Julia Child and The French Chef

"Dennis Spexet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My local public TV station has been showing old French Chef episodes. I
recorded some on my Tivo, and watched them this morning while having
breakfast.

It's been a really, really long time since I've seen them (at least 25
years), so it was like watching them new again. What really struck me
about the shows was their totally unpretentious nature, especially when
compared to cooking shows of today.

In one episode, Julia was making omelettes. She was making them on an
ordinary electric coil range -- no fancy gas cooktops. Instead of showing
off the latest in fancy cookware, she used a plain old nonstick skillet.
The omelettes didn't look "picture perfect", but they looked great enough
to eat!

On another episode, Julia was making potato recipes. She tried to flip a
potato pancake, and it broke up -- with some of it on the stove. No
problem -- she just picked up the broken pieces, put it all on a plate,
and covered it up with cheese (or something like that, I forget now).

She even wiped her face off with a towel a couple times during the show,
because all the range burners were making the place hot. How often would
you see that happen today?

I thought it was pretty cool seeing all that stuff again, because it puts
today's modern attitudes in a new light. Julia didn't have to use the
fanciest appliances or the fanciest cookware. Her technique didn't have
to be perfect, and she didn't have to look perfect. All she needed to do
was MAKE GOOD FOOD.

Seeing how things turned out in her life, I'll bet she made some pretty
good food indeed.

Here's one of my Favorites, which I treasure:

http://www.pbs.org/juliachild/

Dora

"Dennis Spexet" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My local public TV station has been showing old French Chef episodes. I
recorded some on my Tivo, and watched them this morning while having
breakfast.

It's been a really, really long time since I've seen them (at least 25
years), so it was like watching them new again. What really struck me
about the shows was their totally unpretentious nature, especially when
compared to cooking shows of today.

I learned from Julia that it's sometimes OK (or necessary) to knock down a
half bottle of wine when you're cooking. :-)

Dennis Spexet said:

In one episode, Julia was making omelettes. She was making them on an
ordinary electric coil range -- no fancy gas cooktops. Instead of showing
off the latest in fancy cookware, she used a plain old nonstick skillet.

Anyone notice the stand mixer she was using?
It wsn't the ubiquitous (these days) KitchenAid.

Doug Kanter said:

I learned from Julia that it's sometimes OK (or necessary) to knock down a
half bottle of wine when you're cooking. :-)

You'd have loved Justin Wilson. He operated on the premise the recipe
should get half as much wine as he did ...preferrably second!

nb

Dennis Spexet said:

[snip]
It's been a really, really long time since I've seen them (at least 25
years), so it was like watching them new again. What really struck me about
the shows was their totally unpretentious nature, especially when compared
to cooking shows of today. [snip]

In "Julia Child and Company," after first saying, "Preparation is
everything," she offers this wonderful perspective:

In private or public cooking, broad, firm gestures are the most
efficient. Wallop your steaks! Whoosh up your egg whites! And,
behind your chafing dish and before your guests, act with assurance
and decisiveness. Let every move accomplish something, and
don't twiddle. As brevity is the soul of wit, spareness or "line"
is the basis of bravura. And "line" is a matter of practice and
preparation, which really is not dirty work for those who love to
cook.

Wallop! Whoosh! Don't twiddle! What a great broad. -aem

On Sun, 26 Mar 2006 08:56:01 -0800, Mark Thorson <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Anyone notice the stand mixer she was using?
It wsn't the ubiquitous (these days) KitchenAid.

Today...anything you see on a "cooking show" IS PUT THERE for a
specific reason..........visual advertising. Which makes me laugh
when a easily identifiable product, i.e. Ritz Crackers, and they have
blacked out the identifying logo. You would have to be a space alien
not to know what the brand was.

Julia prepared good food....she was not a prostitute for the network.

"Siobhan Perricone" wrote > "limey"

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Here's one of my Favorites, which I treasure:

http://www.pbs.org/juliachild/

This link doesn't specify an episode, can you tell us which it is? 🙂

Siobhan Perricone

The closest I can come to naming a specific episode is: Click on "Meet the
Chefs". This gives a breakdown of four different categories of Julia's
cooking with various chefs. Click on a specific chef, then you can choose
a dish being prepared by that chef (e.g., Jacques Pepin) in conjunction with
Julia.

It doesn't show a log of specific PBS/Julia episodes
that I could find, but I just enjoy browsing through the various categories
and chefs.

Dora

notbob said:

Doug Kanter said:

I learned from Julia that it's sometimes OK (or necessary) to knock down a
half bottle of wine when you're cooking. :-)

You'd have loved Justin Wilson. He operated on the premise the recipe
should get half as much wine as he did ...preferrably second!

He came to my radio program half-sozzled. We proceeded to get the rest
of the way together while we were on the air. We drank his "Thomas
Justin Collinses."

Great guy...

Pastorio

Mark Thorson said:

Dennis Spexet said:

In one episode, Julia was making omelettes. She was making them on an
ordinary electric coil range -- no fancy gas cooktops. Instead of showing
off the latest in fancy cookware, she used a plain old nonstick skillet.

Anyone notice the stand mixer she was using?
It wsn't the ubiquitous (these days) KitchenAid.

I *want* a KA. Notice I stressed want because for me it is a want. I've
managed all these years without one. I have a hand held mixer, wisks,
use a breadmaker, and don't make a lot in the way of cakes. Still I
want one. A friend and I were talking as she wants one too. We were
watching the food channel at her house when one of the chefs was using
one and she made a couple of interesting comments. She does a lot of
baking as in cakes, cookies and desserts. There isn't a lot of room to
add ingredients and like me she has limited space although she has room
to store hers in the utility room. Like me she has limited counter
space and while we've not measured I might have about 4" more. So space
and useablity are the two things we really talked about.

I love how she advised that you never disclose your mistakes or
apologize to anyone for them. You learn by them, but the truth is that
very few people (outside of this cooking group, obviously) are
comfortable having guests for dinner and pulling off a great meal
(hence the ever-present invitation of "pot luck" which burns me up) and
they will line up to eat anything you prepare as long as you do it with
love and passion. She will forever live in my heart as my greatest
cooking influence, with the exception of my mom and grandmothers.

Sandy

Dennis Spexet wrote, re Julia Child:

"Seeing how things turned out in her life, I'll bet she made some
pretty good food indeed."

I've been watching PBS too. I miss her shows, as my culinary training,
like many others, started by watching her show. Compared with most
cooking shows today, it was inspirational, while being down to earth.
She made a person feel that cooking something new and different, or
using a new technique, well, it was totally possible.

My favorite episode was where early on, she made a birthday dinner for
herself. The idea that you could make a cake out of circles of baked
merangue (sp?), and, then frost if with apricot jam was a brain-opener
for me. I checked out my first cook book from the library that night,
as we cerainly didn't have any in my home.

I loved Julia Child's programs.

DEE

Dennis Spexet wrote :

Quoted message said:

All she needed to do was
MAKE GOOD FOOD.

Dennis,

I'd rephrase that: All she needed to do was make good tasting food. And she
had that down pat.

Her technique, knowledge and sense of humor was what make her so endearing,
imho.

I have her (and her colleagues) book Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
Cost me $0.25 at a yard sale. I just don't have the heart that would
outlive one of her recipes in my condition. 😉

Andy

Dennis Spexet said:

My local public TV station has been showing old French Chef episodes.
I recorded some on my Tivo, and watched them this morning while
having breakfast.

For those really interested, the series is available on DVD, available
from PBS or Amazon (doubtlessly elsewhere). I also see that Netflix at
least carries it for rent.

Brian

--
If televison's a babysitter, the Internet is a drunk librarian who
won't shut up.
-- Dorothy Gambrell (http://catandgirl.com)

Quoted message said:

I thought it was pretty cool seeing all that stuff again, because it puts
today's modern attitudes in a new light. Julia didn't have to use the
fanciest appliances or the fanciest cookware. Her technique didn't have

to

Quoted message said:

be perfect, and she didn't have to look perfect. All she needed to do was
MAKE GOOD FOOD.

Seeing how things turned out in her life, I'll bet she made some pretty

good

Quoted message said:

food indeed.

I liked were when she tackled a large piece of meat or a giant piece of
fish. Since there's no way to predict what will happen when you have to
trim, turn, or pick up something big, wet, and ready to fall apart like
that, most modern shows don't show how much hassle it can be working with
large food. Julia made that part of the kicks she got from cooking and doing
it for an audience.--
Lefty

Life is for learning
The worst I ever had was wonderful

Quoted message said:

"Bob (this one)" <[email hidden]>,in rec.food.cookingwrote:
and entertained us with

Quoted message said:

notbob said:

Doug Kanter said:

I learned from Julia that it's sometimes OK (or necessary) to knock down a
half bottle of wine when you're cooking. :-)

You'd have loved Justin Wilson. He operated on the premise the recipe
should get half as much wine as he did ...preferrably second!

He came to my radio program half-sozzled. We proceeded to get the rest
of the way together while we were on the air. We drank his "Thomas
Justin Collinses."

Great guy...

Pastorio

Is he still with us ? I enjoyed his shows although I don't like that
style of cooking.

Sheena

lucretia borgia said:

"Bob (this one)" <[email hidden]>,in rec.food.cookingwrote:
and entertained us with

Quoted message said:

notbob said:

On 2006-03-26, Doug Kanter <[email hidden]> wrote:

> I learned from Julia that it's sometimes OK (or necessary) to knock down a
> half bottle of wine when you're cooking. :-)
You'd have loved Justin Wilson. He operated on the premise the recipe
should get half as much wine as he did ...preferrably second!

He came to my radio program half-sozzled. We proceeded to get the rest
of the way together while we were on the air. We drank his "Thomas
Justin Collinses."

Great guy...

Pastorio

Is he still with us ? I enjoyed his shows although I don't like that
style of cooking.

No, Justin Wilson is no more. He passed away in 2001.

Meanwhile, let the news go forth that the widespread reports of Julia's
generous on-air tippling are exaggerations. Julia didn't drink as she
worked, and in fact the "wine" she would pour when her finished meal was
served at the end of an episode was (and I always thought this was
well-known) Gravy Master-colored water. Even so, the tale still lives as
large as the one about the day she dropped a turkey on the air... or was
it a chicken? Either way, didn't happen.

Pennyaline said:

Meanwhile, let the news go forth that the widespread reports of Julia's
generous on-air tippling are exaggerations. Julia didn't drink as she
worked, and in fact the "wine" she would pour when her finished meal was
served at the end of an episode was (and I always thought this was
well-known) Gravy Master-colored water. Even so, the tale still lives as
large as the one about the day she dropped a turkey on the air... or was
it a chicken? Either way, didn't happen.

I've seen it. It's an out take that's out on the net
somewhere. If I come across the link I'll post it.

It's funny as hell, too.

--
Reg

Pennyaline said:

Meanwhile, let the news go forth that the widespread reports of Julia's
generous on-air tippling are exaggerations. Julia didn't drink as she
worked, and in fact the "wine" she would pour when her finished meal was
served at the end of an episode was (and I always thought this was
well-known) Gravy Master-colored water.

Yes, I've seen this reported, too. The exaggerated tippling comes from
the SNL skits about her, I think. -aem

Reg said:

Pennyaline said:

Meanwhile, let the news go forth that the widespread reports of
Julia's generous on-air tippling are exaggerations. Julia didn't
drink as she worked, and in fact the "wine" she would pour when
her finished meal was served at the end of an episode was (and I
always thought this was well-known) Gravy Master-colored water.
Even so, the tale still lives as large as the one about the day
she dropped a turkey on the air... or was it a chicken? Either
way, didn't happen.

I've seen it. It's an out take that's out on the net
somewhere. If I come across the link I'll post it.

It's funny as hell, too.

Snopes says Julia denied it.

http://www.snopes.com/radiotv/tv/julia.htm

"Child admitted time and again to the potato pancake incident but
always firmly maintained she never dropped a chicken, duck, or whatever
else the rumor has ascribed to her. Thanks to the power of manufactured
memory, fans of the show remain convinced they saw something she
directly and repeatedly denied."

Brian
--
If televison's a babysitter, the Internet is a drunk librarian who
won't shut up.
-- Dorothy Gambrell (http://catandgirl.com)