Emeril Lagasse

“I have a lot of influences. I’m American-schooled. I’m classically trained. I’m a pretty universal student, if you will. I have a lot of degrees, which really don’t pay the rent. I have two doctorate degrees, I have a bachelor’s degree, but I’m still a cook.”

“My philosophy from day one is that I can sleep better at night if I can improve an individual’s knowledge about food and wine, and do it on a daily basis.”

“If kids can learn how to make a simple Bolognese sauce, they will never go hungry. It’s pretty easy to cook pasta, but a good sauce is way more useful.”

“You are going to be what you put in your body, so I try to teach that to my kids, and the kids around me.”

“Life just doesn’t hand you things. You have to get out there and make things happen. That’s the exciting part.”

“I can’t tell you enough about cinnamon. Cinnamon is an awesome spice to use and it goes great with something like apples in the morning or in a mixture of fruit or in your oatmeal or even in your cereal.”

“I started cooking when I was about 10. I have memories like when I was 6 or 7 with my mom, and when I was 12 I started getting real serious about cooking.”

“I think you’ve got to keep it simple, keep it fresh. Stay away from all that processed stuff, read the labels.”