She’s Baaaack!

Rachael Ray has a place in the world. For people who approach the stove with trepidation, her quick recipes and ability to laugh off gaffes gives them the confidence to try preparing a dish at home. But she does not belong in our beloved Dunkin Donuts ads. Unfortunately for us, she’s back for the holidays.

We haven’t seen the commercials on TV yet (we’re too busy lamenting the semi-retirement of Bernie and Phyl) but we saw the uber-perky talk show host pop up on Boston.com earlier today. Her new work for the company is also up on the Dunkin Donuts website for masochists or Ray enthusiasts.

In one advertisement, she encourages us to pick up some Dunkin Donuts coffee to have around the house for our holiday guests. “I always have like a million pounds on hand,” she enthuses. While we still suspect more potent drugs may be the source of Ray’s boundless energy, the coffee certainly doesn’t slow her down.

But the best clip features her excitement about the holidays. As she walks through a landscape that looks like it was created by a child with some scissors and a box of construction paper, Ray gets geared up for her holiday shopping.

“When I need to get charged up for a gift shoppin’ run, I head to Dunkin Donuts and I grab a cup of vanilla spice coffee, then I’m good to go. And I’ll split a gingerbread donut with my mom for a little extra taste of the holidays– delish!”

It makes us uncomfortable to agree her on anything, but Rachael is completely right about the vanilla spice coffee. We’re going to need a 12-step program to quit the just-sweet-enough flavor.

But, with every “delish” she utters, a little part of us dies. Yes, we know she’s a local. Yes, we know Fred the Baker shuffled off this mortal coil. But she’s been on the record as being a Starbucks girl, so all we can imagine is Ray reaching for a Gingerbread Latte once the cameras stopped rolling. And no amount of approachability can make us ignore that.