Julia Child Floribunda Rose
the color of different shades of butter
photo taken in my garden today 8/15/2010 at 5:23 PM
Do you remember the first food blog you ever read?
I do. It was Champaign Taste. I was about to host a Julia Child themed dinner party and decided to get inspiration from the internet. It was then I discovered Lisa’s Champaign Taste and her first annual Julia Child Birthday Celebration in 2006. I was especially excited to read her post as I had attended the University of Illinois and had lived in Lisa’s hometown – Champaign, Illinois for four years.
Dear Lisa: Best wishes for continued success on your delightful long-running blog! Thank you for the initial inspiration and for holding your very special annual tributes to Julia Child for the last five years. It continues to be my absolute favorite event, big or small.
Julia Child writing about 1949:
“On August 15, I turned thirty-seven years old. Paul bought me the Larousse Gastronomique, a wonder-book of 1,087 pages of sheer cookery and foodery…By now I knew French food was “it” for me. I couldn’t get over how absolutely delicious it was.”
For Julia’s Birthday – I re-created her First Meal in France compiled from photos
on our last trip to Paris, and restaurant and Julia inspired home-cooked dishes.
Julia’s First Meal in Francewith Husband, Paul Child
(a re-creation)
We rolled to a stop in La Place du Vieux Marché,
the square where Joan of Arc had met her fiery fate.
There the Guide Michelin directed us to
Restaurant La Couronne.
Rouen is a 2000 year old city
located in Normandy
on the Seine River
not too far from the English Channel.
Rouen, France
November 1948
“The waiter is telling them about the chicken they ordered,” Paul whispered, “How it was raised, how it will be cooked, what side dishes they can have with it, and which wines would go best.”
“Wine?” exclaimed Julia, “at lunch?”
“We began our lunch with oysters on the half shell.”
“Rouen is famous for its duck dishes, but after consulting the waiter Paul had decided to order Sole Meunière…perfectly browned in a sputtering butter sauce with a sprinkling of chopped parsley on top.”
“Then came the salade verte with a slightly acidic vinaigrette.”
“Along with our meal, we happily downed a whole bottle of Pouilly-Fumé, a wonderfully crisp white wine from the Loire region. Another revelation!”
“We followed our meal with a leisurely dessert of fromage…”
“Paul and I floated out the door into the brilliant sunshine and cool air. Our first lunch together in France had been absolute perfection. It was the most exciting meal of my life.”
This is as she describes her meal to us in My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud’homme, published by Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2006.
To re-create the delicious Sole Meunière:
Season the fresh Petrale Sole, then dip it in a beaten egg. Dredge in flour and shake off the excess. Sauté in a half butter/half olive oil mixture until light brown. Make the sauce in another pan; brown the butter, finish with lemon juice and chopped parsley. Pour sauce on the platter, then top with the fish. Garnish with lemons and parsley.
Do you remember the first food blog your ever read?
Toujours Bon Appétit!
This is as she describes her meal to us in My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud’homme, published by Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2006.
Lori Lynn, this is wonderful. Your photos are simply beautiful. I read My Life in France and adored it, and I remember well Julia’s description of that meal. Your photos bring it to life so well.
And of course, the roses. Looking at them just about made me cry!
Thanks also for the kind words on the blog, and for the inspiration that you yourself provide.
I’m not absolutely sure, but I think that Cooking with Amy was the first food blog I ever ran across. I was so thrilled — I’d had no idea!
“Wine? At lunch?!”
This is a wonderful tribute to Julia Child. What a life she led with great food at every corner!
What an absolutely wonderful posting!! There was something very special about Julia, that draws foodies into the kitchen!! I do not remember the first food blog I read, but I am amazed everyday at how many I read on a daily basis.
Lovely tribute to Julia Child! She looked at life with such enthusiasm – contagious, I’d say. The first food blog I ever read was Kalyn’s Kitchen. I was searching for a tzatziki recipe and her blog popped up. I am happy to say the talented and generous Kalyn has become a friend of mine.
wow congrats on this fabulous presentation and wonderful journey to read loved this one , a classic and favorite memory~
Wine for lunch! A beautiful post and beautiful food.
OH atruly beautiful post, I enjoyed how you recreated a great moment in Julia’s life, lovely..my first blog oh goodness, I can’t remember …
sweetlife
Oh, this is wonderful. The pictures, the food, everything. I love that you did this tribute. Thank you for sharing the recipe for the sole. After seeing Julie and Julia, where I believe they recreate this very lunch, I wanted to know how they made it. It looked so delicious I could hardly stand it. I’m currently reading Appetite for Life. It’s Julia’s biography and it’s wonderfully entertaining, inspiring and hilarious! Thank you for sharing.
Julia just continues to inspire the American cook to get out of their comfort zone with food. Cheers to her!
I think the first blog that I read was the Pioneer Woman.
I absolutely loved this birthday tribute to Julia. I too am a lover of the grand gourmand and paid homage to her on her birthday with a trip to her kitchen in D.C., her presence was everywhere. I love to see how many of us have been inspired by her. Beautiful photos and blog!
What a lovely post! I love how you recreated the meal. I just re-read My Life in France and I love her recollection of her first meal in France.
And I honestly cannot remember the first food blog I ever read. There have been so many!
What’s more important? To be the first blog someone ever read or the best one?
I do remember the first food blog I ever read and is still reading it and still going strong 🙂
I do remember the first food blog I read… and the second and the 3rd. Was wonderful to find a use for all the photos I had been taking of food for the last ten years – with no outlet. Your recreation of Julia’s lunch I believe brought me to you (that or the Jackie O party). This is the loveliest tribute to someone who did not set out to change the way we eat – but followed her heart and led all of us into it.
Julia Child always reminds me of my mother who loved to cook along with Julia in the 1970s! GREG
Taste With The Eyes was the first blog I read……and it remains my favorite and most inspiring. Happy birthday Julia….and I’m sure there’s butter in heaven.
What a beautiful post…The first blog I ever read was not the most memorable, in fact I believe the 4th or 5th was the addiction 🙂 Again, lovely post and tribute…
I do. It was Ronisweigh.com. I was just about to start Weight Watchers and in my google searches about the program I stumbled upon her site. 10 months later I have a sponsored food blog of my own. 🙂
What a wonderful tribute to Julia’s memory. Your pictures are wonderful!
Gorgeous post LL!!! The first food blog I ever read was Chocolate and Zucchini. Years later I still am!
I love Julia Child; that sole recipe proves that simple can also be delicious. 🙂 Your photos are beautiful! We haven’t been to Paris since May 2009… perhaps it’s about time we went back.
I’m a little late to the blogging world – the first one I remember thoroughly reading (and enjoying) was Todd and Diane’s.
Cheers!
[K]
I remember the first blog I ever read, it was Food Blogga, and I still enjoy Susan’s posts.
The world of food blogging has grown so much since then!
Love those Paris pics, I will be there soon!
Beautiful post and even more beautiful photos. I just saw the movie Julia and Julie. Very nice.
What a wonderful party theme, so creative and such wonderful pictures! I can’t exactly remember the first food blog I read, but i’m thinking it was either Annie’s Eats or Smitten Kitchen…
I love your photos and reminiscing. Thanks for the great recipe. I was just thinking about Sole Meuniere the other day. What great timing!
I don’t quite remember the first food blog I ever read, but I have to say your photos on this blog are so formal and beautiful! Keep up the great work, it was fun to look at your pictures.
-Brandon
http://www.theyummybits.com
@theyummybits