The Ingredient TikTok Star Babs Can't Live Without - Exclusive
Barbara Costello, aka Brunch with Babs, knows how to make an incredible meal that brings her family to the table. The social media star told us in an exclusive interview that she grew up in an Italian Lebanese household, and the kitchen was always bustling with relatives and delicious food. She explained that while her kids were growing up, she would make a lot of pasta because that was quick and easy, but now she's having fun experimenting with different types of cuisine.
"It's fun to try lots of different foods, and it depends on the day of the week," she said. "What's going to be quick? If I have more time on the weekends, then that's different. But certainly, I love Italian food and I love Middle Eastern food."
The 73-year-old shows her millions of fans how to make her favorite dishes like overnight breakfast casserole and chicken parmesan crescent bread. And when it comes to her cooking arsenal, there's one particular ingredient she can't live without: olive oil.
Babs loves olive oil, but she likes other oils as well
When it comes to whipping up a meal for her husband or family, Babs always reaches for olive oil — a staple of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking. She told us she also likes to use avocado and coconut oil. "Those are my three favorites," she said. "Middle Eastern, Italian — we love our olive oil." It's also the ideal first ingredient if you want to make the TikTok star's famous breakfast casserole that requires browning Italian sausage. While it's optional, olive oil can help beef to brown better and adds great flavor.
Babs divulged that she would make it every year for her kids at Christmas, and now they make it for their children. "I clipped that recipe out of a newspaper, I want to say, over 50 years ago," she revealed. "We have been making that, and now my own kids make it. On Christmas morning, even my sons, they'll be like, 'Mom ...' They've got the recipe, but they'll call me to go, 'Is it okay if I put in ...' [They're] changing up whatever, but that's become traditionally our signature dish for our family."
Barbara Costello's cookbook, "Celebrate with Babs," is available on Amazon. Follow @brunchwithbabs on TikTok and Instagram, and check out the #WomenofTikTok: Women Who Will.