Were it not for the unreliable nature of trains in her home of England, the world may never have seen or heard of Harry Potter. JK Rowling was working as a secretary for Amnesty International in 1990, when having nothing to do whilst waiting for a delayed train between Manchester and London gave her enough time to imagine Harry's existence. Despite having no previous writing credits to her name, she started putting her ideas to paper, and five years later, the very first Harry Potter book was finished.
Everybody knows the rest of the story; the book series is the biggest selling in history, the movies based on the books have grossed billions of dollars, and Rowling is the first billionaire author ever. Not wanting to be known just for Potter, she penned a series of crime books under a male pseudonym once her wizarding tales were over, and these were also picked up for publication before she was outed as the true talent behind the work. Known for her left-wing views and support of worthy causes, Rowling would be even richer if she didn't give so much money away to charity.
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.