Star of 'Worst Cooks' prepares simple recipes

If you're in a rush, you can still prepare some simple recipes that pack a lot of flavor.

Check out these simple recipes by Chef Anne Burrell. She's one of the stars of Worst Cooks of America, which premieres its new season Sunday, Feb. 12 at 9 p.m. on the Food Network.

Warm Shaved Fennel with Pink Grapefruit
Recipe courtesy Anne Burrell
1 fennel bulb
1 pink grapefruit
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
1/4 cup slivered cerignola or other big green olives
1/4 cup freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice
1/4 cup picked fennel fronds

Using a mandoline, slice the fennel into thin shavings.

Cut the bottom and top off of the grapefruit. Using a knife, cut the peel off of the sides, following the curve of the grapefruit and being careful to only cut away the peel and bitter pith. Hold the fruit in one hand over a bowl and cut the flesh of the grapefruit away from the membrane to release a wedge. Repeat until all the segments are released.

In a large saute pan over medium heat, coat with olive oil and add the fennel. Season with salt and saute until the fennel is warm and coated with the oil, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Toss in the grapefruit segments, olive slivers, and juice and sprinkle with the fennel fronds. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 2 minutes
Ease of preparation: easy

Stir-Fried Marinated Olives
Recipe from Cook Like a Rock Star by Anne Burrell Copyright Clarkson Potter/Publishers 2011

2 cups olives, all the same or a mix of sizes and colors
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 cloves garlic, smashed
Zest of 1 orange, removed in wide strips with a peeler
Zest of 1 lemon, removed in wide strips with a peeler
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil

In a large saucepan, combine all the ingredients over low heat and warm everything until it bubbles gently, like a Jacuzzi. Continue to cook the olives in their warm oil bath for about 20 minutes; they should be very aromatic. Turn off the heat and let everything cool to room temperature (this will take about an hour). If you want to do this step ahead of time, put the olives in a jar in the fridge until you're ready to fry them­­­­­­­­—­the olive oil will solidify but don't worry; it will melt when reheated.

When you're ready to serve the olives, bring a large sauté pan to high heat—you want to get it EXTREMELY hot. Add the cooled olive mixture to the pan, shaking it every few seconds until the olives blister on the outside, then remove from heat.

Put the olives and all the other good stuff in a dish and serve immediately, but remember — inside the hot olives is hot olive oil, so be careful!