Ina Garten Recalls Her Husband Jeffrey’s Unconventional Proposal Over ‘Very Messy Sandwiches’ (Exclusive)

Jeffrey Garten’s proposal toIna Gartenwas not the grand, romantic gesture you might expect from the adorable couple.Ina, 76, recounts their relationship in her new memoirBe Ready When the Luck Happens, excerpted inthis week’s PEOPLE cover story. It all started when Ina was 16, visiting her brother Ken at Dartmouth College. While she was there, her mother asked Ken to set her up with a classmate.“I’d dressed in my best blue skirt, my favorite blue-­and-­white wool and angora sweater, the new blue Pappagallos that I’d bought with my own money so my mother couldn’t refuse to buy them for me, and a blue grosgrain ribbon in my hair,” theBarefoot Contessastar writes in her book.

Ina Garten Reveals Taylor Swift Invited Her to Play Beer Pong Backstage at Her Concert

Ina Garten recalls playing beer pong backstage at Taylor Swift’s concert.Photo:Taylor Swift/Instagram Taylor Swift/Instagram Ina Gartenlived out a true Swiftie fantasy: partying backstage withTaylor Swift. TheBarefoot Contessastar detailed the special concert moment during an interview withWall Street Journalas the October issue cover star. “I’m crazy about Taylor Swift,” said Ina while promoting her new memoir,Be Ready When the Luck Happens. “After the show, she invited us to go to a party that she gave for all of the crew.

Ina Garten Reveals Why Oprah Winfrey 'Smacked' Her Twice After She Gave a Speech: 'She Was Right'

Ina Garten and Oprah Winfrey.Photo:Theo Wargo/Getty, Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Theo Wargo/Getty, Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Ina Gartenis shedding light on a “shocking” moment she shared withOprah Winfreythat she still carries with her. Radio Cherry Bombehost Kerry Diamond asked Garten, 76, about the moment — which she discloses in her upcoming memoir,Be Ready When The Luck Happens— in the latest episode of the podcast. “It was very nice,” theBarefoot Contessastar added before diving into exchange from 2010.

Ina Garten ‘Couldn’t Understand Why People Had Kids' After Her Own ‘Horrible Childhood’ (Exclusive)

Ina Garten’s upbringingwas not anything she wanted to recreate with her own family. “I grew up in a family that wasn’t a happy family, so I couldn’t understand why people had kids,” Ina tells PEOPLE for this week’s cover story. “Nobody had any fun in my family. Now I understand it, but at the time, when I was 25 and 30, I just didn’t. It was nothing I really wanted to do.

Ina Garten's Assistant Once 'Dismissed' a Letter from Jennifer Garner Asking to Be on Ina's Show (Exclusive)

Ina GartenandJennifer Garner’sfriendshipalmost never was.“I just admire her enormously,” Garten, 76, tells PEOPLE forthis week’s cover story. Garner also often raves about the celebrity cook and her recipes on her own Instagram series,Pretend Cooking Show(which takes inspiration fromBarefoot Contessa). But a simple mishap almost kept them from connecting.Garten’s Food Network shows —Barefoot Contessaandher latest,Be My Guest— always feature her cooking for friends (andhusband Jeffrey) at home.“People who didn’t understand that the guests on my show were my friends in real life often wrote to see if they could cook with me,” Ina recalls in her new memoir,Be Ready When the Luck Happens.