Julia Child. A name that conjures up visions of fabulous French food, a "we don't fear the kitchen," slap-dash approach to concocting said dishes, World War II spy, Paris and Cambridge, Massachusetts.Please see the video of Julia's life at the bottom of this post!
On August 15, the world celebrates Julia's one hundredth birthday. And what a birthday gift she gave to us all. A universal appreciation not only of French food, but of a way of cooking good things with food that is good for you. Her joie de vivre, of course, is legendary.
And that lovely party feeling continues around Julia in many ways. Let me list a few:
Her publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, has led the celebration with "JC100: A 100-Day Celebration of Julia Child," which began in May and will continue until her birthday.
Knopf has compiled a list of the top 100 Child recipes, including her classic French bread, boeuf bourguignon and duck pate, and has been released one recipe per day until Aug. 15. They can be found at JC100 and on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Other JC100 events include bookstores across the country featuring her books and hosting readings and tributes, 100 food bloggers making her recipes and writing about them, and 100 restaurants across the country celebrating Julia Child Restaurant Week from Aug. 7 to 15. (The list of participating restaurants was released July 14.)A slate of books about Child have been released or re-released to coincide with the birthday, including two new children's books: "Bon Appetit! The Delicious Life of Julia Child" by Jessie Hartland ($17.99, hardcover, Random House); and "Minette's Feast: The Delicious Story of Julia Child and Her Cat" by Susanna Reich ($16.95, hardcover, Abrams Books for Young Readers), which tells a charming tale of Child's Paris cat, and how she tries to cook a meal the cat will enjoy more than a mouse.
For adults, "Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child," a new biography by Bob Spitz ($29.95, hardcover, Knopf), is set for release on Aug. 7. Also out is a new edition of 1999's "Appetite for Life: The Biography of Julia Child" by Noel Riley Fitch ($18.95 softcover, Anchor).If you want to see how it all began, PBS is set to release the DVD "The French Chef: Julia Child's French Classics" ($19.99), which features six episodes from Child's original 1960s black-and-white television show.
Child's series debuted in 1963, and introduced American home cooks to French cuisine. Episodes on the 180-minute DVD include her preparing French onion soup, coq au vin, quiche lorraine, chocolate mousse, French crepes and French apple tart.
"Bon Appetit!"
