Lovers of giant cosmos and Jewish celebrity chefs, rejoice! Ina Garten has written a memoir!
A few days ago, the Barefoot Contessa updated her Instagram bio to include “Memoir coming out October 1st 2024.” Just in time for Rosh Hashanah! The book, which was first announced in 2019, will be published by Celadon Books.
“By finding a way to do what I love for a living – cooking – I’ve been fortunate to build a career that has not only been incredibly rewarding but has brought people together through the power of home cooking,” Garten said in a press release. “I hope my book will inspire readers to find their own unique story.”
Ina hasn’t offered more information on her memoir than that as of now. Not even the title! However, we can only hope that the consummate hostess provides more insight on her life before rising to Food Network fame.
Here’s what we already know about her: Ina Rosenberg was born in Brooklyn to a Jewish family in 1948. After moving to Connecticut at the age of 5, her grandparents would visit from Brooklyn every other Sunday.
“They would bring huge bags of groceries,” she told The Nosher in 2020. “There was a deli around the corner from their home, and they would bring everything from chopped liver, brisket, and corned beef to rye bread and cookies and hot dogs. I think they thought we didn’t have food in Connecticut.”
Ina and her husband Jeffrey Garten met when they were teenagers and were married in 1968. It was then that Ina taught herself how to cook, and roast chicken became a Friday night ritual in their home. Ten years later, she bought Barefoot Contessa, a food specialty store in the Hamptons. The rest is history!
Still, we’re dying to know what recipes did her mother and grandmother cook? We already know that challah french toast is her favorite Jewish comfort food and her favorite Jewish holiday food is latkes. But what anecdotes and memories does Ina have of Jewish food? Will we get more adorable details on her marriage and Jewish life with Jeffrey? What does she think of her celebrity status? (I, personally, would love to hear her thoughts on getting day drunk with Seth Meyers.)
Fingers crossed we get all the juicy details (and more) soon!
While we (impatiently) wait for Ina’s memoir, you might as well treat yourself to Ina Garten’s chicken soup recipe and 5 tips from Ina Garten to take your Jewish food to the next level.
