Ina Garten recently got candid about the time when Jennifer Garner was overlooked for her cooking show.

She shared this in her upcoming memoir Be Ready When the Luck Happens. In it she candidly shared the “instant connection” she felt for her pal Jennifer Garner, who she has been friends with for over a 12 years.

“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,” the host of the cooking show wrote in her book, as per People.

While recalling when she unfortunately lost out on the chance to meet with the Elektra star she shared, “[My assistant] Barbara handled my correspondence and always sent polite letters explaining how the show worked. One day, she’d offhandedly dismissed a letter from Jennifer Garner because she apparently didn’t realise who she was.”

“She seemed smart, funny and so grounded, very un-Hollywood,” Garten lauded. “I thought she was someone I could have fun with.”

Before concluding she said, “I reached out to her when we were shooting an episode in Los Angeles, made a date to cook together, and, as we both suspected, felt an instant connection. We’ve been friends ever since.”

The cooking book of Ina Garten, Be Ready When the Luck Happens: A Memoir will be released on October 1, 2024.