CHEF PERSPECTIVES ~ CURTIS STONE

I had the privilege of interviewing Celebrity Chef Curtis Stone a few years ago at Chicago’s International Home+Housewares Show.  His animated persona and passion for the culinary showed throughout our time together.  Recent updates on this exceptional chef include his Beverly Hills, CA restaurant “Maude”, which opened in the Fall of 2014 to rave reviews, and an anticipated March 2015 release of his latest cookbook, “Good Food, Good Life: 130 Simple Recipes You’ll Love to Make and Eat”.  A proud Aussie, he’s successfully bridged the great oceanic divide with humility and conviviality and remaining true to his roots.

This new dad also knows about the key to achieving a healthy lifestyle in one’s life and lives his tagline with panache, “Don’t just cook to live – live to cook.”  While he also recognizes the push by others to work towards achieving a healthy lifestyle, he’s also a strong advocate of approaching this goal as a journey and having balance in that journey.  He believes in starting out with small steps, like walking, and gradually expanding the daily routine to include other healthy lifestyle choices; these are all part of the journey.  Also included in the journey is being conscious about eating healthy and nutritious foods, since controlling what’s in your food, such as choosing natural or organic foods, will invariably lead to a better control of the types of foods going into your body, which translates to a healthy lifestyle.  Another element to achieving a healthy lifestyle through healthy eating is also having the right cooking accessories and cookware that makes food preparation effortless.

Chef Stone’s “My Cookware Range ~ Kitchen Solutions” is a comprehensive line of all-things needed in the kitchen that elevate the art of cooking.  The beautiful line includes bamboo-cutting boards and anything needed for prepping, baking, cooking, or serving.  Each piece is designed ergonomically for ease of use, ease of grip and stability, and they’re lovely to look at as well. I love the artistic flowing line of many of his pieces, but especially his Go With The Flow Oil Can; it could easily qualify as a display piece in MOMA; it’s that beautiful.  Prep ware pieces have stylized over-sized handles that make gripping easier and more logical, making the gripping action more confident and stable.  I also love the clever design of his bake ware pieces.  The bottoms of each item are designed to with a silicone bottom and a reinforced stainless steel inset piece for stability and heat disbursement.  As soon as baked goods are done, no more worries about removing the cooked items in tact; a few gentle taps of the bake ware bottoms on the counter, and voila, the prized recipe pops out; real sweet.   All pieces throughout his line were designed by Cookware pieces are made of 18/10 stainless steel and very durable.  His Workbench cutting board includes a drop hole for waste and a removal inset drawer for easy disposal of the trim; very clever.  His playfulness is exemplified in his Bump & Grind mortar and pestle sets; they pretty much sum up this chef – he makes food prep time playing with food a fun time.  Lastly, Chef Stone works closely with various markets on ways to improve and up their game on the quality and types of seasonal produce and healthy foods to offer to the market’s customers; he also creates recipe cards for their customers with an emphasis on seasonal, fresh and healthy goodness.   

Relaxed Cooking With Curtis Stone: Recipes To Put You In My Favorite Mood is like having the chef right in the palm of your hands.  The cookbook’s Introduction provides insight into the chef’s passion for food and how it’s transformed his life and how he wants it to transform others.  The cookbook takes you on a playful excursion of meals and include sections that are loaded with fresh and healthy recipes, like First Thing in the Morning, Brunch That Will Blow Their Minds, Weekend Lunches, Something to Eat on the Sofa, Daily Dinners, Crowd-Pleasers, Sides to Share and Sweet Dreams. 

~ In Closing ~

You can read more about this extraordinary celebrity chef by checking out his website (see link).  When not making television appearances, Chef Stone is busy with family, restaurant, cookware line, blog, or writing his next cookbook.  He’s a whirlwind that always takes the time to share his enthusiasm for the art of cooking, and does it with great humility and panache.  He embodies his persona, which is to “Cook…Create…Celebrate”.  For more detailed information on Chef Curtis Stone, visit his website at http://www.curtisstone.com

That’s it for this edition.  Until the next one, remember to always celebrate yourself and your culinary curiosity.  Happy cooking…happy eating!

By Terry Herman

TERRY HERMAN continues perfecting her passion for food and wine.  She has been covering culinary related for many years as it relates to wellness and a healthy lifestyle.  Her popular blog, Terry's Spa, Beauty and Wellness Go-To has featured formidable reviews of cookbooks, restaurants, wine and food, food prep and tools, chef interviews, and coverage of prestigious events such as the International Home+Housewares Show, the National Restaurant Show and the Sweets and Snacks Expo.  She has been published since the mid-1990s in both consumer and trade publications, and is regarded as an expert in spa, beauty, wellness, travel and lifestyle, and is frequently interviewed by publications for her expert content.  She has also presented at major industry conferences, and has served with distinction on numerous governing and advisory boards.  She has a background in strategic and qualitative management, consulting, and motivational speaking.  Her social media outreach includes Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.  Don’t forget to “Like” her Facebook Page, “Terry’s Second Helpings”.  For additional information, email her at terry.herman@gmail.com.

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