In her very first cookbook, "The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook," Ina Garten wrote that "a homemade dessert is a special reward." And she's been gifting her fans wonderful recipes for over two decades.
Garten gave up a job at the White House to run a 400-square-foot specialty food shop called Barefoot Contessa. She turned that store into an empire that includes 13 cookbooks and a 22-year run on the Food Network.
Garten's cookbooks helped me get back into baking, and now I've been slowly making my way through many of her sweet treats — including one she says is so good it'll make "grown men weep."
Here's how they all stack up.