OVER THE WEEKEND, I convinced a member of the opposite sex to suspend his better judgement and sit through two-plus hours of Amy Adams and Meryl Streep chopping, whisking, and braising in "Julie & Julia" (Read: I plied him with alcohol, peach-almond cobbler, and a promise to watch all three Rambo movies).Having read Julie Powell's book, and given a half-hearted look at Child's memoir, My Life in France, I happily anticipated Nora Ephron's take on the women's parallel lives. And I wasn't disappointed. Food lovers, as well as fans of either or both actresses, who've been waiting for the DVD release should gobble it up. One reviewer stated that menfolk would be more likely to enjoy sticking a fondue fork in an eye than the movie itself; while it's true the film has a number of lines anyone would find hilarious, it's chick flick, and a good one, and Streep brings Julia Child to life as perhaps only she could do.
"This is a book for the servantless American cook," Mastering begins, "who can be unconcerned on occasion with budgets, waistlines, time schedules, children's meals, the parent--chauffeur--den-mother syndrome, or anything else which might interfere with the enjoyment of producing something wonderful to eat." In short, it's a complete education in 700 pages. Having myself no intention of working my way through the entire tome (especially the section on sweetbreads and brains), I admire Julie Adam's determination to see the cooking through that led to her blog, her book, and ultimately the big-budget movie.
Cooks eager to recreate Julia's Boef Bourguignon, the dish the young chef prepares (twice) and speaks of in such referential terms, can follow this link to a PDF of the recipe, courtesy of Knopf Doubleday.
http://cooking.knopfdoubleday.com/2009/07/13/julia-childs-boeuf-bourguignon-recipe/
Bon Appetit!
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