Ina Garten

November 25, 2025·1 hr 10 min·6 clips

Ina Garten shares the moment her husband told her to 'pick something fun,' sparking her leap from government work to food empire.

Ina Garten comes in ready to charm. Amy starts with Be My Guest, carrots, enriched uranium, and a gift that quickly becomes part of the hang. Julia Louis-Dreyfus gets a sweet pre-chat nod too, with Amy bringing full affection for the comedy genius, favorite, activist, garden hat and all. Then the conversation moves to money. Ina remembers Jeffrey handing her the checkbook after asking about a Bloomingdale's bill, and the story becomes more than a household errand. Amy recognizes the kitchen-table rhythm right away. Her memory of parents paying bills together puts the moment in a very specific generational pocket. The joke stays easy, but the point is clear: plenty of women were kept away from the daily mechanics of their own money. Ina does not make a speech. She tells the story, lands the line, and lets the shift in control be funny because it is so tidy. Then Jeffrey asks about garden spending. Ina's answer is basically no, because strawberries exist and some questions do not deserve a full audit. Amy also refuses to let the White House detail pass quietly. Once Ina says Jeffrey worked at the State Department and in the White House, the room starts to feel like the friendliest spy show imaginable. Paratrooper, Green Beret, White House, Secretary of State: Amy hears CIA, and Ina plays right along. The wives are the last to know, which gives the whole exchange its wink without making it mean. The close turns practical again, with Amy talking through chicken curry in a loose, encouraging way. She admits she is not built like a cooking-show host, but still makes the dish sound doable.

As heard by us

Ina Garten makes for charming company as the conversation moves from carrots to nuclear energy policy.

Amy Poehler spends the hour with Ina Garten in a conversation that starts with gift-giving and wanders through food, marriage, money, and a few turns in Garten's life story, including her time in the White House and work on nuclear energy policy.

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Why you'd press play

For when you want Ina Garten, a good gift story, and a very strange White House detour.

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