Ina Garten: Too Good to Send Ham
Lesser contessas tried to bribe Food Network to get meetings
There’s a pretty hot business tip for wanna-be Food Network stars in a New York Post story today about Ina Garten’s nineteen-year stint as The Barefoot Contessa: if you want to make it in this town, send ham.
During an interview for a fundraising luncheon, Garten told Willie Geist that Food Network executives hounded her for years about a Barefoot Contessa show. She refused repeatedly, even telling one, “Lose my number.” They were stunned; nobody had ever refused them before. In fact, wannabe chefs were sending executives wet-cured pork bribes.
“They said, ‘People send us hams to even get an appointment to try and get a show,'” Garten explained.
Ina’s chambray-clad warmth and abiding love for Jeffrey nullified any need for a buyoff with a juicy hock, unlike her apparently thirsty-ass, salt-brined colleagues – I just know Sandra Lee was pouring a fifth of whiskey over a baggie of Oscar Meyer lunchmeat, sticking it in the microwave, and calling it “maple bourbon glazed ham” before sending it off to HQ.
If, unlike the top brass at Food Network, you are looking for some ham from Ina, this recipe with orange juice and mango chutney might compel a scrappy programming VP to take a chance on you.
