This Must Be the Place: Dispatches & Food from the Home Front

by Rachael Ray

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Rachael Ray presents 125+ recipes straight from her home kitchen in upstate New York, with personal stories on loss, gratitude, and the special memories that make a house a home.

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR BY FOOD NETWORK

"I wanted to write this book because for the first time in my fifty-two years, everyone on the planet was going through the same thing at the same time. We were all feeling the same fear, heartsickness, worry, and sadness, but due to the nature of the virus, it was hard to connect. I connect through cooking, and I noticed that's what many others were doing as well. We took to the kitchen to share something of ourselves--and cooking became the discipline, diversion, and devotion that got us through."

You may think you know Rachael Ray after decades of TV appearances and dozens of books, but 2020 changed us all and it changed her, too--her life and her direction. During the early months of the pandemic in upstate New York, far away from her New York City television studio, Rachael Ray and her husband, John, went to work in their home kitchen hosting the only cooking show on broadcast TV. At her kitchen counter, with the help of her iPhone cameraman (John), Rachael produced more than 125 meals--everything from humble dishes composed of simple pantry items (One-Pot Chickpea Pasta or Stupid Good, Silly Easy Sausage Tray Bake) to more complex recipes that satisfy a craving or celebrate a moment (Porcini and Greens Risotto or Moroccan Chicken Tagine).

This Must Be the Place captures the words, recipes, and images that will forever shape this time for Rachael and her family, offering readers inspiration to rethink and rebuild what home means to them now.

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Food, Cooking, Memoir, Biography Memoir

352 pages, Hardcover

Published November 9, 2021

About the author

Rachael Domenica Ray is an American cook, television personality, businesswoman, and author. She hosted the syndicated daily talk and lifestyle program Rachael Ray. Other programs to her credit include 30 Minute Meals, Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels, $40 a Day, Rachael Ray's Week in a Day, and the reality format shows Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off and Rachael Ray's Kids Cook-Off. Ray has written several cookbooks based on the 30 Minute Meals concept, and launched a magazine, Every Day with Rachael Ray, in 2006. Ray's television shows have won three Daytime Emmy Awards.

Reviews

[Denver Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is everything I've come to expect from a Rachel Ray cookbook - wonderful recipes, warm and open commentary, welcoming attitude, and lovely photography. Stuck at home during the early days of the pandemic, Ray and her husband devised a way to keep her show going, using her home kitchen - and realizing that scarcity would influence her recipes, most fancy things are dialed back a bit. Though I have lots of lasagna recipes, I'm still going to try out the Tuscan Meat Sauce Lasagna, 'cause it sounds just a bit different. The Stupid, Good, Silly, Easy Tray Bake (w sausage, apples, fennel, onion and fingerlings) is inspired, and will work its way into regular rotation at my house. And since I just found out my son likes eggplant, the Sweet n Spicy Pasta alla Norma is also on the list. Her husband's cocktail recipes and Ray's "foodles" (doodles and more) interspersed through the book are little delights, as well. Lovely addition to the rest of Rachel Ray's cookbooks, and you are guaranteed to find a little something here to put on the table soon!

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is going to sound weird, but I never liked Rachael Ray's TV show yet when I would see her interviewed or featured on another food show she seemed really likable and down to earth. I did read her memoir/cookbook Rachael Ray 50 with essays and reflections from turning 50. So, after reading that one I thought I would give her newest cookbook here a try. She was inspired to write it during the beginning of the COVID epidemic, so there are diary-like entries then a few recipes that she created during lockdowns and when she was trying to continue her cooking show from home. In just the first few months of COVID she and her husband relocated from NY City to their home in upstate NY - then her 15-year-old beloved dog Isaboo died, and their second/upstate home burned down - all in the middle of a pandemic! I felt so bad for her that so much was going on in her personal life on top of trying to deal with COVID too. While I did enjoy the diary-entries and how despite her being a celebrity she was still dealing with a lot of the same stresses the average person was during COVID, I didn't love the book overall. There weren't really any recipes I wanted to try and I personally couldn't relate to her huge fear of COVID. I think if you're a die-hard Rachael Ray fan you'll love this one, but it just wasn't for me.

[Mary Jackson _TheMaryReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

The is so much more than a cookbook. The personal touches and getting to see inside Ray's house and hear her personal stories was the best part of it all.
This is my favorite cookbook of Ray's to date. Its a must have. 125 recipes was just added fun.

[T · Rating 3 out of 5]

I applaud Rachael for her vulnerability, but the recipes were all misses for me. I usually love her cookbooks, but not this one, unfortunately.

[Briel · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, this book is gorgeous! The font, the layout, and the pictures are all beautiful! I loved how Rachael chronicled her experience during the pandemic seasonally, writing vulnerable and engaging stories about her past and present, tying it all together with food of course. I own most of her other cookbooks and her recipes in This Must Be The Place are a departure as they’re significantly more complicated and elevated. Even though I’m a seasoned cook, I’m also a busy mom who, even during Covid lockdown, doesn’t have time for the level of effort the recipes in this cookbook require. I appreciated her range, though, and enjoyed reading them. I flagged one or two, but for the most part, the recipes are geared toward older adults with lots of time and a mature palate - not necessarily families with kids, which is fine! It might be helpful for regular Rachael Ray fans to know that this is much different than what she normally cooks, but they will probably still enjoy the read for the insight into Rachael’s life.

[Laura Skladzinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have always loved Rachael Ray - I learned to cook by watching her 30 Minute Meals show and cooking along, and I was delighted to learn that she grew up in (and now has moved back to) the same town where I grew up. I've heard rumors that she's not very nice in real life, and unfortunately, this book cemented that. It's a collection of recipes organized by month of the year, interspersed with narrative around what that month was like for her in 2020. Rachael endured a lot in 2020 - relocating from NYC to upstate New York, the death of her beloved dog, and then her house burning down. While a lot of the recipes sounded good (though I haven't tried any yet), the narrative was a big turnoff - it was so much name dropping of her famous friends, and felt more like she wanted to impress people with her fame and her resilience than an authentic diary. I will continue to enjoy Rachael's recipes, but give this book a pass.

[Miss Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best:
Greek Sheet Pan Chicken
Ham with Orange Balsamic Glaze
5-Spice Chili-Topped Baked Potato Skins
Pork Chops with Apples, Potatoes, and Onions
Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon-Maple Dressing 50
Chicken and Apple Curry Dinner 58
Skillet Beans
Same-Day Pizza Dough and Easy Pizza Sauce
Chicken Marsala (I cannot resist a good Chicken Marsala)
Whiskey Wings
Carnitas, Black Beans, and Sofrito Rice 89
Chicken and Orzo Soup 103
Beef Stew with Dijon Mustard and Sherry Mushrooms
Fall Salad Dressing 184
Pasta Alla Gricia
Braised Pork Shoulder Dinner* 188
Thai Chicken
John's Legend of the Fall (cocktail)
Turkey Schnitzel with Cranberry Sauce
Brussels Sprouts with Apples 245

[Courtney Autumn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, I loved how this read like a Covid diary more than just a cookbook with recipes. Love Rachael!

[Jennifer Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very entertaining cookbook. With lots of personal reflections from the period of time during the Covid pandemic lockdown. I enjoyed reading her personal reflections. Not a lot of food that I would make my family. However the recipes for adult beverages were very appealing.

[James Kennedy Public Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not your average cookbook. It is half cookbook, half diary. Ray wrote this during the 2020 pandemic lockdown when she and her husband were quarantining in their house in upstate New York. In the span of 5 months, Ray was forced into quarantine, had her 15 year old dog die, and watched her house burn down. Ray talks about all of this in her diary entries, along with the good times, and the food that sustained her and her family while in lockdown. The recipes are accentuated with drawings Ray did herself. This was a real peek behind the curtain at a tv personality that is rather private. Even if you have no intention of cooking any of the recipes it is worth the read.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like Rachael Ray's previous memoir/cookbook, I read this book mostly for the essays about her life during the pandemic year of 2020, a year that was difficult and sad for many reasons beyond the pandemic—the death of her 15-year old dog and the fire that burned down her house being the worst occurrences. I appreciated that Ray shared her deepest and most heartrending emotions in this book, but I was much less interested in the name-dropping sprinkled here and there. The recipes were not the sort that I ever cook, but were interesting to read. Overall, this was an enjoyable read.

[Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been watching the Rachael Ray Show for 15 years now and reading this cookbook/memoir of her 2020, was like reliving what I had already seen and relatable on so many levels.

Understanding the fear of crossing the line between your professional life and your personal sanctuary is something if we were lucky enough to work from home, many have experienced. When confronted with a virus we knew nothing about, becoming hyperaware to minimizing risks to protect elderly parents. You have to be in that situation or have that kind of empathy to understand the sacrifices so many have made throughout that year.

Despite going through this pandemic right along with us, she lost her beloved dog Isaboo to cancer, her home to a fire, rebuilding in her guest house, and her car totaled on her anniversary, she still found gratitude in what she had left. To see in the situations, where things may have come full circle, where there was irony, but yet allowing us all in even when she was at her most vulnerable.

Yearning for a time when people can agree to disagree and debate respectfully, her words were a complete reflection of my own. I too in the past have voted for Republicans and Democrats because that's what voting is, a CHOICE to decide who you think of the two will do the best job. Otherwise, the party with the most registered voters would automatically win and the election a moot point.

Thumbing through the recipes, I realized how many I have made along with her during the pandemic. Although it may not be typical recipes, nothing about 2020 was normal and this cookbook reflected that reality.

Although hard to be reliving that year again, it was at the same time cathartic because it showed how far we have come and the reminders of the lessons that we hopefully learned.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

I started watching Rachael and John at home this past year and fell in love with them both. After a year of political, racist, etc unrest, I needed something to make me feel secure in our world again. During the pandemic, I had unrelated health issues, ended up in the hospital twice during all the craziness. I have never felt so alone and frightened.....thank you Rachael and John for bringing peace and faith back into my life....This book is a must read!!!!!! ❤🙏❤

[Kathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved Rachael’s journal of 2020. What a year! I loved how she presented the year that we all had such a shared experience of the pandemic…but certainly it impacted her and John greatly as they struggled to keep working admist the shutdown…and did it so successfully (with all their helpers as Rachael is quick to recognize and thank). Then the loss of not only their precious dog of 15 years but then their home and later her car…gosh….What amazing and interesting insights she shared. A pleasure to read. Oh and some great recipes too!

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This should not be considered a cookbook. There are few pictures, the ingredients are not easily found and, the recipes are fiddly.

However, it is a beautiful book. The font used makes it feel more intimate. The stories go right to the heart. This is a book for Rachel Ray fans as it is her story of surviving the losses she incurred during the pandemic lockdown. I'm just not invested.

Although I could not relate to this book's "dispatches and food", the stories that Ray wrote about her dogs are beautiful and touching. Isaboo's story is passionate and poetic.

[Leona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked being able to read these personal stories in Rachael's voice, using what little I know of her TV persona. I was completely taken by her frank, raw stories of the losses of her dog and her home during lockdown and how she hung on to continue her show and her livelihood cooking with friends and family. We've all been through so much these past few years, yet this chronicle was still entertaining and uplifting. The recipes are a bonus: a love letter to food, food preparation and dining together (sometimes virtually). I recommend this cookbook memoir.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normally, I do not read cookbooks. I, of course, did not know that while I perused the yummy recipes I would be told a story that really touched me. Rachael Ray took me on a journey through the COVID time and revealed a side of the past three years resulting in the knowledge - no one was immune from the pandemic period. Real life continued as the world was changing around us. I haven't read any of Rachael's other cookbooks, I'm sorry to say, so I don't know if she usually shares her personal thoughts... maybe I should check out her other books. Thank you for this book. I recommend it.

[Carol N · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a most entertaining cookbook. Filled with her personal reflections covering the period of time when we all experienced the Covid pandemic lockdown. I enjoyed reading her personal reflections. She made it most personal and entertaining as she expressed the same thoughts and feelings that many of her viewers were living through. I am anxious to prepare many of her down to earth recipes for my family and friends. Thank you for caring, Rachael; I feel your warmth and humanity!

[Leanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know why I am not being charitable and giving this 3 stars. I guess it is because I LOVE reading cookbooks and the recipes in this book didn't really inspire me. I also thought I would feel connected to her more private self because she writes about a year in which her dog passed away, her house burned and then of course, the upheaval she experienced from the virus. I think she has a kind and optimistic heart, and this book is another exhibit of that.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her recipes have advanced beyond my palate and time commitment over the years, but I still adore looking at them. The autobiography portion was very poignant, considering we are still dealing with the pandemic that she references. My one fault with the journaling, however, is how she borrows from her previous writings. I believe some passages are lifted verbatim if memory serves. It is disappointing to reread exact text and speaks to lack of imagination.

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I stopped watching her show and using her cookbooks a long time ago. But picked up this cookbook on a whim because she wrote it during the pandemic. I really loved her testimonials and how personal she got. She seems like someone I would want to be friends with, a really cool thoughtful & generous person with a sometimes edgy side. (Learning she likes the band Nine Inch Nails was a surprise!) Some of the recipes weren't my thing but that's how most cookbooks are.

[Jennica Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this one was cathartic for Rachel—writing it during the pandemic, developing the recipes in her guest house since her house burnt to the ground, lying her beloved dog to rest. I actually enjoyed reading the stories that began each section but that being said, didn’t spot much I’d like to cook. Just personal preference!

[Donna]

I became a Rachel Ray fan beginning in 2020, as I watched her cook from home with her husband John working the camera. As the first months of the COVID 19 pandemic raged outside my home, it was a comfort to watch someone cook in a home space, not in a studio. The cookbook is full of simply written stories of her experiences and emotions during 2020/2021 and, of course, recipes.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Ray's recipes - they're approachable, with easy to find ingredients. This was an interesting cookbook to read. She wrote it during the pandemic. Along with filming her show at home, her house burned down. This is the story of making it through the last two years, with some great recipes to boot. I tried the shrimp quesadillas and we loved them!

[Kristi Downs · Rating 5 out of 5]

She has and probably always will be my spirit animal. The kinship I have felt with her over the years is ingrained in me. This book had me in tears most of the way through. And as is true with Rachael Ray, this was more than just recipes. A new comfort read for me. I found myself hugging this one. Anyone else do that? Please say you do. Haha.

[Kaitlyn Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like all the personal touches in this book. But, I feel like the recipes are a bit off of what we know and love about Rachael Ray. She is the queen of weeknight meals, and this book is mostly made up of more complex recipes.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this cookbook not so much for the recipes (honestly, there was only one in this entire book I'd make) but for the stories in-between the recipes. Rachael is an excellent writer and storyteller and I really enjoyed this personal look into her life.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was great, but if I'm being honest, none of the recipes inspired me to head to the kitchen. It already feels like a time capsule of the pandemic - not in a bad or even unpleasant way, just that, like in real life, it permeates every page of the book.

[Jane Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic memoir with recipes from Rachael Ray after two years of Coronavirus restrictions. I agree that cooking and crafting projects helped to keep us going while we were missing the people in our lives. I loved it and I did watch her shows during this difficult time for everyone.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the first books that I've read that was written during the COVID-19 pandemic and attempts to make sense of it all. That might sound strange for a cookbook, but each chapter has a journal-like entry from the author (along with recipes), and there is a surprising level of honesty and openness in these writings. The book is organized by month, starting with the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 and continuing through Dec 2020. I liked this style of organization, because I could identify with many of the author's memories, like wiping down groceries and stocking up on staples at the beginning of the pandemic. There was a sense of catharsis in recognizing that, in spite of the different struggles everyone has faced, there is still a set of shared experiences that holds us together. In short, while I enjoyed perusing the recipes in this book and there are many I'd like to try, the real highlight of this book for me is the way this book captures one person's experience of living through the pandemic.