Recently, Victoria blogged about how much she loves this movie. I just saw it for my first time on a plane ride back to Europe and I too loved it! I think Amy Adams is a wonderful actress, and she was in it with the best - Meryl Streep. So recently, I went out and bought it.
In Italy I was forced to cook more - no fast food or Chili's take-out around. In fact, NO take-out around. So I did learn to make more interesting things - you know, the kind of food our mom made in the 70's every night? Before frozen pizza came around? My mother-in-law has been buying me a prescription to Taste of Home's "Simply Delicious" for about 8 years now so I put it to good use over there making things I'd never have tried while working a full time job. I learned to like to cook in Italy. Or I guess I learned not to be afraid to cook in Italy. I became one with my "pinch" finger, "getting fancy with the spices" as they say in Ratatouille.
These recent reminders of my love of cooking gave me a daring idea. I like the idea that Julia Child wrote a french gourmet cookbook in laymen's terms. The movie made me brave - could it be true that I've been sauteeing mushrooms wrong the whole time? And I know I've never dried my meat - a waste of papertowels if you would have asked me. I wanted to know if she was right, and if I could do it too, so yesterday I went on Barnes and Noble.com and checked out the books (there are 2 volumes, by the way). You can get it for a discounted price of 50 sum-odd dollars if you join their club (a great deal - I used to be a member before I moved overseas). Too expensive for me right now - only one job in the family for a little bit longer and then I'll be able to buy what I want. So I went online and looked it up - sure enough, some kind soul posted the recipe right out of the cookbook - scanned it in and everything.
Today I went to the store, bought the ingredients, including some things I was never quite sure of (shallots), and took it home and made Boeuf Bourguignon. Granted, I've never had it before, but it was pretty tasty! If you don't know what Boeuf Bourguignon is, it's french beef stew on gourmet steroids. I will never eat regular stew again. I think of that famous line in "Seven Brides For Seven Brothers" where Howard Keel asks "Paddy" for some ketchup to put on Jane Powell's stew and she says "My stew can stand on it's own two feet." Up until now, I kind of figured it wasn't much of a feat to make beef stew and make it taste good. And then I had Boeuf Bourguignon.
Folks, I am going to buy this cookbook in the next month, and no, I'm not going to be blogging about it continually. This blog is about the eye-opening experience of what food can be like when you learn how to cook it right. I can't wait to try some more things and I'm not even afraid to kill a lobster.
Julia Child is a GOD! I might have just found my religion!
In Italy I was forced to cook more - no fast food or Chili's take-out around. In fact, NO take-out around. So I did learn to make more interesting things - you know, the kind of food our mom made in the 70's every night? Before frozen pizza came around? My mother-in-law has been buying me a prescription to Taste of Home's "Simply Delicious" for about 8 years now so I put it to good use over there making things I'd never have tried while working a full time job. I learned to like to cook in Italy. Or I guess I learned not to be afraid to cook in Italy. I became one with my "pinch" finger, "getting fancy with the spices" as they say in Ratatouille.
These recent reminders of my love of cooking gave me a daring idea. I like the idea that Julia Child wrote a french gourmet cookbook in laymen's terms. The movie made me brave - could it be true that I've been sauteeing mushrooms wrong the whole time? And I know I've never dried my meat - a waste of papertowels if you would have asked me. I wanted to know if she was right, and if I could do it too, so yesterday I went on Barnes and Noble.com and checked out the books (there are 2 volumes, by the way). You can get it for a discounted price of 50 sum-odd dollars if you join their club (a great deal - I used to be a member before I moved overseas). Too expensive for me right now - only one job in the family for a little bit longer and then I'll be able to buy what I want. So I went online and looked it up - sure enough, some kind soul posted the recipe right out of the cookbook - scanned it in and everything.
Today I went to the store, bought the ingredients, including some things I was never quite sure of (shallots), and took it home and made Boeuf Bourguignon. Granted, I've never had it before, but it was pretty tasty! If you don't know what Boeuf Bourguignon is, it's french beef stew on gourmet steroids. I will never eat regular stew again. I think of that famous line in "Seven Brides For Seven Brothers" where Howard Keel asks "Paddy" for some ketchup to put on Jane Powell's stew and she says "My stew can stand on it's own two feet." Up until now, I kind of figured it wasn't much of a feat to make beef stew and make it taste good. And then I had Boeuf Bourguignon.
Folks, I am going to buy this cookbook in the next month, and no, I'm not going to be blogging about it continually. This blog is about the eye-opening experience of what food can be like when you learn how to cook it right. I can't wait to try some more things and I'm not even afraid to kill a lobster.
Julia Child is a GOD! I might have just found my religion!
That sounds so delicious! I now not only want to see the movie, but try that dish.
ReplyDeleteI love that you liked that movie. I've never had Boeuf Bourguignon, but I imagine it would be similar to burgandy stew, which my former mother-in-law walked me through making once. I also love burgancy gravy best. I can't see me getting the entire cookbook, since I almost never cook anymore. But I can see me trying a recipe or two.
ReplyDeleteRachel - don't know if you'll ever read this comment, but I re-read your post today. I was talking with Roni (with whom I saw this movie) and we noted how each age group seemed to like a few different aspects of the movie. I note that you commented on both Amy Adams and Meryl Streep. Roni and I both loved the way that Streep (again) just *nailed* the Julia speech. I was also smitten with the storyline of an older woman finally 'making her mark'. Victoria
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