Cooking With Doris

On "Everybody Loves Raymond," Doris Roberts' character is always cooking and serving delicious dishes. It turns out, it's not just an act. She is currently putting together recipes for a new cookbook, "Are You Hungry, Dear?," that will come out next year. She visits The Early Show to cook her special "Summertime Chili" and give some tips for being food safe this summer.

The Emmy award-winning actress and mom on "Everybody Loves Raymond" has a passion for food. She plays the cooking-enthusiast mom on TV, but in reality prepares many meals for her family and three grandchildren.

For years, Roberts has distinguished herself on Broadway, in films and television.

Roberts is also the spokesperson for the ConAgra Foods Home Food Safety initiative, a national educational campaign to emphasize proper food preparation and handling, especially in the hot summer months when there is increased risk of food borne illness.

The following are the tips she shared on how to be safe during your summertime cooking.

• Always use a meat thermometer to check meat, fish, poultry and egg dishes. Meat should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
• Use different cutting boards for meat, poultry, fish and vegetables. Never use the same cutting board for meat and vegetable or bread.
• Refrigerator temperature should be below 40 degrees to ensure safe storage of your food.
• Always wash your hands before and after food preparation. Also wash hands during preparation after handling meat, poultry, fish and eggs.
• To ensure proper freezing of leftovers, storage containers shouldn't be deeper than 2 inches. This allows uniform freezing of all contents.

Summertime Chili

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Serves: 4 to 6

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 lbs. ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 tsp. chopped garlic
2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 cup chili powder
2 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. salt
1/3 tsp. pepper
1-14.5 oz. can (2 cups) diced tomatoes
1-15 oz. can (2 cups) pinto or kidney beans
1 cup water

Instructions:

1. Before preparation, wash hands thoroughly with soap and warm water for approximately 20 seconds. Remember to continue to wash hands throughout meal preparation, especially after handling raw meat.
2. Keep raw meat separate from salad ingredients or other ready-to-eat foods.
3. Heat oil in large skillet. Add meat, onion and garlic. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. If dry, add a little water.
4. Add cumin, chili powder, flour, salt and pepper; stir well.
5. Add tomatoes, beans and water. Cook on low heat for 1 hour.
6. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours and make sure the refrigerator is set below 40º F.
7. Reheat leftovers to an internal temperature of 165º F by using a food thermometer.
8. Doris recommends using this recipe for summertime favorites such as chili burgers, chili hot dogs, chili dip or even chili as a side dish!

The award-winning actress has distinguished herself with her versatility on Broadway and in numerous film and television roles. She starred on Broadway in "The Death of Bessie Smith," "Marathon '33," "The Desk Set," "Last of the Red Hot Lovers," "Cheaters," "The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild," and "Bad Habits," for which she won the Outer Critics Circle Award.

Her more than 20 feature film credits include "My Giant," "The Grass Harp," "Little Murders," "Used People," "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," "No Way To Treat a Lady," "The Honeymoon Killers," "A New Leaf, "The Heartbreak Kid," "Hester Street," and "The Rose." Among her television film credits are "The Diary of Anne Frank," "It Happened One Christmas," "Ruby and Oswald," "A Time To Heal" and, on CBS, "1,000 Men and a Baby." She will soon be seen in the CBS television movie "One True Love."

For her role in "Everybody Loves Raymond," Roberts won the 2001 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She received an Emmy nomination in the same category in 1999. Her performance on "Raymond" has also earned her two Viewers for Quality Television Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Quality Comedy and the 1999 American Comedy Award for Funniest Supporting Female Performer in a TV Series. She also won an Emmy for a guest-starring role on "St. Elsewhere," and was nominated for an Emmy for her regular role in "Remington Steele." She played Pierce Brosnan's secretary, Mildred on "Remington Steel." Her additional television credits include "The Boys," on CBS, and "Angie."

Roberts was born in St. Louis and now lives in Los Angeles. Her birthday is Nov. 4.