Bullying and Change

Giada’s parents divorced in the 1970’s and her life completely changed from this. Her mom moved her and the kids to Southern California. This sudden change in lifestyle was quite shocking. They had to leave all their acquaintances back in Italy behind and start a new life in America.
America turned out to very stressful for Giada. She was bullied by her school mates for her Italian accent as well her name. They would call her “Jabba the Hutt”. It was what seemed like a cruel play on her name.
Soon after moving, Giada found a place in America she could call a safe haven – the DDL Foodshow.  it was her grandfather’s restaurant. She overcame her initial anxiety due to bullying and invested all her time with her grandfather at the restaurant.

Uncertainty and College

After a lot of soul searching and investing her time to graduate at college, Giada decided to give the family business a chance. Whilst spending her time at her Grandfather’s restaurant, Giada found her passion for cooking. She realized she loved being around food. However, she was still unsure if it was a hobby or a prospective career path.
Giada was uncertain about Social Anthropology; however, she admirably ended up paying for her degree. Even though, she could not make a career out of it, the journey made her independent to make her own choices.

Relationship with Todd Thompson

ULCA became a major part of Giada’s life despite her not being able to use her degree in Social Anthropology. The institution is where she met Todd Thompson. She was only 19 when she met him. Who knew they were going to be husband and wife.

When Giada met him at ULCA Todd had no interest in fame or cooking. Everything he learn about cooking, he learnt from her. Todd later became a TV personality himself. She was once quoted in an interview for saying how oblivious her husband was to fancy cooking. However, having a celebrity wife for 20 years made him learn a thing or two about the world of food.

Life at La Cordon Bleu

Giada spent quite some time after completing her degree to ponder her options. After careful deliberation, she decided to turn her passion for food into a full time career. Her next step to pursue this passion was culinary school and so she took it. Her parents were very supportive of her choices.

The prestigious culinary school Le Cordon Bleu was more than happy to accept Giada as a candidate. Therefore, Giada packed up and left for Paris. She had no idea what future life had in store for her.

Taxing Journey

The initial excitement of the journey soon wore off. Giada was beyond stressed in the highly competitive school. She kept second guessing her skills. She often wondered if she chose the right career path. She felt like she was a completely different person.

Soon enough, the stress took a toll on her health. As a result she lost 10 pounds. She found herself once again in an environment where she did not know the language and culture. The chef reported in an interview that the nostalgia was so strong that she wanted to leave school every moment of the day. However, it was her love for cooking that made her get through the journey.

Making a Name for Herself

As soon as her degree was complete, Giada had decided to move back to Los Angeles. She was confident and ready to show her family and friends that she had made the right decision.

As skilled as she is, Giada got a job at restaurants and worked as hard as she could. She built quite a reputation for herself. As a result, Wolfgang Puck (world famous chef) hired her as a chef in his restaurant Spago. This became the ultimate stepping stone in her career.

Despite all the success, the celebrity chef reports she still had her doubts.

Career at Food Network

As she was working as a chef, Giada realized she needed to change things. She aspired to work as a food stylist for magazines. The inclination landed her a job at Food & Wine Magazine.

She was finally content with what she was doing. However, little did she know her career was far from settled. She was asked by an executive at the food network to film an on-camera demo in 2002. Her impressive demo landed her the role of chef in the series called Everyday Italian.

More Than Just Good Looks

As gorgeous as she is, Giada was overwhelmed by the comments she received. She was appreciated for her looks more than her cooking. However, Giada wanted to prove herself as a chef and worked hard at producing the most sumptuous food on the show.

Thereafter, as the series progressed, Giada became known as one of the top culinary chefs in the world. Her show was a hit all over the world. In 2005, Giada published a cookbook with the help of a ghostwriter. The book became a bestseller soon after its release.

Successful Career and Marriage

Giada’s professional life was a hit. Her career was booming but things were also starting to look up in her personal life. Todd and Giada had been together for a decade and it was time for them to tie the knot.

In 2003, Giada was proposed to by Todd and they eventually tied the knot. The celebrity chef says she used food as a token for love. She often made them beautiful home cooked meals.

An Impasse with Flay

The Italian TV star was having the time of her life. Everyday Italian became one of the top shows in the culinary world. This welcomed Giada to appear on other food shows such as Pixie Hollow bake and Behind the Bash. She even competed alongside Chef Bobby Flay on Iron Chef America.

As Giada and Flay worked side by side on Food Network Star, they soon became really good friends. However, during the competition on Iron Chef America, the two got on each other’s nerves. Losing the competition did not make things any easier. It made them eventually take a break from each other. It took them eight months to finally make up.

Cons of Celebrity Life

Like most celebrities, Giada soon realized the downside of being famous. She preferred to keep her relationships out of the limelight but had little success.

Giada disapproved of people touching her. She felt that fans who gushed and touched her were crossing the line. However, she still remained civil and got through it with smiles and hugs.

Smile at Everything

Giada was quite known for her dazzling camera smile. She realized she felt very uneasy in front of the camera. The whole ordeal felt very intimidating to her.

Irene Wong, who was her producer at the time, insisted she should smile through everything. She was practically smiling through every other emotion on the show. This made the star learn quite quickly how to hide her feelings.

Resourceful Goddess

Giada knows her beauty routine well. One of the secret’s behind Giada’s million-dollar perfect smile is her tooth whitener.

Furthermore, Giada uses a homemade facemask to keep her skin looking fresh. Her mask is a simple mixture of baking soda and olive oil. She is very resourceful and uses all-natural ingredients to make her concoctions.

Dieting and Fitness

Being a chef can be a hassle for someone who watches what they eat. Similarly, Giada made a rule to stay away from fattening food and make fitness a major part of her life.

This is indeed the secret to Giada’s excellent shape. She once said in an interview that dark chocolate came to the rescue when she craved something sweet. The kind of foods she cooks on the show are hardly what she actually eats – not because it isn’t delicious, but purely because of its fat content.

Into the Dump Bucket

A spokesperson from the Food Network once reported they have a dump bucket on the show. They dumped the food right after the final cut.

Furthermore, the spokesperson said even if they did not use the dump bucket they made use of sneaky editing. There was no way the celebrity chef could eat that much during the day.

Alternative Strategies

Giada is very strict about her diet and fitness goals. Even though, she cooks a variety of Italian food throughout the day, she barely eats it. Food such as pasta could ruin her health if eaten in abundance.

A clever tactic introduced by Giada herself during the show was having to have a staff member stand by. She made sure that when it was time for tasting she would call them in to try her food. These shots were done in such a way that the audience wouldn’t know who actually tasted the food. When this wasn’t possible, she simply made use of the dump bucket.

Disaster on Ellen’s Show

During her time of peak success, Giada was invited to appear on an episode of the hit show hosted by Ellen DeGeneres. She was asked to teach Nicole Kidman how to make Focaccia.

Unfortunately, the Focaccia prepared by Giada had been sitting a long time before the show. When it was time for Ellen and Nicole to try the dish on the show, it had gone bad. The two ladies spat out the food despite trying another bite of the food. It all ended up in extreme laughter on set and no offense was taken.

Mortification and Second Chances

Giada narrated an absolutely mortifying almost career changing story. She reported being invited to the Today Show to cook for Al Roker. Being a food stylist Giada used her skills to make the food look camera ready. This meant keeping the chicken a little raw. Apparently she had no idea that Al Roker was going to taste her dish.

When he came by the station to try the food, Giada recalls being at the brink of a panic attack. Fortunately, Al played along and saved her from the shame and gave her another chance to redeem herself.

Royal Lasagna

After spending a good amount of her professional career in front of the camera, Giada got used to it. She realized she had no reason be nervous in front of the camera. As an excellent host, she won an award for Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Lifestyle Host in 2008. This is one of the highlights of her career.

The celebrity chef had the opportunity to cook for Prince William and Kate Middleton when they visited California. The Prince was once known to have attempted to cook terrible lasagna for his wife. Therefore, Giada chose to make that for the couple.

The Birth of Her Daughter

In 2008, Todd and Giada had a beautiful baby daughter and called her Jade. Giada itself means Jade in Italian; therefore, it became an inspiration for her daughter’s name.

Giada is happy with having an only daughter. She loves spending time with her child. It is difficult to manage being a mom and celebrity chef. She schedules everything very precisely in order to spend as much time as she can with her daughter. She considers her daughter as the best gift she ever received from her husband.

Divorce

In 2014, only 6 years after Jade was born, the couple decided to separate. They decided to keep it private until they revealed it publically on Facebook.

According to the chef, it was a mutual decision. They separated for their family’s happiness yet kept their paths connected. Overall, the whole ordeal ended on good terms.

Job Search

During the course of their relationship, Todd had technically been working with Giada. He appeared on 62 episodes of her show and even designed the chef coats for her restaurant.

After their separation, Todd needed a new job. He was passionate about fashion and so he applied for a career in the fashion industry. He now works for big fashion brands such as Anthropologie. After separation and the newfound job, Todd’s net worth stands at $8 million. Giada’s is around $15 million.

Never Give Up Hope

After the news of the separation went viral, people began to speculate. Numerous vicious rumors of her affairs started to surface. Giada denied each one of them with utmost civility. Shane Farley, one of her producers at the time was also going through a divorce. They became great companions providing solace to each other during this mutual tough time in their life.

Giada had to struggle through this period of gloom. However, the celebrity chef did not give up on love. She was reported saying, “I am never going to say never.” It was her hearty attitude that made her go through this rough journey.

Relationship with Matt Lauer

In 2011, another rumor surfaced. She was heard to be dating a former host at the Today Show. Matt Lauer and Giada were seen in Barbados together. This made people suspect if there was more to this than just friendship.

Giada and Lauer both denied these rumors. She assured the public that they were nothing more than friends. Barbados was just a friendly hangout and a little vacation.