We have no idea why so many old toys - especially the sort of old toys we'd throw around the room and take for granted - are now so valuable and so collectible. The pull of nostalgia has a lot to answer for. Who had a room full of Beanie Babies when they were younger? If you still have them now, they could be worth thousands of dollars, depending on which particular models you have.
Peanut the Royal Blue Elephant (a descriptive name if ever we heard one) is one of the most valuable, with a retail price of $5,000 but even more impressive than that are those Beanie Babies which came with celebrity endorsements. One based on legendary French chef Joel Robuchon could be worth double the memorably-titled elephant, for example. Even a humble old Victorian Teddy Bear is worth $2,000 at the bare minimum, so if you have a special box or room full of them hiding away somewhere, it's worth a re-assessment.
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.