I lost my brother when he was 30, and that was devastating for me. I don't know if I will ever get over it.

I made lemon spaghetti in an early season of 'Everyday Italian,' and to this day people still come up to me and say they love it. It's very, very simple. Basically, you cook the pasta and mix together Parmesan cheese, olive oil, lemon juice and zest and pour it over the pasta.

Food was always a big part of my life. My grandfather was one of 14 kids, and his parents had a pasta factory, so as a kid, he and his siblings would sell pasta door to door. After he became a movie producer, he opened up De Laurentiis Food Stores - one in Los Angeles and one in New York.

I'm not just a female chef. I'm a woman in a brand new hotel, and that's why I think it's so perfect to be at the Cromwell, in a corner of one of the busiest intersections of the world, with my name in lights. It's different in all those sorts of ways, and I'm hoping I'll be able to carry that through. Because if I can't, it's a step back for women in general. People will say - men will say - "See, that's why it's mostly men".

I was so nervous to turn 40, but the last year and a half has been the most fun I have ever had.

I love to do yoga, even if it means getting up at 5:30 in the morning. It helps me breathe and stop all the chatter in my head. That can help you get through everything.

I'm comfortable in my own skin. I know I'm not going to ever be Cindy Crawford or Elle MacPherson.