Project FoodieSEARCH ARTICLES
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Tasty Snacks: Granola and bite-sized nuggets |
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Foodie Talk
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Written by foodie pam
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Monday, 24 August 2009 |
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This month we've been chomping down on several snacks that have come our way…
 Metropolitan Bakery in Philadelphia is an artisan bakery that's been baking up a storm since 1993. This year they introduced two new granola's (Coffee Chocolate Chip and Pomegranate Cinnamon) to complement their original Granola. While you may think of granola as more of a breakfast food, I think it is really a multi-function snack. It's great to take on the road, eat at your desk, and of course, have for breakfast. I also like it as a dessert with fresh fruit or yogurt. I say this because the Metropolitan granola will have you craving granola all day long. My first taste was of the Coffee Chocolate Chip; it is a crunchy chocolaty mix with a coconut undertone and a hint of coffee that is best described in one word - addictive! I admit adding chocolate may seem like cheating a bit (practically everything is better with chocolate right?), but this granola is really divine as it also has coconut and coffee in it. That's not to say the other granolas are lacking, even the original flavor had me snacking out of the bag far longer than my waistline prefers, but the chocolate was the most addictive. And while it seems hard to improve upon, after I accidently left the package in the sun I did just that. As packaged, the chocolate is in chips, but with my careless act I melted the chocolate creating ribbons of chocolate that covered parts of the granola within, making an even more luscious treat! The Metropolitan Bakery granolas are available at the bakery locations in Philadelphia and on-line.
 The other snack that caught my fancy this month is SomerSaults. Branded as a "baked goodness of sunflower seeds and toasted grains in a crunch bite-sized nugget" these little snacks are all natural with nothing artificial added (which after all my granola munching was a really great thing!).
They come in three flavors: sea salt, salty pepper and chez cocoa. I really enjoyed the sea salt. I've had a fondness for sunflower seeds since I grew my first sunflowers in elementary school, so the fairly strong sunflower flavor was a real hit for me. SomerSaults are the creation of a group of San Francisco Bay Area foodies who wanted a healthier snack for adults. At 150 calories with 3 grams of fiber SomerSaults may not be as healthy as an apple but they sure beat lots of other grab-and-go snacks. They are available on-line, at Peet's and about 250 grocery stores in California, Arizona and Oregon.
Disclosure: Items discussed in the Taste Test posts are provided by vendors, publicists, and/or manufacturers to Project Foodie. Disclosure: Samples of products discussed in this post may have been provided to Project Foodie by publicists and/or manufacturers.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 23 August 2009 )
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Foodie Talk
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Written by foodie pam
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Monday, 24 August 2009 |
For me the perfect sandwich is hearty and hot with melted cheese on a crunchy, fresh roll. Inside I'm always up for pastrami or freshly roasted turkey (or both), and some added heat is great, but I can do without too many veggies, especially not crunchy ones.
 What is your perfect sandwich? I ask because it may be worth $25,000! Mezzetta is celebrating the sandwich (August is national sandwich month) and offering $25,000 to whomever creates the best sandwich in their "Mezzetta Make That Sandwich Contest". If you think you make a killer sandwich, you've got until September 7th, 2009 to try your hand at winning! Check out all the details at www.mezzetta.com.
Oh and in case you're wondering, my perfect sandwich has one more quality: It should be made by someone else! That's right, as much as I love to cook when it comes to sandwiches I much prefer to leave the task to someone else.
Now really what is your definition of a perfect sandwich? And do you make it yourself?
Leave a comment and share your perfect sandwich with your fellow foodies. Who knows one of them may just decide to enter the Mezzetta contest using some of the creative suggestions!
Disclosure: Samples of products discussed in this post may have been provided to Project Foodie by publicists and/or manufacturers.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 23 August 2009 )
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Celebrating Julia Child: Books about Julia |
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Stories
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Written by foodie pam
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Saturday, 15 August 2009 |
 Julia Child: The French Chef
Personally, this week has taught me a lot about Julia. Perhaps what has impressed me the most is the selfless way she assisted others. As Danielle Forestier said in her guest blog "Julia worked to connect people who shared interests and she did this behind the scenes, often only discovered by chance much later. I suspect many a young chef found opportunities because Julia had 'put in a word' to someone else". In today's world, we could use more of Julia's selfless approach.
In planning the Julia Child Celebration Week we asked ourselves what would be a fitting finale? A finale appropriate for Julia Child's birthday nonetheless. Since this week's guest blogs have only given you a glimpse of Julia, we thought the best salute to Julia may be to point you to more on Julia herself. So, in the following we present an overview of the books published, to date, about Julia Child. If our guest blogs, and the huge media frenzy surrounding the Julie & Julia movie has you yearning for more information on Julia these books may help…
 Julia Child, by Laura Shapiro: Simply titled Julia Child, historian and journalist Laura Shapiro's biography is an engaging history of Julia's path from Pasadena California girl, to cookbook author, television screen icon and culinary celebrity. Written with careful research of Child's many personal and professional papers and fan letters that are archived at the Schlessinger Library and The Smithsonian, Shapiro beautifully threads the book with quotes from Julia and Paul's letters and poetry. The book begins with a sweet narrative on their relationship beginning in 1944 when both worked for the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) in Ceylon, China. The supportive role of Paul in Julia's life is evident throughout the book and adds to the personal and intimate tone of this biography. Rosemary Mark
 Appetite For Life by Noel Riley Fitch: Julia Child's The French Chef was not the first cooking show I was introduced to. I grew up watching The Frugal Gourmet, Ciao Italia with Mary Ann Esposito and Justin Wilson with his infamous catch phrase "I gar-on-tee!". Oh, sure, I knew who Julia Child was, I had heard her name mentioned from time to time, knew of the infamous parody of her cooking show performed on Saturday Night Live, but it wasn't until I went to Culinary School that I wanted to really "know" who Julia Child was. How did she come to be "Julia Child" , what made her stand out among everyone else out there who thought they had a voice, a passion for food, and a desire to share it with the masses whether through teaching in a more traditional manner or through TV. If you really want to get to know the woman behind the name then let Noel Riley Fitch's Appetite For Life be your guide. This book will show you another side to Julia, the more personal side, the woman behind the face, the voice, and what drove her to want to educate people about French Cooking. If anything, this book will make you appreciate her work and career even more. She paved the way for so many and for that we will be always be grateful. Heather Jones
 Backstage with Julia, My Years with Julia Child by Nancy Verde Barr: Through happenstance in 1980, Nancy Verde Barr, a cooking school owner in Rhode Island, was called upon to assist Julia Child at a fundraiser. For the next 18 years she continued as Julia's television assistant for Good Morning America segments, photo shoots and demonstrations. The working colleagues quickly became dear friends. Nancy shares with readers the off-screen Julia which is very much the on-screen Julia - full of energy and enthusiasm for limitless parties, cooking, and having a good time. Told through cherished memories of traveling with Julia across continents to conduct classes and events, Nancy brings to life the Julia who never allowed her team to say the "t word" (tired), and Julia's "why not" attitude towards any new adventure or idea. Backstage with Julia gives a first-hand glimpse of the inner-workings of Julia's cooking shows, book tours and her influence on cooking in America. Rosemary Mark
 My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud'Homme: This is one of the two books upon which the Julie & Julia movie is base. Within My Life in France you'll find Julia's story in her exuberant voice sharing the events that changed her life forever; the events that led to her becoming the French Chef we all loved. Upon her 1948 arrival in France she tells of immersing herself in French culture and ultimately taking cooking classes at the Cordon Blue. While the story is told in Julia's voice, bear in mind the book was published posthumously with her grandnephew Alex Prud'Homme as editor. Prud'Homme compiled the story from Julia's notes on the project and from letters Julia had written. Nevertheless, the story is as enduring as Julia and if you're looking for an official Julia Child written autobiography this is the closest you'll find. Foodie Pam
 Julie & Julia by Julie Powell: I must admit that I hesitated to list this book as a book about Julia. Truly this book is not about Julia; rather it is about Julie Powell's adventure of cooking each and every recipe from Julia Child's masterpiece Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Yet, without Julia, this book would not exist and so I've relented and placed it on the list. The story, as you probably already know, is, along with My Life in France, the basis for the Julie & Julia movie. In the book, Julie Powell retells her year long effort of cooking the recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The story is mixed with the highs and lows of her adventure including amazing dinners, meals that flopped, and the impact of the effort on her personal life. Although the story doesn't tell us much of Julia Child, it does talk about her recipes through which you may learn a bit about Julia. Foodie Pam
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 13 August 2009 )
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Stories
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Written by Danielle Forestier
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Friday, 14 August 2009 |
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This little assignment, writing about my friendship with Julia Child, was a fun project: I started by re-reading my file of Julia's letters to me through the years. Our themes were varied but bakery products and projects, the personal threads of our lives, and Julia's projects were the constant subjects.
 Julia Child and Danielle Forestier, photo by Paul Child ~1977
We shared the same professor of bread baking, Prof. Calvel, in Paris. Julia while writing about making baguettes for Mastering, Vol. II and I for my Master Baker certification classes. Prof. Calvel introduced us while helping me open my bakery in 1976 and we three were friends from then on.
Julia and I discussed food, especially bakery things, endlessly and in detail. The puff pastry problem in the bakery harassed me. In France, I worried about getting the texture and the airiness to my standards with American flour, especially achieving a tender bite. That standard turned out not to be a problem, but where was the flavor so important to compliment the texture? Julia answered that question with one little astute comment so typical of her: "more butter". Of course! We complained daily about the modest flavor of American butter!
When discussing various projects of teaching and training bakers in other places and countries Julia would often remark that I was 'teaching them to eat!' That was what mattered to her; that was what she wanted to happen.
Of course we all think of eating when we think of Julia. It's what she did. And I think of her with a special appreciation of how my palate became more refined through our dining and talking. But even more prominent in my thoughts is an appreciation of her ego, her peace with the world and her personal standard to put people together. She was wholly selfless.
In our 30 year friendship, I never experienced an instance of her needing to act to protect her own feelings. She seemed impervious to misgivings of self-confidence. She had a native ability to feel comfortable in her self and unthreatened by others opinions. What a gift! Coupled with her natural generosity she truly had a character to be emulated. She worked to connect people who shared interests and she did this behind the scenes, often only discovered by chance much later. I suspect many a young chef found opportunities because Julia had 'put in a word' to someone else.
Julia's selflessness and generosity helped make her marriage strong and long. Paul's little peculiarities were disregarded without censure, even if she disagreed with him. He would not share tastes at the table; he "ordered what he wanted to eat and ate it himself", a disappointment for the rest of us if we wanted to sample the cooks' talents served on his plate. She and Paul shared a mutual respect and deep caring, and their marriage became the model for my second. When I told her this she lent me the 'borrowed' and the "blue" item for our wedding, an amulet to remember to try to build a marriage like she and Paul enjoyed.
About Danielle Forestier
Danielle Forestier, Oakland, CA, trained and certified in Paris as a Master Baker troubleshoots bakery production problems, trains bakers and works on new bakery products. Her Santa Barbara bakery, Les Belles Miches, was widely acclaimed for the quality of its French bakery products. Julia featured Danielle making baguettes on her Baking With Julia series.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 06 August 2009 )
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Stories
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Written by Carolyn Jung
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Thursday, 13 August 2009 |
 Menu from Julia's 90th Birthday
Only one person, though, made me so nervous that my voice trembled and my stomach churned in knots.
That was Julia Child.
It wasn't at all because she was intimidating or frightening or a diva. Far from it.
It was simply because she was Julia Child.
She was the icon I grew up watching on TV, the first person to have a regular cooking show on television. She was the woman I worshiped who could do no wrong, for whenever she flubbed something, she rolled with it, patching the problem with ease, humor and utter charm. She was cool under pressure before anyone else was. The fact that she found her calling late in life, achieving fame at age 50, only added to her allure and realness.
Our paths crossed maybe a dozen times. Whether it was just a far-off sighting of her, or an actual conversation, each interaction left me - and those around me - in awe. Such was the power of this towering 6-foot-2-inch woman with the lilting, bird-like voice, hearty laugh, and total exuberance for life.
The first time I saw Julia in person, I was a shy college junior from California who was interviewing at the venerable Boston Globe for a summer internship as a news reporter. Talk about pressure.
To celebrate that I'd gotten even that far in the process, friends in Cambridge took me out for dinner at Legal Sea Foods restaurant. While I was calming my nerves with a bowl of clam chowder, I saw her. There was Julia a few tables away, dining with her husband, Paul. Of course, I was too scared to walk up to her table, so I just stared from afar.
But somehow, just seeing her there, made me feel better about everything. Through her cooking shows, Julia had made us believe we could do anything. Her mere presence that night reinforced that feeling in me. It's one I carried inside all summer long, too, through that internship I ended up garnering.
There were times as a food writer at the San Jose Mercury News that I ended up interviewing Julia by phone. At that point in her life, she was a little hard of hearing, so I had to speak up in order for her to hear me clearly.
Invariably, after I hung up the phone, my nearby colleagues would all come racing over to my desk, drawn by my loud voice during the interview.
"Oh my God! Were you just talking to Julia Child??!'' was what they would all exclaim. Then, they would pepper me with questions about her. Such was the power of Julia.
Nine years ago, I was invited to a lunch in San Francisco in honor of Julia's cookbook with Jacques Pepin, "Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.'' I still have the menu from that lunch, as well as a copy of the cookbook that bears her autograph, as well as Jacques'.
 Julia Child and Jacques Pepin's autographs
That happened wherever she went. At swank, star-studded culinary soirees, she was always the star attraction just by virtue of being there and being herself. At some of these events, you might have the likes of Daniel Boulud, Eric Ripert, Thomas Keller, Jacques Torres, and Wolfgang Puck in one kitchen. But when Julia walked in, everything would stop, and each chef would respectfully come up to say hello to her. Such was the power of Julia.
For her 90th birthday in 2002, parties were held across the country to honor her. In San Francisco, the Fifth Floor restaurant was the venue for it. A throng of food writers, renowned chefs, and members of the public assembled there for the event, awaiting Julia's presence.
It wasn't hard to figure out the moment she arrived. Dozens of flashbulbs went off simultaneously as she stepped off the elevator and into the dining room. It was a blinding explosion of lights, the likes I had never witnessed before or ever again. Such was the power of Julia.
On Aug. 13, 2004, I heard the sad news on TV just before I was leaving for work: Julia has passed away in her sleep at her home in Montecito, as she was surrounded by family, friends, and her kitten, Minou. She died just two days before her 92nd birthday.
After writing her obituary for the Mercury News. I received many emails from readers, expressing their sorrow that this inspiring woman had died.
None touched me the way one letter did from an elderly lady. She wrote that she started reading the obituary only because it was so prominent on the front page, not because she had any interest necessarily in the person who had died.
As she continued to read, though, about this larger-than-life, yet so down-to-earth woman, who had transformed cooking into something we all wanted to do instead of something we all had to do, her feelings changed. Tears started streaming down her face, she wrote, as she got to know this strong, passionate, spirited woman.
She closed her letter by saying, "I ended up reading every word of that story. When the time comes, I hope that where Julia went, I will go, too.''
Such was the power of Julia.Read more from Carolyn as she remembers Julia on her blog FoodGal.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 07 August 2009 )
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Chef Tales... Our Julia Becomes My Julia |
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Stories
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Written by Pamela Keith
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Wednesday, 12 August 2009 |
 Pamela Keith with Julia Child I was 13 years old when my mother gave me my first cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. We brought home a whole chicken from Ralph's Supermarket in Pasadena, and using the illustrations from the book, I quickly set about teaching myself how to truss that pretty bird. It took awhile. Flash forward to Paris. Rungis, the largest outdoor wholesale food market in the world. Rungis is a veritable little city - actually it's the size of Monaco. A humming hive of activity centered on beautiful food and tended by an army of workers. Located in a Paris suburb, each day restaurateurs, chefs and business retailers make the pilgrimage to Rungis to shop and haggle with the merchants. Entry to Rungis is a prized ticket - it's not open to the public, and you need an "in." Our "in" was the 1995 IACP conference held that year in Paris. Wild with excitement, my pal Alison Reich and I scooped up two spots for a rare tour of Rungis. It was a bone chilling, icy October morning in Paris. Alison and I, up at 3:30 am after a night of food and wine "research" in Paris, showed up at the Hotel Lutecia in Saint-Germain-de-Prés. Waiting to board the van that would take us to Rungis, and desperately in need of caffeine, we were hanging out in the hotel lobby when we heard the voice - that unmistakable voice. "Julia's here!" Alison whispered. Suddenly awake with astonishment, we followed Julia through the lobby, if only to bask in her Julia-ness. While we kept ourselves within earshot of the voice, someone announced it was time to board the van. Heaven bless the world, Julia fell into line right behind us. A handful of six die hard foodies. Shoulder to shoulder, kitchen comrades on a quest. Together, we settled into the warm comfort of our ride and headed west. Rungis is a series of "pavilions," or airplane hanger-type buildings, each one devoted to a particular food or ingredient. Poisson, or seafood, is the first pavilion to open each morning, and the first to close. Walking inside, we were met with a maze of enormous wooden bins filled with ice and laden with just-plucked-from-the-water fish and shellfish. From freshwater eels to Dublin Bay prawns, to skate and periwinkles, pristine Atlantic salmon and petit rouget, our eyes feasted. With ice spilling onto the slippery cement floor, we picked our way along, each of us vying for the chance to dote over Julia. Before we knew it, she had darted off in a different direction to talk with the young French fishmongers. With Julia animated and brimming with curious questions, they exchanged a repartee en Francais. As Julia moved on to the next bin, I heard one young man remark to another, Elle est passionné." Translated, it meant "I don't know who she is but she is passionate!" At the very back of the pavilion, our hosts gifted us with a surprise - oysters, still on the shell, from the coast off Provence. Giddy with pleasure, we slurped down oyster after briny oyster. Julia loved oysters. Still early morning, by 9:00 we were famished. In the heart of Rungis is a small café with red curtains in the windows. Inside is a smattering of tables, to which we were invited with a warm welcome from the owner, Monsieur Guillot. Against the bitter cold outside, the mood inside the café drew us close, like the oldest of friends. Julia sat next to me, and we tucked into bowls of soul warming French onion soup with melted Gruyere cheese on a big, toasted crouton. Washing it down with glasses of young red wine poured from white porcelain pitchers, we dined and talked about food, our childhoods, grafting avocado trees, many things French, and life. At that moment, the world's Julia became my Julia.
About Pamela KeithPamela Keith is the CEO and Founder of CuisineStyle, a full service catering and culinary event company in the bay area. French-trained chef, and a Juliaphile.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 05 August 2009 )
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Stories
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Written by Joanne Weir
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Tuesday, 11 August 2009 |
Julia Child - The French Chef from WBGH.org
I walked into the very first luncheon that first day of the conference. The room was packed with people. I searched the room for someone I might know but couldn't find anyone. Terror crept inside. Oh my, what now? "OK, you can do it Joanne, get a hold of yourself!" I said to myself as I sat in one of the unoccupied chairs at table with complete strangers. They all seemed so important and I was just a cooking school teacher from San Francisco.
Suddenly behind me, there was a very familiar voice, "Is this chair taken?' As I turned around, it was Julia and she was talking to me! "No," I said, trying to act calm as I swallowed wrong and almost choked! "And how are you?" she said as she sat down. We introduced ourselves (like she needed an introduction!) and talked the whole luncheon. I grew up in Northampton, Massachusetts where she went to college, my mother had worked for years cooking with her college roommate and dear friend, Charlotte Turgeon, so we had much to talk about. But I hardly ate a thing!
The next day I saw Julia in the hallway. I smiled at her and said, "Hi Julia, how are you?" She said "No Joanne, how are YOU?"
I loved how Julia had a wonderful knack for always giving more than she could ever take!About Joanne WeirJoanne Weir is many things...a world traveler... a James Beard Award-winning cookbook author... a cooking teacher... a chef and television personality. In the second season of her very successful 26-part public television series, "Joanne Weir's Cooking Class", Joanne's love of teaching cooking takes center stage.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 05 August 2009 )
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Julie & Julia the movie, in one word? Inspirational |
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Foodie Talk
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Written by Heather Jones
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Monday, 10 August 2009 |
 Photo from Julie & Julie the movie
The movie takes us from Julia Child’s first meal in Paris to her home in Cambridge, MA where she sees her book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, finally published. Simultaneously, we are introduced to Julie Powell who has found herself at a crossroads, about to turn 30, and trying to deal with the fact that she is not where she’d like to be in her life. She sets out to challenge herself, to cook all 524 recipes from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year, and she decides to blog about it. As a result, she is led exactly to where she has always wanted to be.
The word that best describes my feeling about this movie most is inspirational. I left the theater refreshed, renewed, and determined to use my own culinary training even more. This movie fueled my passion for food in such an unexpected way. I too am now pouring over the recipes in Mastering the Art of French Cooking looking for ways to challenge myself in the kitchen and in life.
 Photo from Julie & Julie the movie
As for Julie Powell’s story, I’d had always felt the Julie/Julia Project was a bit of a stunt. That Julie, after sitting back and watching many friends produce successful careers was feeling sorry for herself and was desperate to make something happen. I have always been able to relate to someone in that situation, as I too often felt like I was far behind everyone else in terms of career success. But after watching the movie I get that Julie needed this project, she needed something to help propel her forward and to prepare her for what the future had in store. Amy Adams did a fantastic job with the role of Julie Powell. although at times the character was a little whiny. In the end you were happy to see that she finally made it.
 Photo from Julie & Julie the moviePhoto from Julie & Julie the movie
For me, perhaps, the best part of this movie was that magical third co-star, the food. From Julia Child’s first bite of Sole Meunière, to Julie Powell’s succulent Duck en Croute, as I sat watching these two woman cook one fabulous dish after the next I reminisced about the first time I had the pleasure of making or eating the many dishes featured in the film. My own husband leaning over and whispering in my ear, “I remember when you made that, it sure was good”. That really does make it all worth it. I say all of this to tell you that you must go see this movie, go by yourself, with your spouse, your mom, little sister, whoever. It really doesn’t matter, just go. But beware, because when you leave you will discover that you have fallen in love with Julia and with Food all over again.
Disclosure: Samples of products discussed in this post may have been provided to Project Foodie by publicists and/or manufacturers.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 09 August 2009 )
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Written by Jeannette Ferrary
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Saturday, 08 August 2009 |
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 Jeannette Ferrary and Julia Child
I couldn't believe my ears. The chef had been given the opportunity to prepare a box lunch for Julia Child. It was supposed to be casual and unfussy, just a little something before her afternoon appearance at Macy's San Francisco. He was holding football-sized gift boxes tied with blue ribbons and was delivering them to the back stage dressing room where Julia, her sister Dorothy, and I were waiting. I only hoped they hadn't heard what he said. I took the boxes from him-there were three of them, one for each of us-and slid them onto a table by the door. Then I realized he was kidding; he must be kidding.
"Come on, tell me. What's in them?"
He looked frazzled, an appropriate response for someone who had invested all his creative energies into the challenging but intimidating task of whipping up a box lunch for Julia Child. He also looked annoyed.
"I told you. Tuna fish sandwiches."
Maybe he hadn't realized which Julia Child he'd been asked to make lunch for. Could he have thought these were destined for some ordinary Julia Child, an earthling who hadn't helped change the course of America's eating habits in her lifetime? Or perhaps the strain had been too much for him and he'd completely lost his mind. His eyes looked a bit jumpy, now that I peered more closely. Proof of his derangement surfaced almost immediately as Julia, attracted by the commotion, turned to greet him.
"Oh, hellooo, you're the chef aren't you?" came the chortly tones, full of welcome and gratitude. The billowy abandon of her teal rayon blouse swarming with flickery white splotches contrasted with the workhorse immovability of a navy gabardine skirt. Cinnamon-orange hair, the same color as her lipstick, made thick, loopy curls across her forehead. She was smiling and talking, the metallic music of her voice pitched halfway between some kind of horn and a reed instrument not yet invented.
"I hope you like tuna fish sandwiches," he blurted out with no shame or embarrassment, clearly out of touch with reality.
"Why, yes. We love tuna fish, don't we Dorothy?"
"Wonderful. I thought you would. Especially when I saw this magnificent specimen." He went on to describe how he'd gone down to the fishing boats at dawn, poking and slapping a dozen different fish before deciding on the nice fat one he brought back to poach for these sandwiches.
I felt foolish for thinking any sane chef would present Julia Child with a Star Kist chicken of the sea. Meanwhile Julia never flinched. She'd already dived right in, unperturbed about whether her sandwich had begun with a can opener or a court bouillon. (I remembered M. F. K. Fisher telling me, in her unique mélange of praise and condemnation, "You know, Julia will eat anything.")
"Isn't this just marvelous?" Julia practically sang, referring to how the chef--"such a nice young man"--had cloaked the sweet chunks of fish in a creamy aioli that was "marvelously tart" and studded with chopped fennel instead of "ordinary old celery." As for the sourdough, fire and smoke trapped in its crusty ridges and curves, he must have taken the loaves directly off the baking stones: that was the consensus.
On a publicity tour for her book, Julia Child and More Company, she'd come to San Francisco to do a cooking demonstration and book signing; I was there to interview her for an article, one of many I would write since 1978 when I met her at a cooking course at her place in France in 1978. I enjoyed writing about her gastrobatics, her jolly nature and her contagious humor. I'd written an article about her appearance at a benefit for The Children's Garden in San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts; I'd reported on the evening she and Rene Verdon cooked dinner at his San Francisco restaurant, Le Trianon, as a benefit for KQED, the public television station. I'd even interviewed her about her favorite San Francisco restaurants: "…once we went to Mike's Chinese Cuisine on the advice of Jack Shelton. I think it was over on Geary. We thought it was extremely good." She was eminently quotable: "If cooking is evanescent, well, so is the ballet"; men were often better cooks because they have a "what the hell attitude." And her advice to cooks, perhaps even more relevant for writers: "above all, have a good time" she counseled, but "keep your knives sharp."
The last time I saw Julia was at her apartment in Santa Barbara. It was January 11, 2002. She invited me into her kitchen, which was small and tidy and contained very little of her extensive baterie de cuisine. She had donated all her kitchen equipment, she explained, to the Smithsonian.
"Except for those," she smiled, indicating a place on the wall over the sink where a set of dark-handled knives clung tightly to a magnetic holder. There were just a few of them, probably her favorites, in various sizes. They looked well-used, sturdy and beautiful. And, needless to say, they were sharp.
Tuna Fish Sandwich for Julia
"First catch your hare" is the age-old culinary advice meaning, basically, begin at the beginning. And so it is when making a tuna sandwich for Julia. After catching the fish--or buying it at the market if you're so inclined--poach it, mix it with the same stuff you would if you'd opened a can, substituting fennel for celery. Serve it on sourdough. It's almost as good as the real thing.
About Jeannette Ferrary
Jeannette Ferrary's latest book is Out of the Kitchen: Adventures of a Food Writer. Author of the memoir/biography of M. F. K. Fisher and six cookbooks, she teaches food writing at Stanford and U. C. Berkeley extension.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 08 August 2009 )
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Julia Child Celebration Week |
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Stories
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Written by foodie pam
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Friday, 07 August 2009 |
 As foodies, we really don't need a special occasion to celebrate Julia Child; whether we know it or not she has impacted our lives and her legacy will continue to do so for many years to come. Yet, today's release of the Julie & Julia movie combined with Julia Child's birthday on August 15th promoted an even greater desire for us here at Project Foodie to celebrate Julia Child. But, how does one celebrate Julia Child?
Julie Powell celebrated Julia Child by cooking all of the recipes in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, but that took a year and Mastering the Art of French Cooking is only one part Julia Child's life. Julia Child gave us so much more including numerous cookbooks, television shows, and personal appearances, not to mention her insatiable exuberance for everything in life.
 From Julie & Julia, the movie
That's why we've decided to celebrate Julia Child by sharing stories of Julia as told by her friends and colleagues mixed with a salute to Julia's cookbooks, books about Julia, and, of course, a review of the Julie & Julia movie. Our celebration runs all week, culminating on Julia's birthday, August 15th. Also, as part of the Julia Child Celebration Week, today Project Foodie is the blog of the day for the Julie & Julia website.
So what exactly are you in store for during the next week? Well, we'll have guest blogs by Jeannette Ferrary, Danielle Forestier, Carolyn Jung, Pamela Keith, and Joanne Weir relating their personal stories and interactions with Julia Child. Having already seen the guest blogs, I can confidently say they are heartfelt and inspired tributes to all that Julia Child was. Pamela Keith said when sending me her contribution: "Julia was so dear and funny - I feel privileged to write about her". I understand her sentiments - I feel privileged to celebrate Julia Child on Project Foodie, for while I never met her, without her impact I find it unlikely Project Foodie would be the same.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 06 August 2009 )
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Foodie Talk
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Written by Amy Sherman
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Tuesday, 14 July 2009 |
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At Project Foodie we get a variety of product samples to try. Lately, we've gotten a bunch of sweets - here are a few of our current favorites. Want to try some? Check out the details below for a chance to win a sample…
Crofter's Organic Superfruit Spreads Crofter's has a line of organic "superfruit spreads" that tout their antioxidant properties. While they may have more vitamins than some conventional jams, they are by no means health food. However they are wonderfully tangy jams with very unusual fruit combinations. The North American blend is cranberry and blueberry, the South American blend is maqui berry a native of Patagonia and passion fruit, the European blend is pomegranate and black currant and the Asian blend contains yumberry and raspberry. I never heard of yumberry or maqui berry before trying these products. They are a very good value at $4.99 for 11 ounces of organic fruit spread with no artificial flavors, no preservatives and no corn sweeteners, for those of you looking to avoid them.
My favorite is the Asian variety, but all of them are fresh tasting, tangy and intensely flavored blends that will make your morning toast, a very pleasurable experience.
Kusmi Tea While tea comes from Asia, some of the best tea purveyors are based in Europe. Russia has a strong history of tea drinking and now a Parisian company is selling Russian style teas here in the US. The founder of the company, Pavel Michailovitch Kousmichoff began selling tea in 1868 in St. Petersburg and relocated to Paris after the Russian revolution. To this day, the Kusmi Tea company specializes in Russian tea blends.
Before you even try the teas, you will no doubt be enchanted by the lovely packaging. Tins of the tea are decorated in vibrantly colored art nouveau designs. Though Kusmi sells green, herbal and wellness teas, it's the Russian blends I recommend. The Prince Vladmir is Chinese black tea flavored with citrus, vanilla and spices. The St. Petersburg blend is also Chinese black tea flavored with citrus, red fruits and caramel. Brewing instructions are available online. Whether for yourself or as a gift, these are really special teas to treasure.
Amano Jembrana Milk Chocolate Chocolate cognoscenti may have already discovered the exquisite dark chocolate bars from American artisanal producer, Amano. Now Amano offers a milk chocolate bar. Like most milk chocolate, it has luscious caramel tones and a milder flavor, but the richness actually seems to intensify as it melts in your mouth. It's made exclusively from cacao beans from the Jembrana Regency and its surrounding areas of Bali, Indonesia. This award-winning chocolate will win over dark chocolate fiends and milk chocolate lovers alike.
And now for the chance to win a sample. Crofter's Organic is offering a set of the four superfruit spreads to one lucky visitor. Leave a comment here (if you're not already a registered user you'll need to sign-up for an account first) and one reader (with a US mailing address) will be chosen on July 24th.
Disclosure: All items discussed in the Taste Test posts are provided by vendors, publicists, and/or manufacturers to Project Foodie.
Disclosure: Samples of products discussed in this post may have been provided to Project Foodie by publicists and/or manufacturers.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 15 July 2009 )
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For the Young Foodie: Tony and the Pizza Champions |
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Foodie Talk
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Written by Heather Jones
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Monday, 25 May 2009 |
 Illustrations by Matthew Trueman I nearly squealed for joy when I heard about the book Tony and the Pizza Champions (Chronicle Books 2009), my oldest daughter loves pizza and she loves for me to read to her even more. The book written by real-life pizza tossing champion Tony Gemignani tells the story of how he was invited to attend the World Pizza Championship in Italy and his journey across the country assembling his pizza tossing team. Tony and his team were ultimately named the World Pizza Champs. The book will be a real treat for the young pizza lover in your house and the colorful illustrations make the story so much fun your little reader will be cheering Tony and his team on until the very end. Included in the book is Tony's now famous pizza dough recipe and instructions on how to toss pizza dough just like Tony does. I've found that all that pizza tossing makes for some pretty interesting clean-up so don't say I didn't warn you. Be sure to also check out the pizza champs website for real footage of Tony tossing a little pizza dough. Disclosure: Samples of products discussed in this post may have been provided to Project Foodie by publicists and/or manufacturers.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 22 May 2009 )
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