'Barefoot Contessa': Ina Garten Collects This 1 Bizarre Kitchen Item — and Buys One 'Every Time I see One'

Barefoot Contessa star Ina Garten loves letting fans in on her cooking secrets — including how (and with what) she stocks her kitchen. At times, fans have been truly surprised by what’s in Garten’s kitchen — including when everyone freaked out over the ramen noodles in her pantry. But it turns out she keeps another interesting item in the kitchen, and she even collects them everywhere she goes.

‘Barefoot Contessa’ star Ina Garten’s kitchen fascinates fans

Every once in a while, Ina Garten takes fans behind the scenes of her food empire. In the past, she’s walked fans through the barn where she films her show (and where her home office is), as well as her real-life kitchen and pantry. Fans always love what they see.

When Garten took fans to her pantry during the pandemic, some noticed that she kept a surprising ingredient on her shelf: Packaged ramen noodles. Garten revealed that she’d been working on a ramen chicken noodle soup recipe. Some of Garten’s other pantry staples included Planter’s nuts and Smucker’s jelly. And when it comes to cookware, Garten prefers the brand Le Creuset. Plus, she keeps certain items on her counter at all times, including lemon and garlic. This way, they’re always on hand when she wants to use them to jazz up a recipe.

Ina Garten collects white cake stands

Garten’s pantry staples didn’t come as a surprise. In fact, keeping items such as garlic and lemons out and on hand isn’t a bad way to cook; no wonder her dishes always have all the right flavors. And while Garten loves Le Creuset cookware, there’s another kitchen item that she once revealed she simply cannot get enough of: White cake stands.

It’s a bit of a strange obsession, but the cake stands have become somewhat of a collector’s item for Garten through the years. Garten once revealed to Oprah Daily that she buys one almost every time she sees one.

“I absolutely adore white cake stands,” Garten said. “Every time I see one, I’m like, ‘I have to have that.’” Garten said she purchases several cake stands whenever she visits Belgium, specifically. “There’s a couple antique stores I always stop at — which means I end up buying six cake stands here and three more there. But we use them all!”

Ina Garten also uses a spatula she’s had for more than 50 years

If the cake stands came as a surprise, this might as well: Ina Garten’s most trusted spatula happens to be more than 50 years old. Garten told Oprah Daily that, while she has plenty of kitchen tools, the oldest one is her favorite.

“I have just what I need, and I take very good care of it,” Garten said of her kitchen tools. “In fact, my favorite spatula is one I received as a wedding gift, which means — and I’m embarrassed to admit this — it’s 52 years old.” Garten also added that she’s tried to search for more updated versions of the same spatula but hasn’t had any luck.

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