11/28       #522                 

THEY MADE A DIFFERENCE:  PEOPLE

  A few weeks ago we started series of programs that gave credit to some of the things that have made a difference in the way Americans eat today.  Certainly over the last 40 years our nation has gained a more sophisticated palette.  Gourmet cooking, once considered the private preserve of the wealthy elite, is remarkably commonplace. Since the early 50’s, when our food revolution began, there have been a few individuals who have done more than others to change our attitudes.  Some are household names today, some are not so well known.  But they all made a huge difference.

James Beard was the godfather of modern American cooking.  He almost single-handedly opened food writing to men and got it out of the hands of Women’s Pages and efficiency minded home economists.  His first efforts were devoted to the outdoor grill, and his cookbooks helped launch America’s love affair with the barbecue.  Later cookbooks certified the notion of a gourmet cuisine that was all-American.  He was an inspiration to a generation of American chefs, and the reward that bears his name is our loftiest praise to culinary professionals.

Craig Claiborne a reporter and critic for the New York Times, he made it his business to raise the bar in America.  He created the “make or break” restaurant review, praised innovation, derided the tired and cliché-ridden, and used his bully pulpit to get the word out that we could and should eat better.  His cookbooks, prepared with chef Pierre Franey, became classics.

Julia Child did more than anyone to popularize haute cuisine, demystifying it and making it available to the masses.  Her cookbooks and her television series were all about education and passion.  If she emphatically made the point that “cordon bleu” cooking was the epitome, she also honored the ordinary French cook whose meals emphasized traditional ingredients, seasonality, flavor and character.  Be more like a French housewife, Julia suggested, and you’ll become a better American cook.

Pierre Franey came over to New York in 1939 to work in the French Pavillion at the World’s Fair.  It was enormously popular and eventually gave rise to a series of top notch French restaurants in New York.  Franey worked with Craig Claiborne, cooking while Claiborne wrote down recipes for the New York Times.  Franey also had several PBS cooking shows to go along with his marvelous cookbooks, which were models of clarity and creativity.

Jacques Pepin was in essence a protégé of Pierre Franey who came to share his respect for America’s culinary potential.  Pepin made his mark in television, where he became regarded as perhaps the best of all the TV cooking teachers.

Alice Waters is the earth mother of new American cuisine.  Her legendary Berkeley, California restaurant Chez Panisse launched multiple fashions in new American cooking.  Her passion was fresh local ingredients, gown by committed artisans who knew how to get quality into their product.  Less a great cook herself, her strength was strategic thinking and inspiration.

Jeremiah Tower was one of Alice Waters’ earliest disciples.  Arrogant, endlessly creative, charismatic he sought to bridge Waters’ ideas for a new American cuisine with the best that classic French cooking had to offer.  His San Francisco restaurant Stars was the epicenter of the hyper trendy California cuisine that Tower spun out of Chez Panisse theory.

Mark Miller moved America past European inspired cooking by honoring Southwestern and Mexican cucina.  He proved that it was possible to creatively elaborate the simple elements of tortillas, chiles, moles, beans and beef.  His next step was to export the Southwestern approach to the rest of the country which he did through allies like Rick Bayliss.

Wolfgang Puck, an Austrian born chef validated the California inclinations for creative informality and license to experiment.  At his Los Angeles restaurant Spago, his specialty was the humble pizza, which Puck twisted and spun with almost alarming talent.  He went nationwide with his operations and today is a brand name in his own right.

Emeril Lagasse was a master chef long before the first cry of “Baam!” hit the airwaves.  He earned his stripes in some of New Orleans biggest and most demanding restaurants, holding down the kitchen at the legendary Commander’s Palace. Someone figured that Lagasse’s natural high spirits, enthusiasm and charisma would make him a good bet for telelvision.  Yes and no.  A short-lived sitcom starring the celebrity chef was a poor vehicle, but cooking for a studio audience was his natural milieu.  As a popularizer of up to date cooking techniques and ideas, he is without peer.

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