Know your audience
"You should go out with a woman a couple times first before cooking for her. The most important thing is showing a woman that you've been paying attention to her and that you notice what she likes, and then creating your meal from that," Izard says. That means, if she's allergic to nuts, don't make her those braised pistachios Izard won praises for on the show's finale. "It's all about showing her that you have her in mind when you're cooking." But Izard and her girlfriends all agree, the no. 1 most important thing to do when having a girl over: Make sure your house is clean, "especially your bathroom."

The couple that cooks together...
"Cooking itself can be really romantic. Try to make some pot-stickers, or something hands-on, where the woman can come over and you can both be in the kitchen playing with the food together," Izard explains. That makes it easy for you to reach over for a little kiss. "It's a nice bonding thing." Keep finger foods nearby so you can feed each other nibbles, too. "Oysters are the ultimate aphrodisiac," Izard adds. Get some fresh oysters from your fishmonger, and mix a little minced shallot, cracked pepper and vinegar as a classic topping. "You can easily feed them to someone else; just have fun with it."

The right tools for the job
Though a nice sharp knife is imperative, to really look like a pro in the kitchen get a Japanese mandolin for slicing. "All chefs use it," Izard says. "It makes it look like you can cut things perfectly." For all that garlic and ginger you plan on using, buy a Microplane. "It's this utensil, you just shave garlic on it, and it makes it nicely minced; It's perfect when you're adding it to sauces so you don't end up with big chunks of garlic that people will bite into." To really impress, go for the food processor, which chops things for you.

The other white meat
A Midwestern gal, Izard loves cooking with pork. "Pork tenderloin with bacon, prosciutto, any sort of cured pork items, add that little bit of saltiness to a dish without having to over-season with straight-up salt." Especially bacon, because of its smokiness. "I put bacon in everything because it makes me happy," Izard admits.

Bravo Photo: Virginia Sherwood