A Tupperware Party With Reggie Bush and Peter Facinelli

You mentioned that your mom would fall over if you cooked for her, how come?
Reggie Bush: My mom cooked growing up. My dad cooked every now and then, but my mom cooked, for the most part, every night for us. That's what I was used to -- my mom cooking dinner, making us a lunch for school, she was a real housewife/working woman inside and out of the house.

And you didn't want to help?
Reggie: I helped a little bit, but not too much. What's weird is that my little brother cooks, which is ironic. He'll cook breakfast when he comes to my house sometimes, and it's actually really good. It's weird to see my little brother cooking breakfast for me...

What's your go-to meal when you cook for yourself?
Reggie: I would say tacos and guacamole dip. Ground beef, taco seasoning; it's pretty easy.

Have you ever attempted a romantic meal?
Reggie: I can't say I have. I've definitely orchestrated romantic meals, but I understand, seeing the man in there cooking sends a little more... so one of these days I'm going to try a romantic meal. Now that I've learned that's an important thing to do.

What would you eat for your last meal?
Reggie: I think it would involve ... I grew up in San Diego, so it would involve Mexican food. We lived minutes from the border. Everytime I go home to San Diego, the first thing I do is go to the taco shops. Little hole-in-the-wall taco shops, that's the best Mexican food. [I'll have] Carne Asada burritos with sour cream, guacamole and cheese, or tacos with guacamole and cheese.

Is there good Mexican food in New Orleans?
Reggie: You know, because I grew up on Mexican in San Diego, I love it so much there that I don't' even want to try it anywhere else. I've tried it in Los Angeles, and even though it's only two hours away, you'd think it would be the same and it's not. When I'm outside San Diego, I go to Chipotle -- that's my backup. They have really good guacamole and I'm a huge fan of guacamole.

What do you eat pre-game?
Reggie: Depends on if it's an early game or late game. For an early game, I'll just have breakfast: scrambled eggs and cheese, bacon, pancakes, orange juice. If it's a later game, probably some type of salad. On game days, I can't eat a lot because of the anxiety and thinking. Your mind is working, so it's tough for me to eat a lot. It's always something little like a Cobb salad, that's perfect.

And after? I'm always fascinated by how much food athletes can eat...
Reggie: That's how I am, I just eat and eat. ... After a game, I'm starving. [After] away games, they have stuff for us [in the locker room]. After the game, some of the guys will meet up at a local restaurant with our families and go grab food. Usually a nice steakhouse.

Bush said his off-season plans, in addition to requisite appearances and shooting commercials, include travel, and cutting back on shopping. "I was just informed by my financial agent that I'm spending too much. I'm cutting back, starting today." Good luck with that, Reggie!

What is your go-to meal to cook?
Peter Facinelli: My mom is a really good cook, so for her 60th birthday I assembled all her recipes. I'd call her everyday, so she thought I was on a cooking binge, and I would get all her recipes for three months straight. I wrote them all down and I made a cookbook that had all my mom's recipes. I gave it to her for her 60th birthday, and then I handed out copies to all the relatives so they could have their own. All my mom's recipes have been handed down for generations, so there's tons of stuff in that cookbook. That's my go-to cookbook.

You mentioned a meal you cooked for your wife when you first started dating that "made her fall in love with you." What was it?
Peter: It was a French chicken with a risotto. It's really easy to make, and it's really delicious.

What do you eat/cook when you're on your own?
Peter: I don't eat healthy when I'm traveling, which is why this is a good thing. I can take Tupperware with me and, like I said, I can cook on a weekend, make a couple of things and throw it in the fridge. I love going to the grocery store. There's something about the ritual of going to the grocery store that I love. Picking out all the foods... When I shot 'Eclipse,' I bought all this food and then didn't open the fridge for four weeks and everything went rotten.

Are your kids healthy eaters?
Peter: Jen [Garth, his wife] really tries to cook healthy. When we eat out, that's when you get into the chicken nuggets and French fries and all that. Once in awhile it's okay, but Jen does spaghetti with pasta sauce and she makes turkey sauce -- the kids don't like meat -- and she takes all the vegetables and blends them up and hides them in the sauce. They don't even know they're eating them.

So the kids are not into veggies?
Peter: Believe it or not, they like broccoli, it's not like they don't eat vegetables. They don't like fish. I'd like to try and get them into fish.

What would you eat for your "last meal"?
Peter: My mom makes a good polenta. Polenta is usually like a side dish and can be pretty bland, so you have to make it with... but she makes it with a couple different things. She makes it with a gravy sauce and turkey sausages -- it's really good. Or she'll make it, believe it or not, it's like a German dish, polenta with sausages and sauerkraut. They cook the sausages with the sauerkraut and put that with polenta, and it's really good. And the next day you can put blue cheese on top and fry it.

What's next for you?
Peter: 'New Moon' is being released on DVD and the 'Nurse Jackie' premiere is Monday. 'Eclipse' comes out in June. I just sold a movie, 'Loosies,' it's a little Indie that Michael Corrente is going to direct. I also wrote another project that I sold to the Hallmark Channel that my wife is going to star in.

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