Poulet Roti...

Some of you may remember when a few weeks ago Mark and I (I really - thank goodness he is such a good sport!) decided it was high time we took a stab at Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon recipe. Afterward I was oh-so-proud and threw out the mention that soon I would be on may way to Central Market to purchase "the perfect roasting chicken". Well, it took me a little longer than expected but today was the day and let's just say it out loud - I conquered that bird!

Now, according to Julia, it "does not require years of training to produce a juicy, brown, buttery, crisp-skinned, heavenly bird". Today I learned she was exactly right. It does however require a lot of babysitting! Basically, I basted and turned that bird (a 90 degree turn each time) every 10 minutes for an hour and a half. The result - a juicy brown, buttery, crisp-skinned, heavenly bird!

I think it is important to mention that I have roasted chickens before - and they were good - but nothing to compare to this. Maybe it was all the butter Julia asked me to bath the bird in? Anyway, in Mastering The Art of French Cooking Julia suggests the following sides with Poulet Roti, otherwise known as Roast Chicken. At her suggestion I went with Gratin Dauphinois (Scalloped Potatoes), Green Peas and dinner rolls. And so here you have it...my attempt at a simple, elegant, French dinner for my sweet husband and I...

The table...


And the bird...


And those yummy potatoes...


Ta-da...


So if Julia were around I wonder which of her recipes she would suggest I try next? One thing for sure, no matter the recipe, if I'll follow her lead it is sure to be delightful. Once again - Bon Appétit!

In Honor of Julie AND Julia...

A couple of weeks ago Mark and I went to the theater and saw Julie and Julia starring Amy Adams and Meryl Streep. What a precious movie! Meryl Streep was amazing and I have to keep reminding myself that Meryl is not ACTUALLY Julia - although, I also have to wonder whether the true Julia could have been any more charming than Meryl playing Julia! She is tall and vocal and when one day her husband asks her, "what is it you really like to do?" she responds, "eat" and he says, "and you're so good at it, look at you"!

The movie ended, the credits rolled and I looked over at my husband and proclaimed, "You realize now that I must have that cookbook". Being the sweetie-pie that he is it miraculously appeared in my mailbox just a few days later!

In case you aren't familiar with "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" it is a mere 684 pages long. As it just so happens I have spent several half sleepless nights of late so I've familiarized myself with said book and decided it was high time we tackled the delectable Boeuf Bourguignon.

Boeuf Bourguignon is basically beef stew but, let me you something people, once you have tasted this stuff you will never look at beef stew the same again. Holy-moly was it fabulous. The bacon, the boeuf, the herbs, the sautéed mushrooms, the baby onions, and the entire bottle of Cote de Rhone - oh my, I may have to have another serving! Focus Kim.

Okay, so as the story goes Julie spent 365 days of her life tackling (not to mention blogging about) the 524 recipes offered by Julia in this beautiful book. It was quite a challenge but she pulled it off. I'm in no way saying I could ever pull off such a feat especially considering there are complete chapters on duck, goose, kidneys, liver, sweetbreads and brains; I am however excited to take on the poultry chapter, the eggs, the vegetables and the pork. As you can tell dear reader, Julie, Julia, Senior Reaves and I have a couple of things in common, we love to cook, we love to eat and we're good at it!

So, in the next few days I will be off to Central Market to purchase the perfect roasting chicken. According to Julia it "does not require years of training to produce a juicy brown, buttery, crisp-skinned, heavenly bird". Well, we'll see about that. Until then "bon appétit"!