Jessica Simpson famously packed on the pounds while dating NFL quarterback Tony Romo, but the struggling singer/actress is determined to get back in tip-top shape as she shoots her new VH1 reality show The Price of Beauty — and she’s jump-starting a weight-loss regimen with a little help from Top Chef foodie Padma Lakshmi!
Padma — who is currently expecting her first child — is helping the native Texan abandon her favorite fatty foods, like chips and guacamole, in favor of wiser meat-free meal choices, an insider dished on the pages of the Nov. 23 print issue of Star.
“Padma e-mailed her recipes for items like seared scallops with citrus sauce, stir-fry using olive oil, and an eggplant parm with low-cal ricotta and skim mozzarella. She satisfies her sweet tooth with fat-free sorbet.”
Speaking of 30 Rock, NBC has released the first photo stills of Padma Lakshmi’s upcoming guest spot on the knee-slapping comedy. The Top Chef foodie will appear as herself on the Nov. 12 episode.
On a new Top Chef: Las Vegas, airing tonight @ 10/9c on Bravo, the chef’testants are tasked with cooking for Oscar-bimbette Natalie Portman. Natalie, as you may have heard, caused all kinds of Holy Hell this week after she to draw a parallel between the cardinal sin of meat-eating and that of sexual assault.
Natalie, girl behavior like this really feeds into the whole “Psycho Vegan” stereotype. C’mon, you guys get enough of a bad rep on account of PETA.
Yum — Bravo is creating a Top Chef spinoff that will only focus on desserts.
Top Chef: Just Desserts will feature pastry chefs competing against one another in a weekly elimination competish similar to the original Top Chef, Variety reported Monday.
Desserts is the latest in a series of several spinoffs — including Top Chef Junior and Top Chef Masters — for Bravo’s popular Top Chef franchise. Casting is currently underway for a 2010 series premiere.
Top Chef’s leading lady has a bun in the oven! Foodie beauty Padma Lakshmi is expecting her first child.
The news is all the more blessed because Padma suffers from endometriosis, a medical condition that causes irregularities in the uterus, often leading to infertility. Padma Lakshmi Pregnant – INF Events
“Model, author, and Emmy-nominated Padma Lakshmi confirms that she is carrying her first child after years of struggling with endometriosis, a cause for which she has co-founded the Endometriosis Foundation of America,” a rep for the Top Chef hostess confirmed to Us Weekly on Thursday.
“As a result of her condition, this pregnancy has been referred to by her physician as nothing short of a medical miracle, and due to its delicate nature, we ask/implore the press to respect Ms. Lakshmi’s privacy at this time,” the rep added.
On The TODAY Show Wednesday, Padma Lakshmi, the host of the small screen hit Top Chef, shared one of her favorite recipes from her cookbook and previews the sixth season of the hit show as seventeen brand-new chef’testants get ready to brave the heat of the kitchen in Sin City!
Check out the premiere of Top Chef: Las Vegas @ 9/8c and the finale of Top Chef Masters @ 10/9c Wednesday night on Bravo.
Bravo is developing a spinoff of its Top Chef reality cook-off that will feature teen competitors. Stay tuned for Top Chef Junior, coming to the tube in 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
Thirty-one year old Chicago chef Stephanie Izard took home the title, and a $100,000 grand prize, on the fourth season finale of Bravo’s Top Chef on Wednesday night. Read the rest of this entry »
