It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and the Food Network has a special series to keep you in a festive mood. The Christmas Cookie Challenge is a fun holiday show that will entertain and teach you some new recipes that all cookie lovers will appreciate. Houstonian and Food Network Star winner Eddie Jackson returns to host this eight-episode series running through December 23rd.
Each episode features five phenomenal cookie makers willing to showcase their holiday skills through two rounds, as Eddie and lead judge Red Drummond are joined by a rotating panel of guest judges, including Matt Adlard, Vivian Chan, Dwayne Ingraham, Dan Langan, Brandi Milloy, Gesine Prado and Aarti Sequeira. In the end one baker will walk away with the ultimate prize of $10,000.
GlitterandGumbo.com spoke with Eddie Jackson the day before Thanksgiving to discuss the show and learn more about his journey as a chef. Read our conversation below. The Christmas Cookie Challenge premieres on Mondays at 10/9C on the Food Network Channel.
GUMBO CHAT: EDDIE JACKSON INTERVIEW
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Angela Cherise: Alright. Hi Eddie, how are you?
Eddie: I’m doing outstanding, how are you doing?
Angela Cherise: I’m doing great! Happy Holidays.
Eddie: Happy holidays to you.
Angela Cherise: Well, I’m Angela Cherise from glitterandgumbo.com, thank you for allowing us the opportunity to speak with you.
Eddie: No problem at all.
Angela Cherise: Can you talk to us about the Christmas Cookie Challenge? I watch the show, I love it. For those who have never seen it, what can they expect? What do they have to look forward to?
Eddie: Well, the thing about the show is we take these amazing cookie makers from across the country and they come into a competition, they have to compete in two challenges. We have the display challenge where they have to create a cookie display literally out of cookies.
So, you think about anything from gingerbread houses to … We’ve done challenges where they had to make a stocking. And at the end of the day one of those lucky cookie makers will walk away with ten thousand dollars.
Angela Cherise: That’s amazing. And I’ve seen the show and how competitive they are. And instead of trash talking, I notice they do a lot of curious conversations. Are they required to talk to each other? Because that would freak me out. Because, number one they’re on the clock and I would be so busy trying to stay attuned to what I’m trying to do. So are they required to talk to each other? How does that work?
Eddie: They’re not required to talk to each other, but at the end of the day it is a competition show. And so, some people are more competitive than others. And everybody has their own strategies and techniques to try to get someone out of the game. And so we get a lot of these cookie bakers that practice a little trash talking.
Angela Cherise: Yes, yes. I love it, I love it. Also, there is a lot of pressure just by creating a cookie alone. What is the number one mistake you see that the contestants have made while trying to get these cookies done?
Eddie: So, the biggest thing that I’ve noticed, being that this is season two. The main thing is time management. We give them enough time, but the thing is you’re not in your kitchen, you’re in a foreign atmosphere. And then any time it comes to baking, you have to take into account for the atmosphere. Baking is a science.
And so a lot of these bakers … We had a young lady that came and competed from Canada. The weather and atmosphere is totally different in Canada, and it makes a huge difference in baking. So you have to take all those things into account. And I don’t think a lot of these bakers realize that once they come into the workshop.
Angela Cherise: That’s definitely an eye-opener too.
What recipe do you recommend for those who are cookie challenged, that they could use during the holiday season? Like a quick cookie recipe that they can add to their holiday table?
Eddie: Well, I am a lover of oatmeal cookies. I love oatmeal raisin cookies. But it’s also a very easy recipe. And of course, the go-to classic, that’s the good chocolate chip. You can’t go wrong with a chocolate chip cookie. Everybody loves them.
Angela Cherise: Yes, everybody does love a good chocolate chip cookie, but sometimes some people don’t make them quite as often. So do you recommend the homemade or just go get the store-bought and kind of add-
Eddie: Oh no, homemade! Home made is the best. It’s the key thing that people do. The biggest misstep is to over-bake them. When you’re baking your cookies, you always want to take it out just a minute before. Because they still continue to cook once you take them out. And so that’s the thing that I think people mess up on is over-baking. They think they’re supposed to be crisp and all that while they’re in the oven. No, you need to take them out and then let them come to where you want them to be.
Angela Cherise: And that’s what I noticed, too, on the show which is what I love. How it’s one thing to have a beautiful looking cookie, but it also must taste good. Because I know when I’ve bought things or bought cookies or deserts, it looks fantastic. But when you put it in your mouth, it tastes totally horrible.
Eddie: Yeah.
Angela Cherise: Talk about the choice of not just having the look, but also having that substance. The flavor… Talk about the importance of flavor, too.
Eddie: Yeah, so the biggest … The one thing I always say whenever I reveal the challenge, you give these cookie makers the challenge. At the end, I always say, “Your cookie must taste as good as it looks.” Because at the end of the day, it’s all about the flavor. And we love to see cookie makers that challenge themselves and put together interesting flavor combinations inside of the cookie.
And we’ve had contestants put an Asian twist on it with five spice powder and matcha and all these different things. And that’s so interesting to see because at the end of the day, a cookie is a blank surface. If you’re making a sugar cookie, you know at the end of the day it’s just flour, sugar, butter. And then let’s see what you can do with that, you know? Let’s see how creative you can be.
Cookies are no different than any other food. It doesn’t have to be a sweet element flavor, it’s all the same. You can pair different flavors inside of that cookie and that’s what we want to see. We don’t just want to see gingerbread and sugar cookies. You can be creative. And those are the ones that usually come out victorious.
Angela Cherise: And also, I know that there were some contestants that walked away disappointed, a little sad because they didn’t advance to the next level. What kind of advice do you give for those who may be defeated in their lives? Because I know one contestant, the judges told her she didn’t have enough salt in her cookies because she said it ended up being in her wound. And I was like, wow, that’s a good perspective to look at it like that. But how do you overcome defeat and still pursue your passion?
Eddie: Well, it’s like with anything else. You have to be able to … You’re willing to put yourself out there and compete in a show like this, or any show for that matter. Especially competition shows. You have to be willing to take that loss and you do go home. And a lot of the times it’s by just a mistake, a stupid mistake that normally they wouldn’t make. But when you’re in time constraints, cameras are on you, you’re in a foreign environment. Mistakes happen. And it is going to happen. But the thing is, you’re willing to put yourself out there, you have to be willing to take that.
Angela Cherise: When did your passion for food begin?
Eddie: My passion began a long time ago. Both of my grandmothers were chefs, and I started making biscuits with my grandmother when I was about five or six years old. And that’s when my passion really began. But all of my family members, my aunts, my uncles, my dad. Everybody cooks in our family. Our family reunions and get-togethers are just epic because everybody loves to cook.
But the only bad thing is, you know the old saying is, “Too many cooks in the kitchen.” That’s because everybody has their opinions on what to put in a dish.
Angela Cherise: Yes, indeed. And I love the importance of family because back then, or even I also remember being in the kitchen with my family especially during the holidays. And the importance of being around cooks in the kitchen.
How important is, especially being an African-American male, to see men in the kitchen cooking while being a good role model. To say, “Hey, there are other things and other careers that you can do. And being a chef is an awesome career.”
Eddie: It is. For me, every man in my family cooks. But I’d say the most important thing about cooking and food is just how it brings people together. If you think about all the events and things that we go though in our life, it’s surrounded by food. From weddings to family reunions. Even a death. I know, where I come from, after we go to a funeral we go back and we have food together, we have dinner together. After church we have dinner together.
And I just think that food and cooking is just a great vessel to bring people together. And that’s one of the reasons I fell in love with it. I have get-togethers at my house. I remember in college when I would cook and I would just invite all the guys over. We’d have a nice fellowship, and we would just eat and talk and laugh. And I think that’s a beautiful thing about food.
Angela Cherise: Okay. For me, I love that aspect about food as well. And you are a former NFL football player, correct?
Eddie: Yes, I am.
Angela Cherise: And so was the transition from football to food … Did you receive a lot of support as you moved into this new arena, new area of your life?
Eddie: Well, all my friends knew that this was something that I probably would get into. Because, like I said, in college I used to cook and would have … We had designated nights. I used to make jambalaya in college. We would have jambalaya night. We’d have wing night. And even when I started playing prefessional football, I would still do barbecues and I would do up with … Sometimes I would, in the off-season I would cater people’s weddings and things like that. Because, just, I love to do it.
So a lot of my friends knew once I finished playing football that I would probably have a career in food some way, shape, or form. And so I don’t think that … I don’t think they’re surprised.
Angela Cherise: And one more question, so you also do fitness as well? You work with fitness, you have a program? Can you tell a little bit more about that?
Eddie: Yeah, so I am a certified personal trainer and I do … Personal trainers will have a gym in Houston called “Fit Chef’s Studio” and my dad is a … My dad was my trainer growing up. He was also a superb athlete. And so my dad has been a personal trainer for going on thirty years now. And so that has also been instilled to me at a very early age as well. Just keeping yourself physically fit.
And you know, especially as an African-American man, we have so many challenges with diabetes, high blood pressure and things like that. I always wanted to try to figure out a way to combine fitness and food together. And that’s just one of the things that I do, I try to preach to people the way that you’re supposed to eat. It’s all about moderation, that’s my biggest thing.
And I’m not that person trying like, “You can’t eat this, you can’t eat that.” Because I feel like that’s impossible and it’s discouraging to people. But if you teach them how to eat in moderation, then they’ll feel a little bit better about their health.
Angela Cherise: Yeah, because that is especially, yeah with health, with high blood pressure, diabetes does run rampant in our culture. And it’s important for us to make sure that we are staying healthy and we are eating healthy. And I think that’s awesome that you’re able to do that.
Well, I just want to thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us. I don’t want to take too much of your time to spend with your family during the holidays. We appreciate you and thank you so much.
Eddie: Thank you, I appreciate it.
Angela Cherise: Alright, thank you, have a good day.
Eddie: Alright, happy holidays.
