, including the award-winning Avec for providing the inspiration for this one.

Not sure if this tip will find its way into the routines of the world’s greatest chefs or not, but if it does, my guess is that none of them will credit Mary Ann from Gilligan’s Island.

If you’d like my blog in your weekday box, just let me know: tim.moore@citcomm.com