![\"Mastering](\"https:\/\/adribarrcrocetti.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/MasteringTheArtOfFrenchCooking-5870_262.jpg\" "\\"Mastering")
<\/a>Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1<\/p><\/div> The dedication reads:<\/p>\n to<\/em> But the book is not for the French. Not at all, and the authors made that crystal clear in their Foreword when they wrote “In fact the book could well be titled \u2018French Cooking from the American Supermarket.'” Their goal was to inculcate fundamental cooking techniques thereby enabling women to “…gradually be able to divorce yourself from a dependence on recipes.” The authors speak of “…a greed for perfection…” that informs the production of a perfectly roasted chicken. But this greed was not reserved to the roasting of a bird. It was this greed for perfection that drove the authors over ten years, countless rewrites and the rejection of publishers, to persevere and ultimately triumph with this masterwork. Call it seminal. Call it revolutionary. This book forever changed the way Americans cook.<\/p>\n For some American housewives it was an easy sell. It really was a perfect storm. With modern conveniences they had more free time. Europe, and France in particular, seemed less foreign after The War. American tourism to Europe was on the upswing, and travelers returned to the U. S. having sampled all the best France had to offer. And they wanted more. Eager to step up their entertaining, and wishing to emulate the sophistication of Jacqueline Kennedy they eagerly purchased Le Creuset<\/a> and Descoware cookware and got to work. Many women even toted their copies of Mastering the Art to their neighborhood butcher or fishmonger to ensure they were getting the right cut of meat, fowl or fish for the evening’s repast.<\/p>\n For some women, it was a less easy sell. Many women who had lived through the depths of the depression when making dinner was often the supreme act of scrounging, found the thought of sitting shelling peas or making a cake from scratch positively reactionary. Their ascendancy to the middle class with its attendant financial freedom allowed them to purchase convenience foods such as canned petit pois and Duncan Hines cake mixes. They had no intention of returning to days spent in the kitchen. The women of the early sixties were of two minds, most certainly.<\/p>\n And then America met Mrs. Child. Ultimately she became a household name in America with her PBS television show “The French Chef<\/a>,” and everybody called her Julia. 199 programs were produced between 1963 and 1966, and Americans simply ate it up. Even the die hard afficionados of canned goods and Duncan Hines rethought their cooking philosophy after watching her. Indeed, the revolution was televised.<\/p>\n To Americans Julia Child was the face of the book, and most today do not know there were other authors. Mastering the Art (shorthand among food lovers) with its 524 recipes has remained in print since its publication, selling over one million copies. The book and its companion volume (published in 1970) are close to my heart. I recall one day in 1980 when I told a friend that I wanted to “really learn to cook”, that I wanted to go to cooking school. I asked her if she knew of any cooking schools in town. She said “Forget school. Buy Julia Child’s books, and start cooking.” Sage advice. I followed her advice and got busy. There was Creme Anglaise, Creme Plombieres and Creme Renversee au Caramel<\/a>. From Volume 2 I recall my first attempt at puff pastry at midnight in my kitchen, the scent of its buttery goodness filling the room, a complete success. After making Boeuf a la Bourguignonne I do not know how many times – I no longer consult a recipe. Mastering the Art of French Cooking worked its magic on me, teaching me fundamental techniques and building my confidence, just as it did for so many others. A treasure now, just as it was on its release October 16, 1961 the book and its companion volume are a must for any serious cook’s library. Happy Birthday, to Mastering the Art!<\/p>\n Visit Julia Child’s kitchen at the Smithsonian online here<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\n“This is a book for the servantless American cook…” So begins Volume 1 of Mastering the Art of French Cooking<\/a>, the masterwork of Mmes. Julia Child<\/a>, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck. This month we celebrate fifty years since the book’s publication. Congratulations to all involved in bringing forth this wonderful book. I can not believe it has been that long. I remember when it came out, and did it ever make a splash in my neighborhood.<\/p>\n
\n La Belle France<\/em>
\n whose peasants, fishermen, housewives, and princes-not to mention her chefs – through generations of inventive and loving concentration have created one of the world’s great arts<\/em><\/p>\n