Gail Simmons Has Partnered with Meal Kit Service Plated

In honor of the release of her new book, Bringing It Home: Favorite Recipes from a Life of Adventurous Eating, on October 24, Top Chef judge and F&W Special Projects Director Gail Simmons has teamed up with Plated to become the meal kit service’s first Tastemaker.

In her role as a Plated Tastemasker, Simmons will host a cooking demo in the Plated test kitchen, host a Facebook Live video on November 8, and the recipe for her Za’atar Chicken Schnitzel with Israeli Salad—which also appears in her book—will be featured on the Plated menu for four weeks, starting on November 12.

“Partnering with Plated to bring a recipe from my new cookbook to life has been a dream come true,” Simmons said in a statement. “My za'atar chicken schnitzel with Israeli salad is a very personal recipe and I am beyond excited to know that, thanks to Plated, so many devoted and enthusiastic cooks can easily order everything needed, at the click of a button, to make it for themselves at home.”

Simmons' book, which is inspired by her travels and encounters with global cuisine, as well as the many dishes she has tried during her time as a judge on Top Chef, hopes to make cooking accessible and simple, especially for families. In a video interview for Plated, Simmons explained that she collaborated with the meal kit company’s test kitchen staff to perfect her Za’atar Chicken Schnitzel with Israeli Salad recipe for Plated subscribers. She says that the recipe was inspired by a summer she spent in Israel when she was 18.

Simmons also explains that she wanted to partner with Plated because “their customers really seem to be enthusiastic and passionate about cooking.”

Plated’s Tastemaker series promises to bring subscribers to the service “collaborations for a life well fed,” with chefs and other “food-loving people,” several times throughout the year.