Gale Gand facts for kids

Gale Gand is a famous pastry chef, cookbook author, and television star from Chicago. She won the 2001 James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef. This is a very important award in the food world.

Gale Gand also hosted the Food Network show Sweet Dreams. She was the main chef at Elawa Farm in Lake Forest, Illinois. She helped start and was the first Executive Pastry Chef at Tru. Tru is a fancy restaurant in Chicago. In 2007, Gale Gand and her partners at Tru won another James Beard Foundation Award for their excellent service. She has also written for the Huffington Post and appeared on TV shows like Iron Chef America and Top Chef.

Gale Gand's Early Life and Career

Gale Gand grew up in Deerfield, Illinois. She started working in restaurants in 1976. She began as a cook and waitress in Cleveland, Ohio. Later, she became a pastry chef in Rochester, New York. She also worked in famous restaurants in New York City, like The Gotham Bar and Grill. She even worked in England at Stapleford Park.

Opening Restaurants and New Creations

In 1993, Gale Gand opened a restaurant called Trio. She worked with her culinary partner, Rick Tramonto, and Henry Adaniya. Trio was in Evanston, Illinois. In 1994, Food and Wine Magazine named her one of the Top Ten Best New Chefs.

In 1999, she opened another restaurant called Tru. She worked with Rick Tramonto and Rich Melman. The next year, she started making her own special soda pop. It was called Gale's Root Beer. This root beer had flavors of cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla. She made 60,000 bottles each year, and it was sold all over the country.

Television Appearances

Gale Gand has been on many TV shows. In 1996, the famous chef Julia Child chose her to appear on two episodes of the PBS show Baking with Julia.

From 2000 to 2008, Gale Gand hosted her own show on the Food Network called Sweet Dreams. She got the show without even trying out! She was a frequent guest chef on Sarah Moulton's show. When she called the network to confirm a date, they offered her her own show.

On July 30, 2006, Gale Gand and Rick Tramonto appeared on Iron Chef: America. They competed against Chef Mario Batali. In 2008, she was also a judge on Bravo's show Top Chef for an episode called "Wedding Wars."

Awards and Recent Work

In 2014, Gale Gand teamed up with Steve McDonagh and Dan Smith. They opened a restaurant called SpritzBurger in Chicago. It was a "pop-up" restaurant, meaning it was open for a limited time.

Gale Gand has received many honors. In 2014, she was added to the Chicago Chef's Hall of Fame. In 2018, she was also inducted into the American Academy of Chefs.

In 2016, Gale Gand worked with a company called Think Jerky. She helped create special jerky products. Some of her creations included "Sriracha Honey Turkey Jerky" and "Sesame Teriyaki Beef Jerky."

Gale Gand's Cookbooks

Gale Gand is also a talented author. She has written several cookbooks, sharing her delicious recipes with everyone. Here are some of her books:

• Tramonto, Rick, and Gale Gand. 1997. American Brasserie.
• Gand, Gale, Rick Tramonto, and Julia Moskin. 1999. Butter Sugar Flour Eggs: Whimsical Irresistible Desserts.
• Gand, Gale and Julia Moskin. 2001. Gale Gand's Just a Bite: 125 Luscious Little Desserts.
• Gand, Gale and Julia Moskin. 2004. Gale Gand's Short and Sweet: Quick Desserts with Eight Ingredients or Less.
• Tramonto, Rick, Gale Gand, and Mary Goodbody. 2004. Tru: A Cookbook from the Legendary Chicago Restaurant.
• Gand, Gale and Lisa Weiss. 2006. Chocolate and Vanilla.
• Gand, Gale, with Christie Matheson. 2009. Gale Gand's Brunch!: 100 Fantastic Recipes for the Weekend's Best Meal.
• Gand, Gale, with Christie Matheson. 2014. Gale Gand's Lunch!.