Niche topics have always found audiences online, and Average Betty is no exception. The series, hosted and produced by Sara O’Donnell, has been sharing recipes through a sketch comedy/cooking show hybrid format since July 2006. She won the Yahoo! Video Award for Best Internet Personality in February 2007 and was also recognized by iTunes as an outstanding podcast. Plus, she makes cookies so good you swear you can taste them on the monitor screen.
So, the Friday before Thanksgiving 2008, I put her “Stop, Drop and Dinner Rolls” recipe to the test, replicating it in my own kitchen with only the video and accompanying recipe to aide me. You can check out the results in my own attempt at making a video about dinner rolls. It was a sobering reminder that the art of the compelling how-to video is not an easy one to master. And it’s important to note that as I worked through the process of making the rolls, I relied much more heavily on the recipe than the video itself — as if the video were less instructional and more like a garnish, the kind you don’t need to taste in order to get the full experience of the dish.
While it may lack tips and instruction that might be of value for the amateur cook, the overall package of Average Betty is well-paced and entertaining. And there’s no denying that she knows what she’s doing in the kitchen. Maybe, after watching a few more videos, I’ll be able to claim the same.
