I love Ina Garten and I love watching Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network. She makes food that I would love to make when I entertain, which has been very rare, since moving from a 2 bedroom (980 square feet apartment) to a 1 bedroom (max 500 square feet) to significantly cut down my commute time to work. But that doesn't mean I can't collect cookbooks for the day I can entertain again.

Anyway, back to Ina Garten and Barefoot Contessa. The first Ina Garten/Barefoot Contessa cookbook I bought was her "Family Style". I've tested a few of the recipes like the Saffron Risotto with Butternut Squash and Oven-Fried Chicken and they were delicious and simple.

Her recipes aren't super complicated and I can find most ingredients at my local supermarket (though I live in NYC, so local doesn't necessarily have the same meaning as it does in a smaller town). The photos with the recipes are definitely a plus.

So until I have a real kitchen, I will have to resist the urge to buy all her cookbooks, but I highly recommend this one and the "Everyday Recipes" one.