Whenever my other half and I go shopping, we always end up in the same old tug of war. I want to go down the biscuit aisle or purchase yet another unnecessary mug to crowd the kitchen cupboards with. She wants to stand in front of the flippin’ freezer for hours staring at the same Halo Top flavours Tesco had in last week or mooch around the different deals on obnoxiously large televisions.
She’s all 40 inch this, OLED TVs Panasonic that. Honey, I don’t care if it transforms into a private jet and flies us to the moon with one click of a touch sensitive button. As long as I can watch my cookery shows on a weekend morning, I don’t give a rubber duck. Speaking of which, I recently discovered (don’t ponder for too long how) that the internet is an Aladdin’s Cave of Ina Garten memes and I thought where better to immortalise my faves than in this very blog post?
So here we have it… 10 important lessons we can all learn from the culinary mother who surely needs no introduction – Ina Garten (aka The Barefoot Contessa):
Nevermind adorable, Jeffery is one greedy little git
This guy is never too far away when there’s food on the stove. Except when something needs picking up from the store. Then his curly head can’t be seen for dust.
Chicken stock is available on tap in the Hamptons
Seriously. If there is ever a chicken stock apocalypse in the UK (a chicken stockalypse), we know where to go.
French beans just love surprises
Want to keep your greens green? Shock them for God’s sake, shock them!
We can totally survive on sticks of butter
Cholesterol shmolesterol. What’s one more stick of butter when there’s already five melting away in the pan?
It’s always 5 o’clock somewhere in the world
Only 9am? No problem. Ina’s margarita shaker knows no sense of time or space so nor should you.
Never ever settle for mediocre vanilla extract
Remortgage your house if you have to. Feed on stale bread and beans for the rest of the month. Just as long as those vanilla pods are on and poppin’.
And the most important lesson of all…
Store bought is never fine.
Not really.
–
Post written in collaboration with Panasonic