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Honor your favorite dead celebs in the kitchen

What better way is there to pay homage to your favorite long-gone entertainer than by eating a homemade dish that he or she created? For Frank DeCaro, self-proclaimed “TV nerd” and author of “The Dead Celebrity Cookbook,” finding recipes from departed stars he reveres has been a labor of love spanning two decades.“I get mad when people don’t preserve these incredibly talented performer
Make recipes from celebs like Michael Jackson and Yvonne De Carlo with
Make recipes from celebs like Michael Jackson and Yvonne De Carlo with

What better way is there to pay homage to your favorite long-gone entertainer than by eating a homemade dish that he or she created? For Frank DeCaro, self-proclaimed “TV nerd” and author of “The Dead Celebrity Cookbook,” finding recipes from departed stars he reveres has been a labor of love spanning two decades.

“I get mad when people don’t preserve these incredibly talented performers’ legacies,” he told TODAY.com. “At the time, many of these stars were shrouded in mystery, so when you’d see them on a cooking segment or saw a recipe, you felt like you were getting a special glimpse into their lives.”

DeCaro says he was inspired long ago by a friend’s dead celebrity-themed party – which was noticeably missing eats to go with the theme. That got him on an informal mission to start sifting through old magazines, pamphlets and cookbooks as well as hitting eBay to see what recipes he could score. DeCaro’s newly published book curates 145 recipes from legendary celebs like Lucille Ball, Frank Sinatra, Estelle Getty, Isaac Hayes, Rodney Dangerfield and many more.  

While DeCaro didn’t have time to make all of the dishes featured in the book, he did get through cooking several.

“Some of these dishes are wonderful,” he said. “And some of them… well, let’s just say as cooks, they were really good actors.”

One of DeCaro’s favorite recipes is Liberace’s Sticky Buns. “Liberace was known for making sticky buns,” explained DeCaro. “I made them and they were way better than store-bought buns. Is nine too many to eat before they’ve even cooled off?”

He also says he was shocked at how delicious Michael Jackson’s sweet potato pie and Farrah Fawcett’s sausage and peppers were, considering that he couldn’t imagine either star in the kitchen.

But the recipe that’s dearest to DeCaro’s heart comes from Yvonne De Carlo, who played Moses’ wife in “The Ten Commandments” but is best known for her role as Lily, the mother in the TV show “The Munsters.”

“I was beside myself when I got this recipe,” DeCaro said, adding that he got the recipe from a friend and antique dealer who found a pamphlet featuring the dish. “It was a recipe for Yvonne De Carlo’s Exotic Chicken Ecstasy, printed on a black-and-white handout that you might have found at the grocery store; it was an incredible find.”

So whether it’s for a Halloween party, a film-themed event or just kitchen geekery, try some of these recipes at home. Here we share two of DeCaro’s favorites:

Yvonne De Carlo's Exotic Chicken Ecstasy

Makes 4 servings 

  • 1 (2½ pound) chicken, cut into 10 pieces
  • 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 stalk celery
  • 1/4 cup Chinese cabbage, sliced
  • 1 can chop suey vegetables, shredded
  • 1/2 can pineapple tidbits (drained, juice reserved)
  • 2 heaping teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1½ cups water
  • ¼ teaspoon ginger powder
  • 2 tablespoons chutney powder
  • 1½ teaspoons salt
  • ½ teaspoon white pepper
  • 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
  • ¼ cup sherry

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a Dutch oven and sauté chicken until golden brown. Top the chicken with celery, cabbage, chop suey vegetables and drained pineapple. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Place cornstarch, ginger powder and chutney powder in a mixing bowl. Combine pineapple juice, water, soy sauce and sherry wine, and gradually add to dry ingredients in mixing bowl, stirring constantly until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour cornstarch mixture over chicken and vegetables in casserole. Stir, cover tightly and simmer for another ten minutes; serve at once over hot steamed rice.

Michael Jackson's Sweet Potato Pie

Makes 6 to 8 servings 

  • 3 eggs
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup butter, melted
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ⅓ cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon or orange juice
  • 2½ cups mashed sweet potatoes (canned or freshly cooked)
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ cup pecan halves
  • 1 unbaked pie shell

Beat eggs and sugar. Add melted butter, salt, milk, vanilla and spices. Blend egg mixture with mashed sweet potatoes and lemon or orange juice. Pour into an unbaked pie shell. Garnish with pecan halves. Bake 10 minutes in a preheated 400° oven. Reduce oven temperature to 375° and bake 40 minutes longer or until golden.