Smithsonian - Perishable Pundit

'IEd LiíDmi, Studio City, CaliforniaEd LaDou, known as the inventorof California Pizza, helpedcreate an entirely new style in1975 by adding .111 exotic arrayof toppings including scallops,fish roc, and zucchini flowersto traditional dough-and-saucepizzas. Inn;S7, LaDou usedmoney earned from consultingwith California Pizza Kitchens100] to open his o\\ n restaurant, theCaioti Pizza Café in Studio City.Etneril Lagasse,New Orleans, LouisianaBorn and raised in the Portuguesecommunity of Fall River.Massachusetts. I agasse openedIns first 1cst.1u1.1nt 111 1990. Heis now the chef-proprietor ofnine restaurants—three 111 NewOrleans, two 111 Las Vegas, twom Orlando, one in Atlanta, .\\\done in Miami. He is the host ofboth The Essence oj Emeril and/ 'merit Live television shows andauthor of eight cookbooks.( besare Lanjranconi,Washington, D.C.Cesare 1 anfranconi began hiscareer at age is by helping hisgrandmother prepare food forher restaurant in the Lake Comoregion of ItalyAlter working at anumber of well-known restaurantsin Italy and England, Lanfranconicame to the United States andworked with Roberto Donna,because he believed it would bemore conducive to his creativeapproach to Italian cuisme. Heis now the Executive Chef atTosca m Washington. 1 ).CFrancis Layrle, Washington, D.C.As the chef at the French Embassyin Washington, D.C, Francis I ayrleis the i ulinary representative of hisCountry. In his 27 wars in America.he has been influenced by nouvellecuisine and the American culi-11 .11 \ revolution, but he continuesto cook classic French dishes forthe ambassador's table with freshherbs and other ingredients. Hehas prepared over iso,000 meals aspersonal chef to French ambassadorsand their guests, and the Frenchgovernment has honored him withthe Ordre National du MenteSheila Lukins, New York, New YorkSheila Lukins, chef, cookingteacher, and tood writer, is alsothe co-founder ot the Silver Pilate111 New York City. The SilverPalate started out as a tiny shop onColumbus Avenue where Sheila andher partner Julie Rossi producedaline ot cooking products andthen the best-selling Silvei PalateCookbook. Since then Sheila haswritten lour other cookbooks andis Lood Editor ot Parade Magazine.Karen MacNeil,Sopo I alley, CaliforniaWine expert Karen MacNeil is the2004 winner ot the OutstandingWine and Spirits Professional awardfrom the James Beard FoundationShe is the author of the awardwinningTheWine Bible and hostof the television show. Wine, loodi- Friends, with Karen MacNeil.Brenda Rhodes Milla,Silver Spring, MarylandPrenda Rhodes Miller, the directorot the DC Campaign to Preventleen Pregnancy, is the wife ot ,1minister. An avid home cook, sheis author ot The Church LadiesCelestial Suppers and SensibleAdvice andThc Church Lady'sDivine Desserts,both of whichcelebrate the lives and lookingot America's church ladlesNahid Mohamad!, Washington, DC.Nahid Mohamadi came to theUnited States from lehcran 111 [968as .1young bride with her husbandMohamed, who was a medicalstudent. In the United States,she studied interior design andarchitecture. In the evening shelearned to cook Iranian toodfrom her mother's letters. Farfrom home, she kept trying therecipes until they worked.Frank Morales, Washington, D.C.Frank Morales graduated from theCulinary Institute of America in[995, then went on to hone Insskills at a number of New York'sfinest restaurants, including UnionPacific and Le Cirque. In 2003 hestarted his own restaur. int. Zola,in Washington, 1 >.( '.., immediatelyreceiving high praise tot hisstraightforward American cuisine.Diana My Iran. Washington, D.C.After coining to America fromVietnam in 1975, Diana M5 Franfirst gamed renown as a successful>.C. dressmaker and designer. InThe I ietnamese Cookbook, 'Franoffers simplified versions ot traditionalVietnamese dishes that canbe made with ingredients availableat American supermarkets.Patrick O'Connell, Washington, D.C.Lor the past two decades Patrick( )'( onnell has been the chef at theInn at Little Washington, w Inch theI ravel Channel ranked as one of theWorld's Best Millionaire Hangouts.I lis work there has inspired suchcookbooks as The Inn ,11 LittleWashington Cookbook and PatrickO'Connell's Refined American CuisineKaz Okochi, Washington, D.C.Born and raised in Nagoya, |apan,Okochi first came to the UnitedSlates 111 1980 lie returned to|ap.m m [983 to attend thcTsujiCulinary Institute, then came toWashington. DC, in [988 to pursuehis career in the United States.After launching a successful lineot supermarket carry-out sushi atfresh Fields (now Whole Foods),Okochi pursued his dream andopened his own restaurant, KazSushi Bistro, 111 Washington, D.CSMITHSONIAN FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL