Rachael Ray, who labored with Anne Burrell on 4 seasons of Worst Cooks in America, mourned the late chef’s loss of life with a touching Instagram tribute. The women have been real-life mates outdoors of the kitchen and Ray mentioned she’s “heartbroken” and “shaken” by the information that Burrell has died on the age of 55.
“Anne was a rockstar! I got here to know her effectively by means of a number of seasons of Worst Cooks on Meals Community, and he or she grew to become a lot greater than a colleague,” Ray mirrored. “Anne honored me by asking me to be her bridesmaid, one thing I’d solely executed as soon as earlier than for my sister. Regardless of being surrounded by unbelievable cooks, she by no means as soon as made me really feel self-conscious about not being one — she at all times handled me as one of many gang. Once we hosted Worst Cooks collectively, we had essentially the most unbelievable laughs. She even cooked for me and my company at my wedding ceremony anniversary in Italy.”
Being Burrell’s bridesmaid at her 2021 wedding ceremony to Stuart Claxton was a unprecedented honor for Ray. The women additionally mentioned this when Burrell was a visitor on Ray’s podcast simply six months in the past in December.
“I’ve to say, Anne, my very own sister has been married a number of instances, and I solely acquired to be in certainly one of her weddings,” Ray advised her pal on the time. “The one one that ever requested me to be of their wedding ceremony aside from my member of the family was you. It made me burst into tears. I used to be so honored to be there.”
The ladies additionally had an empowering dialog about gender stereotypes, with Burrell noting, “I feel that it’s form of humorous that, oh, since you’re a tricky, sturdy girl, you can’t be type and good on the similar time. Or female. She’s both robust, or she’s good. or she’s female. Like, why can’t it simply be all of these issues? And, like, why does it need to really feel like a novel idea to have a girl that’s all of these form of issues?”
Burrell added that she likes to “preserve [her] femininity” by carrying skirts within the kitchen. “I’m a badass lady chef and I personal that and I really like that,” she mentioned, later including, “Persons are greater than only one factor. So I really feel like, , particularly for profitable ladies, they’re both robust, or in the event that they’re feeling, then they’re weak. That type of irritates the crap out of me.”
Ray agreed, calling the stereotyping “bulls**t” and assuring Burrell that she’s “dwelling proof” that girls may be “each.”
To conclude her tribute after Burrell’s loss of life, Ray mentioned, “I’ll always remember strolling into our dressing rooms at Meals Community studios early within the morning and listening to her blasting the tune of the second down the corridor. Anne had nice style in music and in life — she was a power within the kitchen, in any room, in each life she touched. I’ll miss her friendship deeply. Everybody whose life she touched will miss her. Sending like to Stuart and everybody who knew and liked Anne. We’ve misplaced somebody really particular.”