food

Curtis Stone has a lot on his plate: he’s an award-winning chef, a best-selling author, and a swoon-worthy television personality. But at the end of the day, the host of Bravo’s Around the World in 80 Plates, is a family man who loves to cook dinner for his wife, Lindsay Price and their son, Hudson. Here, he tells us about his romantic marriage proposal and what we can expect from his latest cookbook, What’s For Dinner?

What role does food play in your family life? 

CURTIS STONE: “A huge one! We’ve got a really young boy, and watching him go on this journey with food already is blowing my mind. We’ve got a gorgeous big veggie garden, so I’m lucky enough to be able to go and pick stuff and steam it and serve it, knowing that it was growing a couple of hours before and it’s completely organic and healthy and has all of the different vitamins and minerals and bits and pieces that [our son] needs to grow big and strong. It’s such a fulfilling thing to be able to cook for him. And then Linds and I eat together every night. Most of the time, I cook. That’s a beautiful thing, too—to be able to cook for someone that you love and care about and seeing that they enjoy it.”

What might you cook for Lindsay to celebrate a special occasion?

CS: “It depends what we’re doing. For her first Mother’s Day, I cooked a bunch of Mexican food and organized a mariachi band to come over—she loves Mexican food. I’ve also made her lobster and homemade pasta, ‘cause she loves fresh pasta.”

How did you propose to Lindsay?

CS: “We were in Italy. We spent a week on the Amalfi Coast. I’d been planning it for a bloody long time, actually. Did this whole rigmarole. It’s not easy for guys, y’know. We’ve got to try and organize the ring; you want to be romantic and not ask her what kind of ring she wants, but that brings its own challenges and you don’t want to get her something that she’s not gonna like. I carried it around for five days in Italy, trying to find the right moment. I wanted it to happen organically; I didn’t want to set it up too much. I ended up asking her when we were sitting on the balcony of the room we stayed at in Positano, so it was very romantic and beautiful. We had the beach and Positano behind us and the mountains in the background, and I got down on one knee. I was bloody nervous; I got a bit sweaty.”

And, of course, she said yes! 

CS: “Thank God! Can you imagine if she said no?!”

Your latest cookbook, What’s for Dinner?, launched in April. What can we look forward to in this collection of recipes? 

CS: “We’ve taken a bit of an interesting approach to this cookbook. I’ve split all of the chapters up into the days of the week. Monday, to me, you sort of want to brush off the cobwebs of the weekend if you ate and drank too much, so I’ve called it Motivating Monday. Each recipe is a healthy balance and designed to get off on the right foot for the week. On Tuesday, it’s one of the busiest days in my office, all you want to do is something quick, so that’s Time-Saver Tuesday—all meals are 15 to 40 minutes. Wednesday is One-Pot Wednesday. Thursday is Thrifty Thursday, ‘cause you’re trying to save a bit of money for the weekend. Friday is Five-Ingredient Friday, so that’s happy hour-style food, like tacos and quesadillas and that sort of fun stuff with only five ingredients. Saturday is Dinner Party Saturday, ‘cause that’s when you’re gonna entertain, and then Sunday is Family Supper Sunday.”

Where do you find inspiration for your recipes? 

CS: “These days, for this book, it’s all about getting dinner on the table. We’ve just got such crazy-busy lives at the moment… everybody’s in the same boat. We’re all busy in different ways and I just wanted to do a cookbook that made it possible.”

Click here to get Curtis’s recipe for Halibut & Spinach with Orange-Pine Nut Vinaigrette.

As featured in 2life magazine!