Julia, Gran Fran and Me

This is a re-post of a piece I wrote two years ago, almost exactly. Apparently, as soon as it gets cool here in SF, I need to make Beef Bourguignon. Enjoy!

As you have probably already surmised, if you’ve read several of these posts, Gran Fran is an awesome cook who uses mostly intuition, learned over decades of cooking, alongside her unquenchable thirst for cookbooks.

 One of my earliest mother-daughter memories is of a fundraiser that we did when I was about 5 years old. Gran Fran volunteered for a membership drive for our local PBS television station. We were stationed in a small fold up booth in front of the Bloomingdale’s in Fresh Meadows, Queens (which I believe is now a K-Mart).

In exchange for membership, new members would get a cookbook. Not just any cookbook, but THE cookbook. Which one, you may ask? It’s the Julia Child tome of greatness, 

Mastering The Art of French Cooking

.

I recall Gran Fran waxing poetic about the recipes and the program. Remember, this was 1975, or so (oops, there it is again, a veiled reference to my actual age), not a time when a lot of people were spending hours make Bernaise sauce at home, but it was beginning to happen. Gran Fran sold some memberships that day, but mostly, she got to represent one of her culinary heroes to the public.

Recently, I asked her which of Julia’s recipes was her favorite. She said “Well, of course it’s Beef Bourguignon.” I know, it’s a typical recipe to choose, but it is one of the best, and we grew up eating it a lot. Gran Fran made it and the house smelled like a French bistro. The warmth of the kitchen, the smells of the red wine mingling with the bacon, thyme and onions is an unmatchable sensory memory for me.

Beef Bourguinon ala Gran Fran with a nod to Julia Child serves 8

One gigantic non-reactive pot is needed!!

Ingredients:

  • 3 to 3.5 Lbs Bottom Round, cubed (any good beef stewing meat works here)
  •  1/4 Lb Double Smoked Bacon
  • 2 Tbsps Olive Oil
  • 2 Carrots, cut into chunks
  • 1 Onion; diced
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, peeled and diced
  • 2 Tsps Flour
  • 3 Cups Dry Red Wine
  • 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Thyme
  • Bay Leaf

Method:

  • Preheat oven to 325°.
  • Boil diced bacon in 3 cups water for 10 minutes. Refresh bacon under cold water. Dry well.
  • Heat oil in a large skillet. Add bqcon. When bacon browns, remove from pan and set aside.
  • Dry beef well, then add it to the hot skillet.
  • Brown well on all sides.
  • In a heavy, nonreactive stew pan, add some oil from the skillet.
  • Saute onions and carrots in stew pan until golden brown. Then, sprinkle the veggies with the flour (which ultimqtely helps thicken the stew).
  • Brown until golden over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes.
  • Add browned meat to veggies.
  • Add red wine to the skillet you used to cook the meat. Stir up all browned particles and bring to a boil. Add this to meat in stew pot.
  • If needed, add water to stew pot so all so meat is covered.
  • In a small non-reactive sauce pan, place tomato paste, salt, pepper, garlic and thyme, with a little bit of olive oil. Stir over medium heat until paste has thinned a bit and all herbs/spices have been incorporated. Add to stew pot.
  • Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove.
  • COver closely (another gran franism) and plce on lower rack in the 325° oven.
  • Leave undisturbed for 1.5 hours.
  • Then, stir,put cover back on and simmer another 1.5 hours.

This stew tastes even better when reheated, so make a day or two in advance

How to Boil the Perfect Egg

It's past Easter, so I now, like many people, fancy myself somewhat of an egg boiling master. After boiling 3 and 1/2 dozen eggs, I found boiled egg nirvana.
Let me explain.
Ms. Iz. (aged 11, very discerning eye) and I tried to do our egg decorating late one Tuesday evening. It was a lackluster event, bordering on disaster. The dye I had chosen had no vibrancy, lacking in color as well. The crayons weren't doing their part. And, the stickers that came with the kit were not interesting enought to ofer any kind of joy. This accounts for the first dozenand a half eggs.
Three days later, we tried again. With more white wine vinegar, and better dye, we had a much higher success rate. The eggs were vibrant. The crayons were used to make very cute faces. The stickers still weren't very interesting. This accounts for the final two dozen eggs.
I now have a fridge full of beautifully colored hard boiled eggs. And a very good grasp on proper egg coloring techniques.
Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs (from Julia Child, of course)
Ingredients:
    • 1 dozen eggs 3 and 1/2 quarts of water

 

  • 1 Large Stockpot

 

Method:
    • Lay the eggs in the pan and dd the cold water.

 

  • Set over high heat and bring just to a boil.

 

 

  • Remove from heat, cover pan, and let sit exactly 17 minutes.

 

 

  • After the 17 minutes, transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice cubes and water.

 

 

  • Chill for 2 minutes.

 

 

  • (This next step, I do not do, but Julia does, so I am including it here: Transfer the eggs to the boiling water again and let boil for 10 minutes. Return the eggs to the ice water, craking the shells in several places.)

 

 

  • Chill the eggs in the fridge.

 

Enjoy!

Julia Child Rocks

I am here in San Francisco on a cool Saturday night watching a show created in NY called "Julia Child Memories: Bon Appetit" and it's fabulous. They have chosen a good number of her original episodes of "The French Chef" to re-air alongside some commentary from her fellow chefs. It's amazing to see her style of cooking show vs. the style of today's TV chefs. She is truly having a conversation with you, the viewer. The pace she moves is not hectic and there is minimal cutting away to shots of ingredients while she cooks.

The first part of the show is featuring her Omelette episode. She made approximately 6 versions, before going into her dining room where she had a portable burner set up and where she continues to make more omelettes for a dining room party. All the while, she is making a running commentary about who she is cooking each omelette for. Fascinating and real.

Here is a link to the PBS/Julia Child page where you can view some of the episodes:

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

She is most awesome.

Bon Appetit!

Gran Fran as Julia

Fall is always a nice time of year to make stews and soups. In our family, it's also when Gran Fran's birthday occurs. As she heads into a new decade (no, I won't tell you which one), these next few weeks' worth of posts will focus on her coming up as a cook. First, we have a small ode to the Queen, Julia Child. Stay tuned for some of Gran Fran's own pieces.

As you have probably already surmised, if you've read several of these posts, Gran Fran is an awesome cook who uses mostly intuition, learned over decades of cooking, alongside her unquenchable thirst for cookbooks.

One of my earliest mother-daughter memories is of a fundraiser that we did when I was about 5 years old. Gran Fran volunteered for a membership drive for our local PBS television station. We were stationed in a small fold up booth in front of the Bloomingdale's in Fresh Meadows, Queens (which I believe is now a K-Mart).

In exchange for membership, new members would get a cookbook. Not just any cookbook, but THE cookbook. Which one, you may ask? It's the Julia Child tome of greatness, Mastering The Art of French Cooking.

I recall Gran Fran waxing poetic about the recipes and the program. Remember, this was 1975, or so (oops, there it is again, a veiled reference to my actual age), not a time when a lot of people were spending hours make Bernaise sauce at home, but it was beginning to happen. Gran Fran sold some memberships that day, but mostly, she got to represent one of her culinary heroes to the public.

Recently, I asked her which of Julia's recipes was her favorite. She said "Well, of course it's Beef Bourguignon." I know, it's a typical recipe to choose, but it is one of the best, and we grew up eating it a lot. Gran Fran made it and the house smelled like a French bistro. The warmth of the kitchen, the smells of the red wine mingling with the bacon, thyme and onions is an unmatchable sensory memory for me.

Beef Bourguinon ala Gran Fran with a nod to Julia Child serves 8

One gigantic non-reactive pot is needed!!

Ingredients:

  • 3 to 3.5 Lbs Bottom Round, cubed (any good beef stewing meat works here)
  •  1/4 Lb Double Smoked Bacon
  • 2 Tbsps Olive Oil
  • 2 Carrots, cut into chunks
  • 1 Onion; diced
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, peeled and diced
  • 2 Tsps Flour
  • 3 Cups Dry Red Wine
  • 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Thyme
  • Bay Leaf

Method:

  • Preheat oven to 325°.
  • Boil diced bacon in 3 cups water for 10 minutes. Refresh bacon under cold water. Dry well.
  • Heat oil in a large skillet. Add bqcon. When bacon browns, remove from pan and set aside.
  • Dry beef well, then add it to the hot skillet.
  • Brown well on all sides.
  • In a heavy, nonreactive stew pan, add some oil from the skillet.
  • Saute onions and carrots in stew pan until golden brown. Then, sprinkle the veggies with the flour (which ultimqtely helps thicken the stew).
  • Brown until golden over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes.
  • Add browned meat to veggies.
  • Add red wine to the skillet you used to cook the meat. Stir up all browned particles and bring to a boil. Add this to meat in stew pot.
  • If needed, add water to stew pot so all so meat is covered.
  • In a small non-reactive sauce pan, place tomato paste, salt, pepper, garlic and thyme, with a little bit of olive oil. Stir over medium heat until paste has thinned a bit and all herbs/spices have been incorporated. Add to stew pot.
  • Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove.
  • COver closely (another gran franism) and plce on lower rack in the 325° oven.
  • Leave undisturbed for 1.5 hours.
  • Then, stir,put cover back on and simmer another 1.5 hours.

This stew tastes even better when reheated, so make a day or two in advance.