Sandra Lee

Sandra Lee is a well-known chef, food personality, and author, best known for her show Semi-Homemade Cooking with Sandra Lee, which aired on the Food Network. She is also a successful author, with several cookbooks to her name, including the bestselling Sandra’s…Simple and Sandra’s Holiday Kitchen.

She began her career selling “Sandra Lee Kraft Kurtains” on QVC. After selling $20 million of merchandise in just 18 months, QVC selected Lee to launch their craft and home decorating categories on the U.K. and Germany networks. She then made her way to food entertainment in 2003 when Semi-Homemade premiered. The show had a successful 15 seasons.

Lee has also appeared in various films and television shows, including The Chew, The Practice and Lip Sync Battle. She is also a sought-after speaker, and has delivered talks at various events and conferences.

Sandra is an award-winning chef and has won numerous awards throughout her career, including a James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef: Television and a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Culinary Host. She is also a three-time New York Times bestselling author and has been named one of the “50 Most Powerful People in the Food World” by Nation’s Restaurant News.

Lee married Bruce Karatz in 2001 and they divorced in 2005. In mid 2005 Lee entered a relationship with former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. In 2019 they announced that their relationship had ended. In March of 2021, it was reported that Lee was dating actress Ben Youcef. Close friends have referred to them as “Bendra”.

In 2015 Lee announced that she was diagnosed with an early-stage of breast cancer. After undergoing a mastectomy and lumpectomy she reported at the end of 2015 that she was cancer free. In 2022 she had a hysterectomy procedure and the surgery was successful.