To be fair, Jacques Pepin recalled a lot of awesome things about Julia Child for this lovely piece about her in New York Magazine. But we stuck with the three most heartwarming. An honorable mention shout-out, however, should go to the part where he talks about the “reverse Manhattan” cocktail her husband once mixed him in their Cambridge home; it was made mostly of sweet red vermouth with a lime/lemon wedge and a splash of bourbon. And it sounds delicious.
Jacques and Jules met after he perused her manuscript of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and experienced major writer envy. Eventually, they would teach cooking courses together at Boston University and co-host a PBS special called “Cooking in Concert.” Here are some highlights from Jacques’ tribute:
First impressions from his mentor Helen McCully:
“A woman from Cambridge, Massachusetts, wrote it and she is coming here next week,” Helen said, “so why don’t we cook for her? She is a very tall woman with a really terrible voice.”
This was my introduction to Julia Child.
Why Julia Child is everything The Braiser strives to be:
She was opinionated, loved to gossip and knew everything there was to be known about everyone in the food world at the time. She loved the people in it, except for ‘a couple of bad apples,’ as she put it.
A fond farewell that, frankly, made us a little teary:
Wherever you are, Julia, in the Promised Land, in God’s Kingdom, I’m sure you are finding happy hunting grounds along with Escoffier and have probably started revising “The Guide Culinaire” with him. We miss you, Julia. Here’s to you on your birthday!
You can read “Memories of a Friend, Sidekick and Foil” in its entirety here.
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