Today, I had the pleasure of meeting the one…the only…Ina Garten! You may know her as the Barefoot Contessa from her popular Food Network show. Ina was on the last leg of her new book tour and we (my mom and I, because I always drag her with me to these things!) drove out to the Short Hills Mall in NJ to get our How Easy is That? cookbooks signed.
I am a huge fan of Ina Garten — and so is my 4-year old sous chef! I love her use of fresh, local foods and her casual elegance. She makes all of her recipes look so easy to make. And, I have yet to find one that hasn’t been out-of-this-world good! Check out her Outrageous Brownie recipe that I tried a while back!
We arrived 3 hours before the scheduled signing and the line was already forming. We ended up being the 25th and 26th people in line! I’m so glad we got there early. Because just one hour after we arrived, the line had grown to several hundred! Thank god I drug myself out of bed this morning at 5:00 am to get there in time.
While we waited in line, the fine folks at Williams-Sonoma treated us to a few recipes from Ina’s new cookbook. We sampled the spicy turkey meatballs and the apple-cranberry cake. Both were definitely keepers!
When we finally made our way to the back of the store where she was signing books, it was like a whirl wind. Everything moved so fast! We were whisked (no pun intended!) right up to the table and at first I was at a loss for words. I know what you’re thinking. Me? At a loss for words? Yes, it’s true! It was a little like the department store Santa scene from The Christmas Story. You know…the one where Ralphie finally gets to Santa and then can’t remember what he wants to tell him? That was me. When I finally got over the shock, I told her how much my son and I love to watch her show together. In the first photo, Ina is asking me about my little sous chef and telling me how great it is when children help out in the kitchen.
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Later in the day, we stopped back at Williams-Sonoma to do some shopping — I can’t walk out of that place without buying something. I asked the clerk if she knew how many books were signed during the event. She told me nearly 1,000! I told you the line was long!
Ina was just as nice and down-to-earth as she seems on TV. All in all, it was a great day!
You all know who my favorite celebrity chef is…so, who’s yours?
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Ina is my absolute favorite! It doesn’t hurt that she loves Julia Child like I have since I was three years old! Never have I made a recipe from Ina that hasn’t lived up to or beyond the recommendation she gives. I can’t say that for others.
I’m just green with envy that you got to meet her…not to mention getting to shop at WilliamSonoma. LOVE THAT STORE!
Besides that, I’d love to take my two sons to meet Paula Dean. She’s such a hoot and I bet she’d love my boys as she raised two herself. She’s hysterical!
Jen — It’s was a great day and I was so excited! My son loves watching the Barefoot Contessa with me! I wish I could have taken him to the signing! It’s awesome that your sons love Paula Dean!
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
What a thrill! Now we can all look forward to some really good recipes.
You are so lucky! I love her, so does my 16 year old. We both watch, then make her recipes often!! How cool that you got to meet her, and get your books signed too!
Aimee @Justkiddingaroundatlanta.blogspot.com
Ina is my favorite TV chef!!!! I love her sense of humor and her simple style. I have made her Outrageous Brownies many times and they are FANTASTIC! You are so lucky! I’m jealous…… 🙂
~T