Here’s a question for our time: what do you serve at a dinner party while watching NBC’s Biggest Loser Finale?  I’ll admit that I’m a Johnny come lately fan of this show—becoming obsessed halfway through this season chronicling the struggles of chronically obese men and women struggling to lose huge amounts of weight.  To do it, they get to go to a magical (or hellish place) known as The Ranch and assisted by a couple of fitness experts—one of whom, Bob, is now my TV Trainer Boyfriend, between the accent and the sleeve tattoos, I can’t get enough.

The one thing that does bother me about Bob is his seeming willingness to shill any product placement on the show.  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m a realist and not a purist about this stuff.  I’m willing to overlook the blatant recommendations for gum and Glad bags.  But Bob totally lost me recently when he told contestant Amanda that when she goes to a party she should take with her a Subway Party Platter (I’m not kidding), so that she would know there would be healthy choices at the event.

There’s a part of the show that really speaks to me.  As someone who has dealt with weight issues since the age of 10—until just a year or so ago I always hovered around 33 pounds above my goal weight—I identify with the difficult struggles the contestants are facing.  And like they teach on the show, I know you need a community of support around you to help you make healthy lifestyle changes.  I’m terrifically lucky to have a life partner in Chef, who has made a career out of cooking healthy; and a best friend in Susan, who has become a workout buddy encouraging me to ramp up my activities so that I actually did lose that final bit of weight before I turned 40.

The three of us watch Biggest Loser true to our personalities.  Susan likes the dramatic back stories, and wants to know more about the exact workouts they make them do.  I like the make over portion of the show, when Tim Gunn appears, and worry about the plastic surgery they might need to trim the extra rolls of fat.  Chef, a trained economist, only wants to show up for the final weigh in—it’s all about the numbers for him.

For our party, I chose not to order a Subway Platter, and instead chose a recipe from the Fast Easy Fresh section of Bon Appetit (see, I’m not adverse to product placement).  I appreciate that the magazine breaks down the calorie, fat and fiber content.  So I chose the Poblano and Mushroom Tacos from the Nov 2009 issue—this dish was super easy and a crowd pleaser.  You can cut down on the fat by not frying the tortillas in oil, but rather wrapping them in a wet paper towel and microwaving them for a few seconds.

My biggest problem of the night?  My TV dancer boyfriend Jakob is on So You Think You Can Dance at the same time—and phone lines are only open for 2 hours after the show.  I made it just in time, voting 5 times for him.

Now off to the gym—I’m living every day as if it were a “Last Chance Workout!”

I’ve decided to forgive myself for mistakenly substituting Sunchokes (a.k.a. Jerusalem Artichokes) for Parsnips in this week’s challenge: Greek-Style Penne with Lamb, Parsnips, Tomatoes, and Cinnamon from Bon Appetit’s November 2009 issue.  The fact is I wasn’t paying attention while shopping because I’ve been distracted by a boy.

Jakob, the object of my schoolgirl affection

On Tuesday, for the first time ever, I actually called in to vote for a contestant on a TV competition.  I’m a late convert to So You Think You Can Dance but have quickly developed an enormous crush on Jakob (how cute is it that he spells it with a “k”?).  My Dancetestant Boyfriend is terrifically talented, cute, and humble.  I know, I have a schoolgirl crush, and I can’t help it.

I waited with excruciating anticipation until the show’s host announced the phone lines were open for voting.  And then dialed 1-888-TEMPO-10 and then panicked.  Was that Jakob’s number?  I scanned the DVR back and melted all over again as my beloved looked right into my eyes and held up all his fingers.  I punched my phone again, and voted not once, but three times.

Then a flash of shame took hold and I stopped myself from hitting the redial button to vote again.  What was I doing?  How did I become this person?  I had officially jumped the shark and become a crazed fan.

And so on Wednesday, I raced through the aisles of Whole Foods Chelsea desperately trying to round up my ingredients.  I needed to get home to watch the results show before cooking for Chef Juan Pablo.  And that’s how I was taken in by the Sunchokes Switcheroo.

Definitely add the fresh parsley as a garnish, unless you're SJP

Turns out, the little tubers are a pretty good substitute for parsnips (confirmed by Chef).  And, my passion for Jakob helped him advance to the Final 8.  When he makes it back to NYC, I’ll invite him over to celebrate.

Recipe Reaction: Easy and delicious recipe to make.  Next time I’d add a little bit more cinnamon than recipe calls for to punch up that flavor.  FYI, when shopping at Whole Foods, ground lamb is usually found already packaged—not behind the butcher counter.