Trying to make history come alive for your kids?

Add food.

That’s the idea behind Time Machine Chefs, a new ABC food offering with Chefs Art Smith, Chris Consentino, Ilan Hall and Jill Davie Star.

It premiers tonight (Thursday), August 16, on ABC at the 9:00-10:00 P.M. (ET) time slot.

The chefs will compete without modern conveniences – so imagine them in the Middle Ages, without an electric mixers, stove, or sous chef.

There is a refrigerator – but that is the (nudge-nudge, wink-ink) to Dr. Who. Instead of the good doctor’s police box time travel machine – these chefs get an icebox. From the preview (below) Super Chef bets this show will be a winner with kids and adults. It’s got a competition factor for “The Greatest Chef in History”.

What really makes the show special is the excellent choice of judges: Nancy Silverton, Dave Arnold, and Silvena Rowe. These three ought to raise quality of the general patter, and we all might just learn something.