Bethenny Frankel is the beautiful natural foods chef to celebrities like: Mariska Hargitay, Alicia Silverstone, and Paris Hilton. Bethenny was also one of 16 candidates on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart and appears on the Real Housewives of New York City on Bravo. Bethenny Frankel’s busy schedule includes a column on health in Hamptons Magazine, being a spokesperson for Pepperidge Farm’s Naturals and Diet.com, creating BethennyBakes a line of low fat, wheat, egg and dairy free baked goods, developing a drink called the "SkinnyGirl Margarita", and writing books like The Skinny Girl’s Guide to Cocktails and Naturally Thin which will be published in January 2009. In this interview Bethenny talks about her passion for cooking, what she likes most about being on BRAVO’s the Real Housewives of New York City, her dream for creating the SkinnyGirl empire, why one day she would love to cook for Oprah, and reveals some of her beauty secrets.

When did you first become interested in cooking?
I’ve been interested in cooking my entire life. I start in 2001. I always at the aptitude for it but I wanted to go to school to gain confidence. I went to school for food and healing. Which has actually has a lo to do with beauty anyways because you are what you eat.

What type of cuisine do you specialize in?
I’m a natural food chef. I cook everything, meat and chocolate soufflé, but I specialize in health.

What was your first break as a celebrity chef?
I think maybe being on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart and leveraging that to cook for different celebrities like Mariska Hargitay, Denis Leary on the set of his show. I used to also cook for Alicia Silverstone at my health food restaurant and deliver meals to her house. Celebrities are into their health and the way they look and they can afford healthy meals or the studio can pay for actors to help them. I have done the Bethenny Bakes cookies for the Victoria Secret girls during their fashion show, which are model friendly cookies.

I would like to talk about your signature cocktail The Skinny Girls Matgarita. I believe you may have brought to us the next ‘it’ drink just like Sex And The City brought to us the Cosmopolitan Martini. How did you come up with the concept for the drink and why it is your favorite?
I have a whole line of The Skinny Girl Cocktails. You have a cocktail with your girlfriends, but also those girlfriends are all concerned about their weight and the way they look and the way they feel. So basically the cocktail for the girl who wants a cocktail in a fun glass but doesn’t make you feel guilty the next day that it will effect your waist line. I sort of took the fat ingredients which all I really love to drink and toned them down and substitute it to make it work so it’s just sweet enough but not so sweet so it’ll break your diet bank account.

What aspect do you enjoy most being on the HBO’s The Real Housewives of New York City?
The experience is wonderful. To be able to showcase what my life is really like. When I was on the Martha Stewart “The Apprentice” it was about the competition and it was about being successful and it wasn’t about who I really am. It is a great opportunity to portray my life, and be honest about it. To also find out that people really appreciate honesty when you just who you are and they accept you, you realize you are going in the right direction. So actually it was great to be able to find out if I’m marketable and if I can build this kind of brand people will understand it and it will resonate with them. That was the best part of that.

How do you keep your hair so beautiful?
To be perfectly honest what I do to keep my hair beautiful is by not washing it too many times. I wash my hair few times a week at the maximum and I condition the ends not the roots so they don’t get oily. Because when your hair gets oily at the roots you will have to wash your hair everyday. So I condition the ends and wash the roots obviously and that makes your blow dry last longer. I get my hair professionally blown dried twice a week…in a very inexpensive place…near my house. Another thing when you get a lot of build up in your hair which we all do with products and just from hairspray and conditioner, is I take baking soda and water once in a while and rinse my hair with that…it strips the build up off your hair so then conditioner really works and you don’t have that flat hair all the time. I don’t prescribe to any particular hair products. I like Oscar Blandi which is a friend of mine. I am more about how you take of your hair and not so much about the products. Also my hair is healthy because what I eat. I eat a lot of green vegetables and a lot of food of color. So eat the rainbow, that what makes your hair look nice.

What are your favorite skincare products?
I use the Dr. Howard Sobel’s line DDF cleanser, and DDF Daily Cleansing Pads Glycolic 5% at night. I use a vitamin C Serum and a nice moisturizer with a sunscreen, which I’m not that psychotic about that. I go to Christine Chin Facial Spa in New York City once a month…which is the most expensive and indulgemet thing that I use because it costs a fortune. It is a facial and a microdermabrasion which is like a surgery, it’s not fun a relaxing. They should play like a chain saw music in the background. They take every…pore you ever had…and they really get it clean. It’s all worth it. I’m not the kind of person who has perfect skin, it can be perfect at times, but there is always something that will rear its ugly head.

How do you get your eye lashes long and sexy?
I bought that stuff and I know they have taken it off the market, Marini Lash Eye Lash Conditioner by Jan Marini. You use that twice a day, I don’t have eyelashes that curl up but that staff works. But you have to use it twice a day. My lashes reach by sunglasses now. I also use, Revlon $3 gold eye lash curler which has a coil spring on it. That’s better than all these $50 ones. And I use Trish McEvoy mascara, it is really good.

What is the best lip gloss you ever owned?
I always like that MAC Lipglass even if it sticks to your hair, that is like the super gloss of all time.

What is you signature fragrance?
I always wanted to have a signature fragrance. In my cabinet I have Carolina Herrera, Calypso Mimosa, and I bought the new Gucci by Gucci Eau de Parfum. But I don’t understand there is so much going on so I don’t know what my signature fragrance is really.

What one beauty product we will always find in your purse?
A lip liner and a lipgloss. Although now I’m 37 when I’m in my 40’s and up I will always carry an under eye concealer. My biggest concern is under eyes.

What is your number one beauty secret?
In a perfect world it will be sleep and anti stress…I don’t know I wish I had a secret. I don’t always get to sleep enough with my busy schedule, but sometimes I do. You can have an 8 hour of restless sleep or an 8 hour of quality sleep. So it’s the quality of sleep that matters.

Which celebrities do you find most beautiful?
Kate Backinsale and Charlize Theron are most beautiful people I’ve seen in my entire life. And I love Rihanna too.

How do you keep so fit?
I’m a natural food chef so I have a leg up on people just knowing what to do. Moderation. I eat whatever I want but not all at the same time…you have to know when to check yourself before you wreck yourself. You have to treat your diet like a bank account, sometimes you can spend just like shopping on beauty products but sometimes you have to save. You should be able to eat like Europeans, taste everything eat nothing, meaning don’t be worrying about things being fat free just enjoy and indulge. I also think you should spoil your appetite before you go to a party or to an event. You should meet a low calorie investment in something to eat, a small veggie burger or peanut butter on whole wheat bread. These 200 calories will save you 500 to 600 calories on a bread basket, orderves, and on popcorn in the movies. That’s called a good investment.

What City do you love the most?
I love Florence. I do like LA a lot, and I love any place in Hawaii. My dream is to live in Hawaii.

What one or two things some people may not know about you?
That I was a major Disco bunny, roller queen for about 10 years of my life. I used to roller skate with my airbrushed t-shirt on with rainbows on it and I knew every single word to every song ever. The other thing is that I don’t think that most people think that I’m really sensitive, and that I need to know everything about everything. I also enjoy shopping in Costco and IKEA. I rather be in a 99 cent store than a $99 store.

What is next for Bethenny?
I have my book ‘Naturally Thin’ which will be out in January 2009. I have my line of bake goods Bethenny Bakes which are wheat and dairy free available in supermarkets around the country. I have a new deal that I’m working on with Franglico. I’m trying to make their new liqueur part of the new Skinny Girl Frangelini, which I came up with. I write an article for Health magazine and for number of different websites. I would like to develop my on TV show which I’m talking about now. And building a modern media empire or the Skinny Girl Empire.

Which celebrity would you like to work with in the future?
I’d love to cook for Oprah, because Oprah has been on a lifetime dieting and my book is all about unleashing and unshackling yourself from this constant dieting. Its hard to imagine someone as fantastically wealthy as Oprah constantly shackled by dieting, I think I can defiantly help her, help her throw away all of her diet books and diet plans and be free from that. Help her be free from all the food noise, free with diet noise.

Beauty Interviews would like to thank Bethenny so much for sharing with us some of her beauty secrets. You can find out more about the Show The Real Housewives of NYC at the official Bravo! site: www.bravotv.com and also check out Bethenny’s own site for more info on her and pictures, videos, recipes and more: www.bethennybakes.com