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All Julia all the time...
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  • Post #31 - September 17th, 2009, 12:07 pm
    Post #31 - September 17th, 2009, 12:07 pm Post #31 - September 17th, 2009, 12:07 pm
    Julia apparently not so popular in France:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/17/world/europe/17julia.html?hpw
  • Post #32 - September 17th, 2009, 12:36 pm
    Post #32 - September 17th, 2009, 12:36 pm Post #32 - September 17th, 2009, 12:36 pm
    Hi,

    I haven't read your link yet, though it isn't really terribly surprising.

    Patricia Wells bought from Julia her stove that once was in her last home in France. It is allegedly one she tested the recipes for Mastering the Art of French Cooking. When Patricia last spoke at Culinary Historians, I suggested she eventually donate it to the Smithsonian. In the United States, this would be highly regarded though I suggested in France it may not.

    I am very big on giving fate a little push whenever the opportunity allows. In March, when I met the curator for the Smithsonian's Julia Child kitchen. I alerted her to Patricia Well's owning Julia Child's stove. She commented, "There are many stoves out there Julia was supposed to have owned." And George Washington slept in my house, too! I think Patricia very likely has one owned by Julia, beyond that is for someone to independently review.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways, Road Food 2012: Podcast
  • Post #33 - September 17th, 2009, 12:57 pm
    Post #33 - September 17th, 2009, 12:57 pm Post #33 - September 17th, 2009, 12:57 pm
    Part of it, understandably, is that the French didn't especially need an American to explain French food to them, but I also thought it was interesting that the article says the French, one, don't necessarily agree that cuisine is something within everyone's grasp, and two, not unrelatedly, see it as something you have an intuitive gift for (if you have any gift at all for it), and thus don't approach cooking with her practical American's step by step methodology.
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  • Post #34 - September 17th, 2009, 1:23 pm
    Post #34 - September 17th, 2009, 1:23 pm Post #34 - September 17th, 2009, 1:23 pm
    Patricia Wells bought from Julia her stove that once was in her last home in France. It is allegedly one she tested the recipes for Mastering the Art of French Cooking.


    Based on my recollection of Julia's "My Life in France", this would seem to be unlikely. Her last home was in Provence (and the only home she and Paul owned in France), and I think she bought this with the royalties after her book came out. The bulk of the work on Mastering the Art of French Cooking was done in rental apartments leased in Paris and Marseilles when her husband worked for the government, and in the US when they moved back. So unless she dragged a stove around with her, it seems the curator was right.

    However, given that Wells has a house of her own in Provence, it's quite possible she bought one out of Julia's Provence house, just not THE one.
  • Post #35 - September 17th, 2009, 2:14 pm
    Post #35 - September 17th, 2009, 2:14 pm Post #35 - September 17th, 2009, 2:14 pm
    Mhays wrote:Lakeshore Public Television (WYIN) is running "Julia Child - Memories" - for some reason it isn't on their program guide, but there it was when I flipped channels. I haven't seen an episode since I was a kid, and I was laughing out loud watching poor Julia struggle with an enormous chicken she put on a spit:

    First, she'd trussed the thing with string (that part I missed) and then, slapping the poor bird around as though it were under interrogation, "massaged it with butter," grabbing four or five paper towels to give her hands a quick swipe. After the butter massage, she jammed it onto the spit, panting heavily and grunting, in mortal combat with the spit-grips. She then grabbed some pliers (making some comment on always having tools in the kitchen) and tightened the spit-grips down with buttery, bird-y hands. Then, with a flourish of string, she tied it onto the spit, layered it with blanched bacon, and then mummified the thing with ever more string. She had a bit of trouble taking the cooked one off the spit, and commented (still panting) "I guess I should have used a bit more oil."

    I am a very physical cook, I'm always making noise, sweating and panting as I cook (depending on what I'm cooking.) We've lost that connection: cooking is a physical act, almost a sport, but no other TV chef since Julia breaks a sweat over anything but a deadline. Good for you, Julia!

    I happened to catch that episode as well and enjoyed it very much. I was struck by the extravagance of butter, even for Julia, and at the same time the usefulness of her presentation even today. She explained how to tell a young big chicken from an old hen by seeing how soft the tip of the breastbone is.

    I also couldn't help comparing the real Julia to Meryl Streep's Julia. Streep had the voice and mannerisms but Julia's face is more square. It's not surprising that her physicality comes through so clearly in these old shows--there's nothing but Julia, her deep voice, her apron, her competent hands without a manicure, and the food. Great stuff.
  • Post #36 - September 17th, 2009, 10:27 pm
    Post #36 - September 17th, 2009, 10:27 pm Post #36 - September 17th, 2009, 10:27 pm
    rickster wrote:
    Patricia Wells bought from Julia her stove that once was in her last home in France. It is allegedly one she tested the recipes for Mastering the Art of French Cooking.


    Based on my recollection of Julia's "My Life in France", this would seem to be unlikely. Her last home was in Provence (and the only home she and Paul owned in France), and I think she bought this with the royalties after her book came out. The bulk of the work on Mastering the Art of French Cooking was done in rental apartments leased in Paris and Marseilles when her husband worked for the government, and in the US when they moved back. So unless she dragged a stove around with her, it seems the curator was right.

    However, given that Wells has a house of her own in Provence, it's quite possible she bought one out of Julia's Provence house, just not THE one.

    I read "My Life in France," too, just recently. I think what you suggest is the likely story. My conversations with both Wells and the curator were before I read the book. However I can attest Patricia Wells did say Julia used it when preparing for the book, though just as likely it was in Julia's possession later.

    Regards,
    Cathy2

    "You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
    Facebook, Twitter, Greater Midwest Foodways, Road Food 2012: Podcast
  • Post #37 - December 9th, 2009, 11:26 am
    Post #37 - December 9th, 2009, 11:26 am Post #37 - December 9th, 2009, 11:26 am
    Julie Powell: Butcher and Submissive
    "Don't you ever underestimate the power of a female." Bootsy Collins
  • Post #38 - December 9th, 2009, 11:40 am
    Post #38 - December 9th, 2009, 11:40 am Post #38 - December 9th, 2009, 11:40 am


    To get to the article you have to click enter at the top right FYI.

    A littel snippet I found humorous:

    In the book you seem to have a considerable amount of contempt for vegetarians. Why is that?

    I was raised Texan. We're a liberal family, but there are some things Texans won't give up. I always judged their smugness. I also hated feeding them -- with them coming to my dinner table and going "ewww." Working at the butcher shop allowed me to gain a weighty sense of responsibility about where my food comes from -- so I'm less contemptuous, but I still hate their self-satisfaction. To quote "The Big Lebowski": "You're not wrong, you're just an asshole."
    i used to milk cows
  • Post #39 - December 9th, 2009, 6:05 pm
    Post #39 - December 9th, 2009, 6:05 pm Post #39 - December 9th, 2009, 6:05 pm
    teatpuller wrote:


    To get to the article you have to click enter at the top right FYI.

    A littel snippet I found humorous:

    In the book you seem to have a considerable amount of contempt for vegetarians. Why is that?

    I was raised Texan. We're a liberal family, but there are some things Texans won't give up. I always judged their smugness. I also hated feeding them -- with them coming to my dinner table and going "ewww." Working at the butcher shop allowed me to gain a weighty sense of responsibility about where my food comes from -- so I'm less contemptuous, but I still hate their self-satisfaction. To quote "The Big Lebowski": "You're not wrong, you're just an asshole."

    How wonderful that she's not judgmental or smug.
    "things like being careful with your coriander/ that's what makes the gravy grander" - Sondheim
  • Post #40 - December 9th, 2009, 7:44 pm
    Post #40 - December 9th, 2009, 7:44 pm Post #40 - December 9th, 2009, 7:44 pm
    grits wrote:
    teatpuller wrote:


    To get to the article you have to click enter at the top right FYI.

    A littel snippet I found humorous:

    In the book you seem to have a considerable amount of contempt for vegetarians. Why is that?

    I was raised Texan. We're a liberal family, but there are some things Texans won't give up. I always judged their smugness. I also hated feeding them -- with them coming to my dinner table and going "ewww." Working at the butcher shop allowed me to gain a weighty sense of responsibility about where my food comes from -- so I'm less contemptuous, but I still hate their self-satisfaction. To quote "The Big Lebowski": "You're not wrong, you're just an asshole."

    How wonderful that she's not judgmental or smug.


    She feels cornered...and she LIKES it!
    "Don't you ever underestimate the power of a female." Bootsy Collins
  • Post #41 - December 9th, 2009, 9:35 pm
    Post #41 - December 9th, 2009, 9:35 pm Post #41 - December 9th, 2009, 9:35 pm
    Yeah, but she nailed the moral smugness of vegetarians. It is sooo big a PITA to have one come to my table and be ever so morally superior to the food the rest of us eat. I always make some dishes, carefully crafted, for the veggie crowd; but it *never* fails that one or more of them will make morally snide remarks.

    Perhaps that's because I'm in the academic environment, but I can't imagine its not being the case generally as well.

    Geo
    Sooo, you like wine and are looking for something good to read? Maybe *this* will do the trick! :)
  • Post #42 - December 10th, 2009, 10:52 am
    Post #42 - December 10th, 2009, 10:52 am Post #42 - December 10th, 2009, 10:52 am
    grits wrote:
    David Hammond wrote:
    How wonderful that she's not judgmental or smug.


    She feels cornered...and she LIKES it!
    Apparently so. This article alone is a lot more than I want to know about Julie Powell. Of course, there is always the classic Miss Manners response to too much information: "How nice for you."
    "things like being careful with your coriander/ that's what makes the gravy grander" - Sondheim
  • Post #43 - December 10th, 2009, 11:17 am
    Post #43 - December 10th, 2009, 11:17 am Post #43 - December 10th, 2009, 11:17 am
    grits wrote:
    grits wrote:
    David Hammond wrote:
    How wonderful that she's not judgmental or smug.


    She feels cornered...and she LIKES it!
    Apparently so. This article alone is a lot more than I want to know about Julie Powell. Of course, there is always the classic Miss Manners response to too much information: "How nice for you."


    Yes, I was talking about this new side of Julie Powell with The Wife last night, and she screwed up her face and said, "I don't want to read about that." Some of us may want to read about that, but that doesn't mean Powell should have written about that.

    Must admit, Cleaving is an excellent title for what this book "seems" to be about.
    "Don't you ever underestimate the power of a female." Bootsy Collins
  • Post #44 - December 10th, 2009, 11:57 am
    Post #44 - December 10th, 2009, 11:57 am Post #44 - December 10th, 2009, 11:57 am
    Hammond wrote: Must admit, Cleaving is an excellent title for what this book "seems" to be about.


    Yes, especially since "to cleave" is one of those few words that have two opposite and exactly equal meanings! :)

    Geo
    Sooo, you like wine and are looking for something good to read? Maybe *this* will do the trick! :)
  • Post #45 - October 20th, 2011, 2:16 pm
    Post #45 - October 20th, 2011, 2:16 pm Post #45 - October 20th, 2011, 2:16 pm
    Amazon.com is putting Julia Child's "The French Chef" on the Internet for the first time. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/enterta ... rap-102011
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #46 - October 20th, 2011, 2:47 pm
    Post #46 - October 20th, 2011, 2:47 pm Post #46 - October 20th, 2011, 2:47 pm
    Great news!
    I am SO going to make my oldest watch this with me.
  • Post #47 - October 20th, 2011, 3:32 pm
    Post #47 - October 20th, 2011, 3:32 pm Post #47 - October 20th, 2011, 3:32 pm
    The Cooking Channel reruns her shows every day.

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