Everyone who knows me knows I don’t cook. I wish I had the time for it! My mom and grandma are amazing home chefs though. They take risks and are willing to try new things. I appreciate the craft of cooking well and hope my children follow in their grandmother’s footsteps when it comes to preparing food rather than mine!
If my daughters were to pursue cooking as a career, they would certainly have some impressive role models to follow. The world of professional cooking is still a male-dominated place, but thanks to women like Julia Child who paved the way for others, many female chefs have become household names and even celebrities in their own right. Three I really enjoy are Lidia Bastianich, Giada de Laurentiis, and Ina Garten, better known as Barefoot Contessa.
Lidia Bastianich is so much more than a famous television chef. She is a woman who turned her passion for food into a thriving entertainment business. She is the author of several cookbooks and founder of Tavola Productions, an entertainment company that produces great broadcast productions. Along with her son Joe, also a well known chef, Mario Batali, and Oscar Farinetti, Lidia opened Eataly, one of my favorite NYC spots. She teaches culinary classes and has her own line of high quality kitchen products as well as Nonna’s Foods, a platform which allows her to distribute her own food products. As if all that must not keep her busy enough, Lidia also produces award-winning wines at Bastianich Vineyard in Friuli and La Mozza Vineyard in Maremma, Italy. The sheer amount of drive Lidia must have to accomplish so much from her love of good food is so inspiring!
I’m also a big fan of Giada de Laurentiis. My mom often uses Giada’s recipes and I think the appeal lies in her simple, easy-to-follow techniques for preparing amazing food. She really helps you feel like you can prepare something fantastic without a lot of complicated steps. Giada was born in Rome and grew up in a family that placed great importance on time in the kitchen. Her grandfather was a film producer as well as a restaurant owner, so perhaps Giada was destined to become a popular television chef. She was professionally trained at Cordon Bleu in Paris and eventually started her own catering company. She was “discovered” by a Food Network executive who read an article in Food and Wine Magazine about the de Laurentiis family in 2002. Her show “Everyday Italian” earned an Emmy and turned Giada into one of the most recognizable chefs in America today. She has also authored several cookbooks and has her own line of cookware. Giada’s enthusiasm for the food she prepares is infectious!
Ina Garten, better known as Barefoot Contessa, is another noteworthy woman of the culinary world. Unlike most well known cooks, Ina never trained to be a professional chef. In fact, she used to work in the White House Office of Management and Budget but felt the desire to do something more creative. One day, she read about a specialty food store for sale in the Hamptons, drove out to see it, and on a whim made the owners an offer she didn’t expect them to accept. They did accept, and Ina began the career that eventually led to her becoming a household name. After 18 successful years with her Barefoot Contessa food store, Ina sold the place to two employees and set about writing her first cookbook. It was a hit that she followed up with several more cookbooks before earning her own Food Network show. I think Ina Garten’s popularity with home cooks comes from her healthy approach to real food, using whole, fresh ingredients rather than anything artificial. She has a talent for making everything she prepares look delicious and simple. She also has a beautiful blog where she shares recipes and experiences. If you can’t travel the world to experience great food, Ina’s blog is the next best thing!
Whatever my girls decide to pursue in life, I hope they go after it with the same drive, passion, and creativity as these three talented chefs!