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The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Free Literature Study Guides
The Great Gatsby
Hamlet

Ina Garten Quotes

I don’t like sitting at a table that’s too large, where everyone is too far apart. That’s a party killer.

– Ina Garten

I time everything. I’m a scientist at heart.

– Ina Garten

If you think about a Thanksgiving dinner, it’s really like making a large chicken.

– Ina Garten

People have more fun if they don’t eat so much they have to be taken home in an ambulance.

– Ina Garten

In the summer you want fresh, light and sort of quick things; in winter you want things that are comforting, so your body really tells you you want to go towards potatoes, apples, fennel, things that are warm and comforting. And loin of pork.

– Ina Garten

I measure everything, because I always think that if I’ve spent so much time making sure this recipe was exactly the way I want it, why would I want to throw things into a pot?

– Ina Garten

I’m really a scientist. I follow recipes exactly – until I decide not to. And then I’ll follow something else exactly. I may decide I could turn this peach tart into a plum tart, but if I’m following a recipe, I follow it exactly.

– Ina Garten

My extravagance is my garden – it’s the first thing I look at every morning when I wake up. It gives me so much pleasure.

– Ina Garten

Grilled cheese and tomato soup is the ultimate comfort meal.

– Ina Garten

I’ve lived in the Hamptons since 1978, when I first bought my store Barefoot Contessa.

– Ina Garten

Never let ’em see you sweat. Guests feel guilty if they think you’ve worked too hard to make dinner for them – which of course you have!

– Ina Garten

Instead of going out to dinner, buy good food. Cooking at home shows such affection. In a bad economy, it’s more important to make yourself feel good.

– Ina Garten

My mother would never let me in the kitchen. I always wanted to cook, but I was never allowed to. Her view of the world was, ‘Cooking is my job, and studying is your job.’ I think, in retrospect, she didn’t like the chaos. She was very orderly. It had to be her way.

– Ina Garten

The most important thing for having a party is that the hostess is having fun. I’m very organized. I make a plan for absolutely everything. I never have anything that has to be cooked while the guests are there. The only thing I might have to do is take something out of the oven and carve it.

– Ina Garten

I use other cookbooks for inspiration. I must say I tend to cook from my own cookbooks for parties.

– Ina Garten

The dirty little secret is that I grew up in a household where there were no carbohydrates allowed, ever. No cookies, no bread, no potatoes, no rice. My mother was very extreme in terms of what she served. Since I left home more than 40 years ago, I’ve been making it right for myself.

– Ina Garten

The most overrated tool: a pasta maker. Why make it when you can buy it? It’s a lot of work!

– Ina Garten

You don’t have to do everything from scratch. Nobody wants to make puff pastry!

– Ina Garten

I always like to have flowers on the table. I think they make it look special.

– Ina Garten

I absolutely adore Thanksgiving. It’s the only holiday I insist on making myself.

– Ina Garten

My favorite fall or winter lunch is big steaming bowls of soup. I usually invite people for around 12:30 and have two hearty soups like shrimp corn chowder and lentil sausage soup, which can be made a day or two ahead.

– Ina Garten

I try to greet my friends with a drink in my hand, a warm smile on my face, and great music in the background, because that’s what gets a dinner party off to a fun start.

– Ina Garten

I love Alton Brown’s show ‘Good Eats,’ about the chemistry of food. It’s really thoughtful.

– Ina Garten

I love to take something ordinary and make it really special.

– Ina Garten

I always have music. I love it to be very upbeat. When you’re having drinks, I like something like Cesaria Evora. During dinner, I like the much more traditional – old Frank Sinatra and things like that.

– Ina Garten

They say that gardens look better when they are created by loving gardeners rather than by landscapers, because the garden is more tended to and cared for. The same thing goes for cooking. I only cook for people I love.

– Ina Garten