I sit at this really weird crossroads. My job requires me to take in calories. I take care of myself. I eat healthy. I exercise a lot. But then I have to go to events in cocktail dresses and look fancy, and people want to interview me about what I’m wearing, and then I’m compared to people who are wearing size 2 all the time. – Gail Simmons
I never really drank coffee in college, but now I’m on my feet all day and out all night and can’t believe it hasn’t always been in my life. When morning comes I crave it. – Gail Simmons
Like baseball, food will never go out of style; we will always need to eat and we will always find it entertaining. I think of food TV this way – all the fun and none of the calories. – Gail Simmons
Patience was not something that came naturally to me, but in cooking it is the quintessential skill. – Gail Simmons
I’m tempted by everything. My husband makes fun of me because every day it’s a new food that I love. I have a weakness for butterscotch pudding, ice cream in any flavor and dark chocolate, although that’s one thing I do keep in my house – 70% dark chocolate. – Gail Simmons
You know, I lose patience really easily; I’d rather shop in the grocery store than in the department store. I can pick an apple like nobody’s business. – Gail Simmons
It’s better to get the nutrients for healthy skin from food, not supplements. Salmon, walnuts, blueberries, spinach… lots of my favorite foods happen to be amazing for skin too. – Gail Simmons
The less you do to beautiful food, the better it’s going to taste. You don’t need to mess with it all the time. – Gail Simmons
My mother’s kitchen was built to be the focal point of our house. I got into the kitchen often as a child. – Gail Simmons
Eating a lot is an occupational hazard but it’s a pretty great problem to have. I spend a lot of time eating sweets on TV – cake, cupcakes, donuts, and pudding. It’s a dream job, but at the same time there will be days where I wake up knowing I will eat 15 desserts! – Gail Simmons
I cannot go to Montreal without going to Beauty’s, my favorite place for breakfast, where I have the Mish-Mash omelet with hot dogs, salami, eggs, green peppers, and onions, and the best banana bread in the world. It’s legendary! – Gail Simmons
I cook mostly vegetarian vegetable and bean stews. Quinoa salads. I make my mother-in-law’s recipe for chicken and barley stew all the time. – Gail Simmons
A big thing that gets people in trouble in the kitchen is not reading the recipe from start to finish before you cook it. Before you start anything, read through the entire recipe once. – Gail Simmons
Balance is key in cooking – you want a little acid, a little sweet, a little savory – the flavors should be harmonious. – Gail Simmons
In America, Blackberry Farm in Tennessee is one of the most amazing hotels I’ve had the privilege of staying at. – Gail Simmons
There are few women in America that don’t want to lose 5 pounds, but I refuse to let that thought dominate my life. And there are too many other real problems in the world – real obesity problems and real hunger problems – to worry that much about a few pounds that I’d like to lose. – Gail Simmons
I love The Inn at Palmetto Bluff, an Auberge Property in Bluffton, South Carolina. It’s a spectacular corner of the world, with massive old trees lined with Spanish moss, and alligators swimming in the river. – Gail Simmons
I was very, very little – it was the first time I ever cooked on my own, with my mother’s supervision – and I made scrambled eggs. I felt so accomplished, like magic! – Gail Simmons
I reveled in the most basic rules and techniques that are the foundation of professional cooking. For example, it is essential to use a sharp knife: the sharper the knife, the more fluid and precise your work and the less likely you are to get hurt. Dull knives are a danger – they slip far more often. – Gail Simmons
First and foremost, you have to remember that restaurants are businesses and they have to stay in business. And though everyone thinks they want grass fed beef, most people actually prefer the taste of corn fed – it is less dry, more marbled, and less gamey, not to mention much less expensive than grass fed. – Gail Simmons
When I diced vegetables, it was painstaking work to make sure that every single piece looked the same: 1/4-inch cubed for small, 3/4-inch cubed for large. It’s a matter of practice and precision. – Gail Simmons
I spend so much time in Los Angeles and normally stay at a corporate apartment when shooting ‘Top Chef: Just Desserts,’ but when I have the chance to stay somewhere more luxurious, I love The Montage in Beverly Hills. – Gail Simmons
