Barefoot Contessa in the Media: Whipping Up Some Publicity

[tvchick]

Ina is featured in a short video for the NY Times magazine this week.  She met with one of her biggest fans, who just happens to be the creative director for the French design house Schiaparelli, and they cooked risotto together.

The story is gifted--enjoy!

Ina Garten Makes Risotto with a Longtime Fan

[Pamela]

Thanks so much, tvchick! That risotto looked delicious.

[Bastet]

I hate risotto (so horribly starchy!), but I had no idea you could make a decent version in the oven.  I'll file that away should I ever need to make it for someone else (but I'd add more goodies; I thought the veggie to rice ratio was too rice heavy).

I laughed pretty hard at reading she'd studied fashion design, since she went on to have a profoundly boring wardrobe, but I liked the gifts the designer brought her and how she appreciated the artistry.

And I enjoyed them both being "cocktails!" about what they'd do during the inactive 35 minutes of cooking time.

How fun for him to get to do that.  And how special for her to learn something she'd said inspired his course in life.

[buttersister]

15 hours ago, Bastet said:

she went on to have a profoundly boring wardrobe

I think it's her uniform. Like her hair. Nail it all and stick with it. No muss/fuss (had a closet full of Eileen Fisher work clothes, everything went with everything else--low energy/brains in the a.m.)

[chessiegal]

When I met Ina at a book signing, I was so impressed with her hair, makeup, and manicure. All flawless. Very subtle makeup. Her hair was so shiny and perfectly coiffed.

[chessiegal]

Ina's new cookbook is No.1 in hardcover non-fiction best sellers.

[chenoa333]

On 10/29/2022 at 2:12 PM, chessiegal said:

When I met Ina at a book signing, I was so impressed with her hair, makeup, and manicure. All flawless. Very subtle makeup. Her hair was so shiny and perfectly coiffed.

I have always thought Ina was so pretty. She appears au naturel. Nice hairstyle, pretty smile, soothing voice, gorgeous decor in her kitchen and her outdoor garden areas are beyond beautiful.

Love her recipes too. 

[Quof]

On 9/29/2022 at 6:25 AM, Quof said:

Ina is doing a Live Conversation with Nigella Lawson in Brooklyn in November.  Debating whether to attend.  Have they done any appearances together before?

Quoting myself.  I ended up attending this event a few days ago.  A few observations: 

- they have never met in person;

- Nigella looked about a foot taller than Ina. Ina is tiny.

- Ina was dressed in a black button down shirt and black trousers, with black ballet flats. There may have been a little shimmer. Nigella wore a fuchsia pantsuit and bright pink suede boots. (perhaps the heels and the contrast in the colour helps explain the apparent size difference?) 

- Ina led the conversation, asking Nigella questions, so Nigella did most of the talking and asked Ina a few questions.

- Ina was warm and lovely.

- Nigella was a little cold and bitchy. A little. For example, when they talked about Nigella finally returning to the US after the pandemic, Ina mentioned "Oh, and your daughter is in New York, isn't she?".  Instead of saying "oh, I'm so happy to get to spend time with her" or even something noncommital, Nigella shut her down with "yes", then immediately changed the subject. 

- They talked about their processes of developing recipes, writing their books, photographing their food, filming their tv shows and their social media.   

- The audience submitted questions beforehand. Many of the questions for Ina were about Jeffrey. 

- Overall a pleasant evening of about 90 minutes of chat.  

Edited November 12, 2022 by Quof

[chessiegal]

I see on my FB page that ten years ago I met Ina at a book signing. 😄

[Gam2]

I saw an advertisement for Ina’s Chocolate Cake to be sent to my home for Christmas. My husband said that it sounded good and would save me some time with so many coming to our house for the holidays. $69.00. No thanks, Ina.

[annzeepark914]

I saw that Ina will be interviewed by Chris Wallace on CNN sometime in early 2023. His interview series starts up again in January.

[chessiegal]

57 minutes ago, Gam2 said:

I saw an advertisement for Ina’s Chocolate Cake to be sent to my home for Christmas. My husband said that it sounded good and would save me some time with so many coming to our house for the holidays. $69.00. No thanks, Ina.

I've seen that ad too. I was surprised she was selling any kind of food. I don't remember her saying anything about this on her SM.

[maggiemae]

Thing is...go to a great bakery and buy a cake....going to be similar in price.

[Door County Cherry]

11 hours ago, maggiemae said:

Thing is...go to a great bakery and buy a cake....going to be similar in price.

Right.  Goldbelly is more expensive than going to a local place but that's true of any kind of food delivery.  But it's also free shipping that's basically express. 

I don't know if I would do it for a chocolate cake but it is a way to try food from famous restaurants/chefs in other parts of the country. 

[Bastet]

60 Minutes interview:

"This is what I do, you can do whatever the fuck you want, and I'm just having fun here."  Ha - testify!  Fans of her food who also pay more attention to her life than I do may know all this already, but I found it a nice overview. 

(I don't think I'd ever registered before how astoundingly young she was when she met Jeffrey and even when she married him.  No wonder her fawning over him annoys me; she doesn't have the experience to know any better.  But at least that was a very small part of the piece, and he fawned just as much [ugh, but given how many couples married 50+ years are just together out of inertia, there are definitely worse things than being schmoopy].)

I like how she compares herself to someone like Bobby Flay, who can just throw together ingredients on the fly and create something incredible, as instead someone who has to start with a recipe or at least concept and tinker several times to get it right where she wants it -- and then has her assistant make the draft that results, to account for something she may not have thought of.

That's why I like her recipes (her cookbooks are repetitive enough I'm not interested in devoting limited space to them, but I've copied quite a few of her recipes into my notebook); I cut the portion size in half and then cut the salt in half again (yes, we both use Diamond kosher), but that's my own tinkering -- I know if I make something of hers for the first time with those changes, it's going to be good (and would be as written, just a bit excessive).  As she says, she'll never make something for a dinner party she hasn't already made several times, and I'm the same, but to make something for my parents or a close friend at a regular dinner?  I will without hesitation serve them my first stab at an Ina recipe, because even if I want to make additional modifications the next time, that's just to make a good thing better.

I like this piece properly acknowledging her as a calculating businessperson; she wasn't just having fun on a whim after leaving government work behind and buying an existing shop, she was researching and reconciling, making a business succeed.  Good for her selling at fifty, and then deciding, no, this doesn't have to be the end of my career and this whole other life of cookbooks and then shows was born.

And I'm tickled by Ina's excitement at the interviewer noticing something she'd quite purposely sought out -- a binding of the cookbook that will easily stay open on the counter.

[annzeepark914]

Just watched this interview with Ina. It was interesting to hear her say she's always been a nervous cook, worried that whatever she's making won't be good. I'm like that with a number of dishes (and especially with baking!!!) As I've often said, I wish I lived next door to Ina ☺️.

[buttersister]

My affection for Ina apparently knows no bounds. I watched her interview tonight with Chris Wallace on CNN (two out of three hard passes for me). Nothing new, except maybe her scarf. Catchable on HBO Max.

[annzeepark914]

I forgot about it (was watching The Accountant). I'm sure they'll show it again. 

[stewedsquash]

On 1/15/2023 at 11:19 PM, annzeepark914 said:

I forgot about it (was watching The Accountant). I'm sure they'll show it again. 

Off topic: was it your first time watching that movie or 100plus time? Doing research in case I decide to divorce my husband of 38 years one day. I asked him the other day, have you just watched this in bits and pieces over time or ever watched the whole thing? He said watched whole thing before but there was nothing else on now.

Ina also mentioned on a cooking segment of, maybe Rachel Ray?, that she was a nervous cook. I was surprised because she seems so effortless and unflappable on everything show she has done. It made her relatable to hear her say that.

Edited January 23, 2023 by stewedsquash

[annzeepark914]

2 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

Off topic: was it your first time watching that movie or 100plus time? Doing research in case I decide to divorce my husband of 38 years one day. I asked him the other day, have you just watched this in bits and pieces over time or ever watched the whole thing? He said watched whole thing before but there was nothing else on now.

The first time I watched it was on a cruise when I had a respiratory infection (& MrP914 was gallivanting all over St. Petersburg). I still have a hard time following the story when they talk about the business dealings. Our grandson was diagnosed with mild autism (& thanks to social skills classes, you'd never know he's on the spectrum). So I was paying more attention to Affleck's character who has "high functioning autism". It's quite fascinating. Ben Affleck must have done a lot of research as he's quite credible. I don't know how many times I've watched bits & pieces of it (don't care for the violence in some scenes).

[stewedsquash]

Ha I am not a watcher of tv with others so we watch in different rooms but it seems like he has had it on either watching or as background noise 9,000 times and I hate the movie.

[annzeepark914]

51 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

Ha I am not a watcher of tv with others so we watch in different rooms but it seems like he has had it on either watching or as background noise 9,000 times and I hate the movie.

That's too bad. The violent sections turn me off. But there are other sections, dealing with autism (especially the camp kids) that are fascinating. 

[stewedsquash]

I didn’t mean to dismiss that aspect, I just don’t like Ben very much. Maybe it’s because my guys used to watch that Daredevil? movie over and over also. 

[annzeepark914]

30 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

I didn’t mean to dismiss that aspect, I just don’t like Ben very much. Maybe it’s because my guys used to watch that Daredevil? movie over and over also. 

I don't think much of Ben nowadays myself. Hope he's truly happy with his new life with his bride 

[chessiegal]

New season of Be My Guest starts Sunday, March 5th. at 11:30 am ET.

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, chessiegal said:

New season of Be My Guest starts Sunday, March 5th. at 11:30 am ET.

Ugh.  When is she going to do more regular shows?!  (I know you don't know, I'm just whining, not asking.)

[annzeepark914]

4 hours ago, Bastet said:

Ugh.  When is she going to do more regular shows?!  (I know you don't know, I'm just whining, not asking.)

Maybe she's doing this format because she's run out of recipes/ideas. Having guests on the show, bringing along their own favorite recipes, may be an easy solution. I think she should do some shows where she uses *our* family favorite recipes. We could submit them and she selects ones that are easy to demonstrate (& are edible! 😎) 

[tvchick]

I'm OK with this format as along as the guests are interesting and can bring something culinary to the table.  That said, my favorite episode by far was Nathan Lane's....he was hysterical.

I have high expectations for the Stanley Tucci episode this season.  His Italy show was very good.

[Gramto6]

20 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

Maybe she's doing this format because she's run out of recipes/ideas. Having guests on the show, bringing along their own favorite recipes, may be an easy solution. I think she should do some shows where she uses *our* family favorite recipes. We could submit them and she selects ones that are easy to demonstrate (& are edible! 😎) 

I think this is a good idea, "our" recipes could be in episodes in between the guest episodes. 

[chessiegal]

Ina's memoir Be Ready When the Luck Happens is coming out Oct. 1. She's doing a multi-city tour in October with moderated questions and answers.

[chessiegal]

Ina's going to be in my area - Washington, DC on October 8 at The Kennedy Center. Ticket prices range from $39.00 – $119.00.

Not planning on going, but that would be fun.