Celebrity chef Tom Colicchio has signed up with food empire Sara Lee Food & Beverage. Colicchio will lend his culinary skills to help the public create delicious sandwiches at home — and we don’t mean peanut butter and jelly.

Mr Colicchio said: “With the range of Sara Lee products, great-quality meats, cheeses, breads and condiments are at your fingertips to help you create a delicious and quick meal with just a few added ingredients.”

Colicchio will also give tips and a regular report on the “State of the Sandwich”.

Fifteen, Jamie Oliver’s restaurant that offers work and training to disadvantaged youngsters, just celebrated the graduation of its fifth batch of apprentices.

Oliver’s doing a great thing, reaching out to teens who would’ve probably ended up on the streets. But, under his foundation’s wing, they not only learn a trade, but are exposed to amazing experiences and environments. For example, this batch of apprentices got to travel to Italy to meet some of the food suppliers.

For many of them, this was their first time to even go on a plane.

Fifteen’s chef, Andrew Parkinson, says: “They are sometimes a little bit unsure about why they have to take their shoes off and taking your belt off as you go through.” Like small kids, they are enthralled by the view from the plane, even the food that’s served. “Just to see their faces as we land and they step out into another country and they feel the freshness of the Italian air, it is absolutely amazing.”

Female celebrity chefs are a man’s dream: they cook just like mom (and even better), but make an apron look hot.

Of course, not all celebrity chefs make the cut (sorry, Martha). In a survey of the sexiest celebrity chefs men showed a definite preference for sultry beauties like
Giada De Laurentiis of Everyday Italian (called “a true beauty”) and Nigella Lawson. Rachael Ray made the top 3, but mostly for her physique.

Celebrity chef, and 2005 winner of the Iron Chef America competition, has resigned from his restaurants in Vancouver — Lumiere and Feenie’s.

Rob Feenie’s troubles with the restuarant owners have spanned over two years, ever since he was forced by bankruptcy to sign over majority stakeholdership. (He’d spent over a million dolars upgrading the kitchen and paying off his original business partner.)

However, new management has been easing him off, finally minimizing his say over the menu, marketing, and the kitchen operations. Feenie had enough. After a goodbye drink and shaking hands with his staff, he’s cut off all ties with the two restaurants.

You just don’t treat chefs that way. Feenie, a culinary giant in Canada, has authored several cookbooks, hosted cooking shows, and won several awards. Shame on them all.

Hide the kitchen knives — celebrity chefs Jessica Seinfeld and Missy Chase Lapine have gone into a war.

Lapine started it, calling Seinfeld a plagiarist for copying recipes. Seinfeld’s book, Deceptively Delicious has been hitting bestseller lists for its creative ways of incorporating healthy ingredients into kids’ favorite meals. It’s the same concept behind Lapine’s own new release, Sneaky Chefs.

Seinfeld’s husband, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, lashed back, calling her “wacko.” “Now she’s accusng my wife of a Watergate-style break-in at Harper Collins [the publisher].”

With a dozen best-selling cookbooks tucked under his belt, Jeff Smith, is best known for hosting the popular American cooking show that began in Washington. The show was aired in PBS from 1988 to 1997.

Smith was a United Methodist who graduated at the University of Puget Sound in 1962 and Drew University in 1965. His first run at food ventures was the Chaplain�s Pantry where he held cooking classes to the public and stored deli and kitchen supplies as well.

Being in the celebrity status that he is in the world of cooking, Smith has had his share of controversies as well. Legal issues concerning sexual harassment in the 70�s were just some of the trials that Smith had to go through.

Known to be the food genius that he is, Smith has authored several books under his wing including The Frugal Gourmet (1984), The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine (1986), The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American (1987) and The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Three Ancient Cuisines: China, Greece, and Rome (1989).

Technorati Tags: cookbooks, jeff smith, frugal, gourmet

One area that is very important when you are a regular traveler is the food area of any airport. You sometimes have a lot of time to kill between flights and you may want to grab a bite to eat while you wait. Thankfully, gone are the days when you would have to make do with just greasy food or the vendo machine.

If you are flying out from the T.F. Greenstate Airport in Rhode Island, you will get to enjoy the food made by Wolfgang Puck. Opening in October, the Wolfgang Puck Gourmet Express is an open-air style cafe. The menu includes the chef’s famous pizzas, soups and salads for traveler’s enjoyment. Yummy!

The time may not go any faster (this is definitely beyond Chef Puck’s abilities) but thanks to his creativeness and dedication to quality, the waiting will definitely be a lot tastier. You may not even notice the time because the food is sure to be good.

When a chef achieves celebrity status, certain expectations arise from the masses. The first is that they can cook. The second is that should they have a restaurant business or be involved in one, their restaurants should be superb places that meet at least the basic minimum standards for health and food. They can have a rating of so so but never a zero. That is just unthinkable for many.

Unfortunately, Antony Worrall Thomspon’s latest pub has gotten a zero from the food hygiene inspectors. A spokesman for the health department for the West Wilshire District Council said that all they were interested in is ensuring that each place they rate meets the hygiene standards.

Thompson says that the rating was unacceptable. It was made in December when the pub was being run by a different chef, who has already been sacked. He points out that he merely set up the menu and had an agreement to make a once a year guest appearnce at the pub. It was the pre-christmas rush at the time and they were undermanned.

Would anyone say these are valid reasons? All that Thompson can do is improve the service and try to get a better rating the second time around.

It is the nightmare of everyone. You go out. You are having the time of your life at one of the most important functions of the year. Then someone barfs on you and ruins the mood. Worse, an advisory has come out that one of the caterers in Chef Puck’s team, who catered the party you went to, has been diagnosed with acute Hepatitis A. Health officials say though that Chef Puck’s team has been very cooperative and done their best to keep it from contaminating the food and their patrons.

There were hundreds of guests at the Oscars party, any number of whom may have gotten the disease. There are three other parties as well that may be affected since Chef Puck had helped prepare food for three other events that day, including the party for Sports Illustrated.

The instructions are simple. Anyone who was at a party that Chef Puck catered for needs to look back and recall if they ate any raw or uncooked food. If they were barfed on, they are also at risk. If either of these two things has happened to them then they need to go to their personal physician and have an immune globule shot.

It is an honor for any establishment to be granted a Michelin star. Earning Michelin Stars is like winning the Oscars or A Golden Globe for the professional cooking world and restaurants. Gordon Ramsey must be proud that two more of his establishments have been added to the book and awarded Michelin Stars.

Petrus is run by Gordon Ramsay’s protege, Marcus Wareing. It is one of only two restaurants to gain the honor of being added to the 2007 edition with two Michelin Stars. La Noisette, the newest of Ramsay’s restaurant is one of only thirteen to be given a Michelin Star this year.

There are only three restaurants in the country to have been given three Michelin Stars - the most coveted prize. One of these restaurants is Gordon Ramsay’s eponymous restaurant. Ramsay has 5 more restaurants with One Michelin Star each.

Gordon Ramsay must be well pleased with how his year is shaping up.