Rocco DiSpirito, celebrity chef and author of Now Eat This!, stopped by our NY office to share a healthy apple pie smoothie recipe and some tips on how to eat well this season. Check it out!
For a sweet treat that cuts back on calories, fat, and sugar, bake a batch of light and airy low-calorie red velvet cupcakes. While there's still a tablespoon of agave nectar used, the high-sugar content of traditional cupcakes is brought down with the addition of Stevia to the mix. This recipe only makes four cupcakes total, but consider it a blessing — this way you won't be tempted to chow down on all the leftovers lurking in the kitchen.
Keep reading for this sweet Stevia cupcake recipe.
If Cookie Monster can be convinced to trade in his fat- and sugar-laden cookies for healthier versions, then shouldn't kids? Celebrity chef and author Rocco DiSpirito thinks so. He invited the beloved Sesame Street star and a gaggle of tots to the New York Public Library to prove that the low-calorie and low-fat treats don't sacrifice taste and still score big with kids. Chef DiSpirito spent the morning touting the benefits of natural sweeteners, such as agave nectar, and fat substitutes like apple butter — which has about half the fat of butter, oil, or shortening — to help lighten up kids' intake when they're eating sweets.
Though Cookie Monster did question the inclusion of cannellini beans in his chocolate-chip cookies (and made quite a mess while mixing up his batter — much to the kids' delight), the resulting cookies were quickly gobbled up by both the grown-ups and lil ones in attendance, leading me to wonder if Chef DiSpirito is on his way to starting his own Food Revolution here in the U.S.
Want to try your own taste test at home? Chef DiSpirito shared his oatmeal raisin cookie recipe, complete with apple butter, Cheerios, and puffed millet cereal to reduce the cookie's calories from 320 to 84 and fat content from nine grams to zero. Keep reading for the recipe.
When the Food Network debuted Chopped in January 2009, many people in the culinary world wondered if it was a cheap imitation of Bravo's Top Chef. Now, with the premiere date of Rocco's Dinner Party set to air June 15 on Bravo, it seems like things have come full circle.
In each episode, Rocco DiSpirito hosts a dinner party in which three chefs are asked to cook. Only two advance to the next round, where they will have to create a menu for a themed dinner party.
With a guest list of celebrities like Liza Minnelli and Padma Lakshmi, the participating chefs have a lot of people to impress. Unfortunately, after watching the preview of the show I wasn't one of those people. Check it out below and tell me what you think in the comments! Are you interested in viewing Rocco's Dinner Party?
Photos courtesy of Bravo
If you thought the super-skinny, sometimes robotic hostess Kelly Choi was the weakest link on Top Chef Masters, looks like you weren't the only one. Bravo has just released the news that the third season of the culinary competition will get a new host. It's none other than Australian chef Curtis Stone.
No word on the chefs who will participate, but the channel did announce a ninth season of Top Chef; casting will begin soon. Also slated to premiere in 2011 on Bravo? Rocco DiSpirito's show, Rocco's Dinner Party, a competition where the chefs have to throw the ultimate dinner party.
Since I wasn't much of a Kelly Choi fan, I'm excited to see Curtis Stone as the host of TC Masters.
How about you? Will you be more interested in Top Chef Masters now that it's hosted by a real master chef?
We chatted with Jamie Oliver, Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse, and other popular Food Network chefs to find out how they "have a foodie holiday." Watch our video to find out what cooking tips experts like chocolate master Jacques Torres and Food Revolution's Jamie Oliver swear by and what they really think about this bacon food trend. Plus, Paula Deen, Anne Burrell, and other celebrity chefs tell us what they do for the holidays when they're not slaving away in the kitchen. Looking to win your own Ultimate Foodie Holiday? Click here to find out how to enter our giveaway!
It appears Bravo has decided not to put all of its eggs in the Top Chef franchise basket. Author, New York chef, and onetime dancer Rocco DiSpirito is soon to have his own show, too. Today, the cable network officially introduced the program, Rocco's Dinner Party, on its blog, The Dish.
Each episode will feature four different contestants, from restaurateurs to home cooks, facing off in a three-round cooking elimination. In the first round, contestants will cook their favorite dishes for Rocco; in the second, they'll create an appetizer and concept for the week's assigned dinner party theme; in the last, the two remaining contestants will fashion a complete menu and decor to win.
To me, the concept sounds remarkably similar to Food Network's Chopped — only with parties. Still, I could see how Rocco's star power could make it successful. Will this be the next big cooking hit for Bravo?
As I mentioned yesterday, Party and I are headed to Aspen this weekend for what is considered the food industry's biggest gathering of the year. Before we report back with inspiring moments and witty words from this year's gustatory fest, I wanted to take a look back at the best that Aspen had to offer last year.
On last Wednesday's season finale of Top Chef, guest judge Rocco DiSpirito declared that he was sick of eating foie gras.
Although, I have to side with fellow judge Branford Marsalis, who claimed he "could eat foie gras all day," I can completely relate to Rocco when it comes to being tired of certain foods.
Personally, I'm weary of seeing nothing but crème brûlée, sorbet trios, and flourless chocolate cakes on dessert menus.
What dishes are you completely over?
