Penser à Mme Julia Child

Hello all or none. :) I made pretty good on my promise to do nothing this weekend. I spent most of my time over at my friend's house hanging out and watching TV or cooking. Which was a nice change of pace. I was web-surfing Friday and found out that the 2nd anniversary of Julia Child's death was Sunday and that her birthday is this Tuesday. And I knew that me and my group of foodie friends needed to honor her. We normally have some sort of dinner gathering on Sunday nights, so I thought we'd have a French dinner with lots of rustic, simple country French food, nothing crazy fancy. But we ended up having a French brunch.

Let's just say this. To all the people who normally attend our gatherings, thanks for not coming. That was some of the best food I've had in a long time and I was really happy I didn't have to share. :D Quiche Lorraine, Pommes Anna, Country French Bread, Pain au Chocolat, Croissants, and fresh fruit, tomatoes, and yogurt. Hmmm.mmm. And I have leftovers. I know all this is not traditionally French. The French normally have coffee and bread and a cigarette. But this was possibly the best breakfast I've ever had.

I was telling one of my co-workers about the breakfast and that we were doing it in honor of Julia Child and my co-worker didn't know who she was???!!! I almost had a fit. Then, I calmly explained that Julia Child was one (if not the first) chefs on TV, that before Julia most Americans ate mostly canned goods and fresh food was not the norm. That because of Julia, American housewives demanded fresh produce and bought good kitchen equipment, and starting cooking real food. Julia changed the way American ate and shopped for food. She also changed television.

I remember watching her when I was a kid and teenager. Giving instruction and information with no pretension or ego. Which if you watch the Food Network that lack of ego is something of a novelty. She was funny, bright, and genuinely loved food. The more I watch Food Network, the more I realize how amazing she was. I think watching her on PBS at such a young age really formed how I think about food. And after reading her latest book, My Life in Paris, I think even more highly of her.

I think it's really sad that people don't know more about her. But when they get fresh greens or specialty cuts of meat from the grocery, they should know that Julia helped make that happen. And if they don't know, I'll tell them.