Similar in ingredients like the pasty or sausage roll, the West Virginia pepperoni roll is a cuisine created in the Mountain State. The original pepperoni roll was created by Giuseppe "Joseph" Argiro in 1927 who served the tasted meat and bread combo at the Country Club Bakery in Fairmont, Virginia. Argiro began producing the rolls as a quick and easy lunch option for the coal miners who lived in the community. Since pepperoni rolls don't need to be refrigerated and can be easily consumed, the sandwich became popular amongst the blue-collar working class.
During the baking process, the fats and seasonings of the pepperoni melt into the dough creating a spicy and oily bread that is like none other on the market. To this very day, West Virginia sells tons of these sandwiches at local convenient stores and restaurants. With pepperoni rolls being so easy to make, these sandwiches can easily be recreated at home.
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.