Who is Dolly Parton’s sister, Rachel?

While Dolly Parton is no stranger to the spotlight, her younger sister Rachel has stayed away from cameras for decades now. And if you didn’t know that the Queen of Country had a sister, you wouldn’t be alone.

Dolly and her sister recently announced that they would be embarking on a new joint venture, and if you’ve ever been curious about what’s cooking in Dolly’s kitchen, now’s your chance to find out. You’d be surprised at just how many of Dolly’s siblings are chasing their own individual goals, and for Rachel Parton George, food’s a great place to start.

Who is Rachel Parton George?

Rachel Parton George is the youngest of twelve siblings born to Avie Lee Caroline and Robert Lee Parton. She had a short-lived acting career on the ABC television show, 9 to 5. The show was based on the 1980 movie of the same name, and also starred her older sister, Dolly. Rachel took on the role of Doralee Rhodes, the same role her sister had played in the movie, a choice that she knew would lead to comparisons between them. 

9 to 5 had a bit of a tumultuous tenure on the air though, with the first two seasons performing well, before ratings began to drop after season 3. The show was subsequently canceled after three seasons and only 33 episodes. Three years later, it was revived and picked up again, but only ran for another two seasons before ultimately being canceled again. Rachel retired from acting after that role. She was married to Richard Dennison and is now married to Eric George. 

Dolly and Rachel Parton’s latest venture

Dolly Parton has been recently promoting her latest work, a cookbook co-written with her sister, Rachel Parton George. The book is titled Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year of Meals.  

While speaking with PEOPLE, the Parton sisters shared that the book features family recipes they cooked growing up. They also spoke about the role that food and cooking played in their lives growing up. While music was an undeniable focal point in their family, the sisters shared that eating was also as important to the Partons. 

Rachel Parton George also spoke about the heartwarming moment that stirred her love for cooking. “My mama probably just wanted me out of the way, so she pulled up a chair and had all the things and she had it in a bowl. And she said, ‘Here, you get to make cornbread tonight.’” She said that after her father called it the best cornbread he’d ever eaten, her love for cooking was cemented.

Dolly Parton, on the other hand, said that learning to cook was out of necessity. “We were really helping out when Mama was not well, or in bed with a kid or having a new baby or whatever, so my first lesson came out of just really being a necessity of us helping mom out as the older girls.”

Good Lookin’ Cookin’ features more than 80 Parton family recipes, including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desserts, and came out on Sept. 17.