Molly, Julia and Julie, and a Tomato Tart

First of all, for those who asked after Eileen's old dog -- this is Molly yesterday. I haven't taken many pictures of her recently because she's looked so awful all summer due to my unsteady hand with the grooming shears. But she's getting a start on her winter coat now and looks better.

Molly's a sweetie -- she follows me pretty much everywhere, sleeps at the foot of the stairs to my workroom when I'm up there (her arthritis keeps her off the stairs), and when I go off in the car, she waits in the driveway till I return.

She waited while I drove off on Thursday and went with my friend Josie to see the movie Julie and Julia. This is something of an event -- I go to the movies maybe once every few years. But between so many good recommendations (thanks, Sam) and the fact that I, too, once spent an ungodly amount of time with Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I knew I needed to see this movie.

I first met Julia Child in 1964. John and I were newly wed, living in a tiny silver trailer up on blocks, in a trailer park of hundreds of other tiny silver trailers also up on blocks -- what was called, in the Marine Corps' straight-forward manner, 'sub-standard housing.' We had a small black and white TV and once a week, we watched Julia Child -- as much for the entertainment as for the cooking ideas.

My cooking was okay -- probably better than most young brides' at the time. I wasn't afraid to cook from scratch -- and I had some good family recipes plus the Tampa Junior League's The Gasparilla Cookbook (still in print and still one of my favorites -- I wore the first one out and am on my second copy) and a useful little item called Cooking for Two, the gift of a college friend (Susan T. from St. Louis who comments here now and again. An old friend ;-)

It wasn't till 1969 that I began to feel the need of something more and, accordingly, purchased a copy of Julia's great work, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. We were living in Iowa City while John attended grad school on the GI bill. I didn't have a job and I began seriously to try as many of the recipes in Mastering the Art as we could afford or find ingredients for. Lots of chicken -- not so much seafood. This was Iowa, after all.

I learned a lot about the various processes and sauces and I know that the time spent with Julia made me a better cook. I still go back to Mastering for favorites like Chicken a la Diable, Pork Chops Charcutiere, and, yes, Boeuf Bourguignon.

But back to the movie . . . it was wonderful.! The period clothing -- the hats, the heels, the suits -- all the cast, and, of course, Streep's bravura, over-the-top performance as Julia. (But then, Julia herself was over-the-top.) And I adored the woman who played Simone Beck. Really, they were all wonderful -- and I didn't find Julie 'whiny' as some crabby reviewers have complained (whined?) Really, really, I loved the movie.

Josie and I emerged from the theater, blinking in the late afternoon light. I had to do my grocery shopping and get home and fix dinner. But how, after this immersion in the food world, could I go home and do something ho-hum?

I remembered a recent post at Vicki Archer's "French Essence" blog. I already had the roasted tomatoes -- I've been roasting and freezing them for weeks now; all I needed was some tapenade or some Kalamata olive spread and some frozen (sorry, Julia) puff pastry sheets. Aha!

We had grilled chicken, a green salad, and the most decadently delicious and easy to make Tomato Tart imaginable! Go here for the recipe . . . and Bon Appetit!