Harry Potter Mania watch out, Julia Mania has taken over

If Mastering becomes too difficult to find - I highly recommend The Way To Cook,

nearly everything I first learned about cooking came from there.

My most loved cookbook!

 
I use The Way far more than Mastering. (Wow, sounds kinda Zen.) One has to do a brief mental

revision with Mastering -- using appliances where Julia did everything by hand, updating cuts of meat, and so on. But some of those recipes, boy oh boy, there's just no "modern" version. That cassoulet tops any recently printed cassoulet recipe. Come to think of it, that's about the only recipe in Mastering I keep going back to. My Way to Cook, on the hand, is porcupined with flags, for cheese soufflé, French bread, madeleines, custard sauce and crème caramel, spongecake ...

 
The thing I like about it, then and now, is how it is laid out with master recipes

and the variations. It helped me see how so many dishes are related to each other, as well as gave inspiration to try new combinations.

I think the directions are very clearly written for all skill levels.

 
I checked MAFC out of library in 1975 to attempt chocolate mousse. I failed the process miserably.

It was gritty & sandy and just plain nasty and I felt like a culinary failure.

Never opened that book again because I figured I wasn't the French or the Mastering kind.

Maybe it's time to give it a try again.

 
Happened to me also-years ago. I think Julia's technique of melting the chocolate is a bit ...

tricky. Mine seezed just like yours M. Melt it gently over barely simmering water and you won't have a bit of trouble. I made it again with properly melted chocolate and it is sublime.

 
Last night on Who Wants to be a Millionaire there was a question about Julia...

“Throughout her career in the kitchen, Julia Child often said the secret to a long life is what?"

A. Garlic and cognac

B. Red meat and gin

C. French fries and foie gras

D. Red wine and oysters

I knew the answer was not C because there wasn't any liquour in the answer.

 
Marilyn, have you ever tried the microwave to melt chocolate? The thought used to scare me to death

but if you put it in a microwaveable bowl, I use a Pyrex casserole, nuke in 30 second blasts, stir and nuke again until melted it works like a charm.

 
Oops, omitted the chocolate mousse from my list above. That's how I nabbed my partner of

17 years. I was trying the recipe in The Way to Cook on our first date. Now there's an endorsement!

 
speaking of things you thought you could never nuke, I have a microwave egg poacher and

in just 50 seconds I get the most perfect poached ever. go figure.

 
I just love Julia's Kitchen Wisdom book, it's from her cheat notes & I keep it on top of the fridge

It's not really a recipe book, more of methods and a few base recipes. I swear it's the most handy thing she has ever published and I do have most of her books...

 
mine did too the first time. it only bounced a little the second time and the eggs were perfect.

how did your eggs turn out?

 
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