Rachael Ray

• Born: August 25, 1968
• Place of Birth: Glens Falls, New York

Although Rachael Ray never attended culinary school or took any cooking classes, her televised cooking show was an immediate hit on the Food Network. Thanks to the show’s success, Ray has written numerous best-selling cookbooks and launched many other successful charity and for-profit ventures.

Rachael Ray started her culinary career by giving cooking lessons in a gourmet grocery story in Albany, New York. After a local television station began airing the lessons, Ray landed a segment on the Today show in 2001, which caught the attention of executives at the Food Network. The next year, she became the host of the network’s newest show, 30 Minute Meals. It was an instant hit, and Ray’s popularity among viewers led to her hosting several other programs for the network, including $40 a Day, Inside Dish, Rachael’s Vacations, and Tasty Travels. She also began writing companion cookbooks based on the 30 Minute Mealstheme.

In 2005, Ray released the food and lifestyle magazine, Every Day with Rachael Ray. She served as its editor in chief and contributed recipes, information about food and cooking, and entertaining tips. The magazine also included celebrity interviews and articles about places to dine across the country. That same year, Ray married John Cusimano, a lawyer and musician. In 2007, she started the nonprofit organization Yum-o! to provide information about healthy eating to children and adults and to help feed hungry families and fund opportunities for cooking education. Ray also added talk-show host to her ever-expanding résumé with the launch of her nationally syndicated show, Rachael Ray in 2006. The show attracted a loyal fan base and became one of the top-rated talk shows on television that was dominated by reality television shows

Ray earned several awards and recognitions for her work. Her original Food Network show, 30 Minute Meals, earned a Daytime Emmy Award in 2006, and she was named one of the Best Leaders of 2006 by Businessweek. Television Week also named her the Syndication Personality of the Year in 2007. The Rachael Ray show won two additional Daytime Emmy Awards in 2008 and 2009. From 2015 to 2017, Ray appeared as a judge on the cooking game show Worst Cooks in America. Ray won her first Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host for Rachael Ray in 2019. Ray ended the shot in 2023 after its seventeenth season. During the same year, she launched her own production company Free Food Studios. In 2024, Ray's cooking show was featured on the final episode of The Curse, with Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder.

Partnerships and Home Goods

In 2008, Ray partnered with Ainsworth Pet Nutrition and developed a line of premium pet food products called Nutrish, with all proceeds from the sales donated to Rachael’s Rescue, Ray’s charity for at-risk animals. Euromonitor International Limited stated that with the line bringing in approximately $200 million in sales in 2016 it was the fastest-growing pet food brand in the United States. In 2017, Ray's pet food brand was sued through class action with claims of false advertising of the "natural" labeling on the product. By 2016, Rachael's Rescue had donated upwards of $14 million to animal-related charities and organizations.

Beyond designing cookware and cutlery, including her oval pasta pot and innovative Moppine kitchen towels, in 2016, Ray developed the Rachael Ray Home Collection, a line of home furniture. She designed the pieces in response to her frustration with the furniture she found available. Ray partnered with Legacy Classic Furniture to design pieces that are functional and affordable. Ray claims, "you don't have to be rich to have a rich life."

Impact

Rachel Ray’s can-do approach to cooking and her charismatic personality have won her a legion of devoted fans and have influenced millions in the way they prepare meals. By the end of the decade, her multimedia empire—which included food-related television shows, a talk show, podcasts, and books, and a magazine targeted at busy families—made her one of the highest-earning cooks on television. Ray has an estimated worth of $75 million—and by 2016, according to Entrepreneur magazine, she had written twenty-seven cookbooks and had 365 pieces of cookware in her line. She also produces an annual food and music festival in Austin, Texas, called Feedback to showcase favorite beverages and music.

Bibliography

Abrams, Dennis. Rachael Ray: Food Entrepreneur. New York: Chelsea, 2009. Print.

Jacobs, Laura. "Just Say Yum-O!" Vanity Fair. Oct. 2007, www.vanityfair.com/culture/2007/10/rachaelray200710. Accessed 23 May 2024.

Johnston, Lori. “Rachael Ray: The Non-Chef Celebrity Chef.” WebMD. WebMD LLC. 2012. Web. 9 July 2012.

Nowell, Lauren. “Rachael’s Bio.” Rachael Ray Show. KWP Studios, Inc. 3012. Web. 9 July 2012.

Walsh, Karla. "The #1 Healthy Habit Rachael Ray Says Has Changed Her Lifestyle—And Her Dinner Plans." Eating Well, 24 Sept. 2024, www.eatingwell.com/article/8001211/healthy-habit-rachel-ray-says-changed-her-lifestyle-interview/. Accessed 23 May 2024.