Fake chef fools local news, gets anchors to make gravy smoothies

A man pretending to be a chef specializing in Thanksgiving leftovers made his way on to morning news programs in the Midwest. He knocked over tables, made anchors eat mashed potato ice cream cones and even got one woman to drink a pink, pumpkin pie smoothie.

The long prank was orchestrated by Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher, co-founders of the Found Footage Festival, an event that showcases humorous videos the two find at garage sales, dumpsters and thrift stores around the country.

They were able to book alleged chef Keith Guehrke (played by Prueher), author of the nonexistent “Leftovers Right,� on five different programs.

While in Milwaukee, he took an ice cream cone and filled it with room temperature gravy “because your hand warms it up.� Then he took an ice cream scoop and added a scoop of what he calls “boring mashed potatoes,� and instructed the news anchor to top the cones with canned corn and a cranberry “cherry� on top. You know, to get the kids involved.

He then launches into a discussion on how turkey smells in the microwave, and “gives off a flatulent, bathroom smell.� To cover the smell, top your turkey legs with mashed potatoes and cranberries. Or, use a Sharpie marker to trace your hand print in pieces of pita bread for hand-shaped sandwiches.

“Oh how fun is this?� remarked the over-enthusiastic anchor in sheer delight while she traced her hand.

As the anchor tells viewers to come meet Guehrke at Barnes and Noble for a book signing, he informs her it will most likely be canceled, because his books have not yet arrived.

In a few other cities, he demonstrated how to make his version of “turbo� gravy in a blender. He asks anchors to put fried chicken, green beans, corn and more in a blender. It turns into a mess of brown mush, which he pours into a milk carton for storage, using a funnel.

“There’s a statistic that around the holidays, especially between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we have the highest suicide rates,� said Guehrke during one broadcast. “And I think part of that is because of the stress of what are you going to do with these leftovers. “

A quick Amazon.com search could have saved these anchors from a Thanksgiving leftover gravy smoothie. Type in his name, or the book, and you’ll find neither exist.

Want more quirky food news? Follow me on Twitter: @Jenn_Harris_

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