Thank You Julia

     So I am going to put it out there right now...I LOVE the movie Julie & Julia.  Meryl Strep was amazing, as always, and she really made me love Julia Child.  Also, I really related to Julie Powell.  I would like to know what woman has seen this movie and did not run out and buy Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  I did not see this movie in the theater.  Tuck went out the day the movie came out on DVD and rented it for me.  I went and bought it on DVD the next day.  I really loved it. A couple days later I came home with Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  When I got home with the book, I was so intimidated by the contents that I almost took it back to Barns and Noble to return it.
     I decided to keep the book after reading a little more into it.  I became more comfortable with the book.  I will say this cook book is not for the impatient or those who can not follow directions.  To complete one recipe you will have to read 3-5 different pages, it will take you quite a while to complete, and if you do not follow the instructions carefully the recipe will not turn out. I suggest putting post its on the pages you will need for the recipe you are working on.
     Sometimes I can get impatient, but not with cooking.  So I decided to make Boeuf Bourguignon and a Souffle A La Vanille for dessert.  It took me about 5 hours of non-stop cooking on Friday evening.  I will tell you that Julia Child's cooking is for weekend purposes, and not for after a long day at work and shopping.  Also, it is expensive but well worth every minute and cent that you put into it.

So 4 hours into cooking the boeuf was ready!  Tuck and I were so excited and really hungry because it was close to 9 pm.  We normally eat around 6 pm.  It was amazing!! The meat was tender, so full of flavor, and you could eat an entire meal of just those sauteed mushrooms and brown braised pearl onions.  Tuck and I love food, but I have never seen Tuck eat like he did on Friday night.  It was so amazing.  This recipe makes a lot of food.  It called for 3 pounds of stewing beef.  There is not one drop left of this, we ate it all.  If you ever want to make an impressive meal, this is the one to make.  In Julie & Julia, Julie makes this meal for Judith Jones who ends up cancelling at the last minute due to rain.  When Julie's husband sits down with the big plate he takes a bite and then adds salt.  Julie says "is it bland?"  All I have to say is that you would have to do something really really wrong to make this meal bland.  It was so full of flavor I just do not see how this could ever be bland.

We served it with fresh French bread.  I think I already said it was amazing, but it was amazing!  While we were feasting on my (actually Julia's) masterpiece, the Vanilla Souffle was baking away.

I was so nervous about the souffle. Did I beat the egg whites long enough?  Where those stiff peaks I saw, or soft peaks? What if it cooks over? My mold was a little taller then what Julia says to use, but it still puffed up and was delicous.  I do not know how we were able to eat it, but we found the room in our bellies and ate almost the entire thing.

So thank you Julia Child for such amazing recipes.  It was the best dinner I ever had.