Jennifer Garner 'almost lit the kitchen on fire' making Ina Garten's 'favorite' recipe

Jennifer Garner is giving fans an inside look at a holiday tradition — and the hijinks behind it.

On Instagram, Garner shared that Ina Garten's recipe for the French dish beef bourguignon is one of her family's Christmas traditions. The complex recipe, she explained, produces a "perfect stew" that makes her feel "happy, cozy, and relaxed."

The relaxation didn't last long this year, the "Alias" star revealed, writing in the caption of her Instagram post that she "almost lit the kitchen on fire" while cooking.

"Ina would never!" Garner added.

In the four-minute video where Garner shared her cooking process, things started well enough — the “Love, Simon” actor expertly sautéed bacon and browned cubes of beef chuck while answering fan questions about everything from Santa’s favorite cookies (sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles) to her favorite kind of pants (sweatpants). It wasn’t until Garner tried to incorporate cognac, an important part of the recipe, that things went a little haywire.

Adding half a cup of the strong liquor — Garner noted that she was doubling the recipe — went well enough, but when the actor ignited the liquid to burn off the alcohol, a tower of flames shot up.

"Don’t double the cognac!" she exclaimed to the person behind the camera, a stunned look on her face. "Can you believe that just happened? That was wild!"

Luckily, the rest of the recipe went smoothly enough and by the end of the video that was set to a jazzy rendition of a classic Christmas song, Garner was looking happy and satisfied as she took bites out of her traditional holiday dish. In the caption of her video, she suggested that fans consider it for any upcoming New Year's Eve plans.

"Maybe this will make sense for your New Year’s Eve, but wherever this weekend takes you—we wish you a healthy, a joyful, and a peaceful New Year," Garner wrote.

In the comments of the post, fans revealed that they had had some scary experiences trying to make beef bourguignon — and Ina Garten herself chimed in.

"That’s my favorite!!! And I almost set the kitchen on fire every time! Happy New Year!!! Love you," the "Barefoot Contessa" star wrote.

The beef bourguignon isn't the first time Garner has tried her hand at one of Garten's recipes. In 2017, Garner launched the "Pretend Cooking Show" on her social media accounts, and since then, she's made dozens of recipes, including plenty of Garten's.

In 2018, Garten told People magazine that she enjoys watching the videos.

“Isn’t she lovely?! I just think she’s so wonderful,” Garten said at the time. “I love her videos so much. She is adorable and smart and not at all performing — that’s just who she is. I just think she’s really special.”

The duo also have a friendship that goes back years. Garner even appeared on an episode of "Barefoot Contessa" in 2018.

Garner also celebrated Garten's 70th birthday that year with a sweet Instagram post showing them together in 2015.

"Three years ago @inagarten cooked for me on my birthday...today is her 70th birthday and if I was able to cook for her, it would only be because she taught me (and the rest of America) how," Garner wrote. "Thank you and happy birthday, Ina."

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