The famed Kurt Warner went from bagging and stocking groceries to playing in one of the most televised live events in American history. Warner's rise to prominence is another one of those tales of overcoming adversity through hard work and finding oneself in the perfect circumstance to succeed. Kurt Warner attended the University of Northern Iowa but had a less than remarkable career due to being third on the Panthers' quarterback depth chart up until his senior year where he finally got the chance to start. In that single season, Warner performed so well he was named the Gateway Conference Offensive Player of the Year and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in communications.
With a less than stellar performance as a Northern Iowa Panthers, Kurt Warner went undrafted in the 1994 NFL Draft but got an opportunity to try out for the Green Bay Packers. Warner was cut from the team and went back to his hometown of Cedar Falls, Iowa to bag groceries for a living. Eventually, Warner would make his way back to the field in the AFL where he played a single season with the Iowa Barnstormers. The following year, Warner participated in the NFL Europe before signing a contract with the St. Louis Rams where he would become a household name. In six seasons with the Rams, Warner became the first undrafted quarterback to lead his team to a Super Bowl victory (XXIV) and win Super Bowl MVP. Warner also holds three out of the five single-game passing yardages in a Super Bowl and led the Arizona Cardinals to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl XLIII before retiring in January 2010. The now 4x Pro Bowler and Hall of Famer is considered the best-undrafted football player of all-time.
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.