Not-So-Secret Secrets

You probably have heard of celebrity chef Ina Garten, who once had a TV cooking show called "The Barefoot Contessa." My dear friend Noreen Welle, who died in 2006, looked quite a bit like her and was a devoted fan. In fact, on a trip to Paris with Noreen and her husband Tom, she shlepped us all over the city searching for Ina's favorite outdoor food market. (We found it.) 

Since then I have read with interest about Ina. An article in today's Wall Street Journal shares some of her "cooking secrets," which obviously won't be secret anymore after the paper hits the stands. I found several of them shocking, especially considering that Ina's net worth is reportedly $60 million, whereas mine, an arguably better cook, is about a couple of hundred bucks. Following are her two most egregious secrets:

1. When unexpected guests drop by she whips up her favorite 2-ingredient dip, which consists of blue cheese and mayonnaise. This glop is served with store-bought potato chips (and a Pesto-Bismol chaser).

2. Ina's "entertaining advice" for a crowd is to, "Go to a great bakery and buy a cheesecake. Nobody will ever know." I guess we should all be glad that Ina doesn't work for the CIA.