Bruce Springsteen may have sung that he was 'Born in the USA,' but how many of you knew that he was specifically born in New Jersey? We suppose that wouldn't have sounded so catchy as the title for a song, but it's a fact all the same. New Jersey is also where he put his famous 'E Street Band' together; he started out as a solo performer in the Asbury Park area, and gradually spotted other musicians he thought he could work with, recruiting them one at a time.
The singing and guitar playing legend, known to his fans simply as 'The Boss,' has often expressed frustration about the way in which people misinterpret his most famous song. 'Born in the USA' was supposed to be a lament about soldiers returning home from Vietnam and being treated poorly. Instead, Ronald Reagan thought it was a patriotic anthem, and used it in an election campaign. Springsteen politely asked him to stop.
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.