photo courtesy New York Times
What is life if not a jigsaw puzzle of sorts? On random days and touched by unexpected events, one may unearth a relevant piece to take its place, neatly and fittingly, into the developing picture upon the card table in the hours of evening when the light begins to lower or, in the moments before the blush of daylight when one’s thoughts have just begun to stir…………..
I’ve taken a bit of a hiatus from my writing here for awhile. Seems as though I have been sidetracked with a few other tasks at hand. But, as I have come to see, it makes little sense to forget one’s own great passions as one ruminates about other things. As I considered the death of Madeleine Kamman over the past several days, it seemed like a good reason to return to this page. Her voyage resonates with me as does so many other determined women – and so, I got to thinking……….
Back in the 1980s when I was still living my corporate life, I began collecting recipes in earnest in three spiral bound notebooks which I still have in various states of disrepair . In those books I hand-copied recipes out of magazines and from other sources and simultaneously crammed them with clippings from the NYT’s 60 Minute Gourmet, “zeroxes” of pages, recipe cards and other sources. I continue to consult these collections to this day as they contains such classics as Michael McCarty’s Raspberry Soufflé from House Beautiful from decades ago.
I had begun my hobby of watching tv chefs very early on, in our living room back in the 60s with my dear Mom who, loved to watch Julia Child and Graham Kerr. She was entertained and for me, somewhere a seed was planted. Some seeds do not germinate but, this seed was sown and propagated itself mightily.
My Mom had taken to gifting me with cookbooks periodically as they were a means of transport for her into other inspiring cooks’ kitchens. For 28 years she worked in a library and she was entitled to order books at a discount (no Amazon) and so, she did this periodically (no pun intended) for me. Those books are among my most prized possessions as she inscribed and dated each and every one to me. While I was touched at the gift of each at the time, I had no idea of what those seeds would become – a virtual garden gateway into my curiosity and dedication to learning in the world of food. I would hope that she would have looked down upon that day that I enrolled at ICE’s Pastry and Baking Program in New York at the tender age of 58, and she would have been tickled pink, not to minimize one single moment that I apprenticed at her own side.
So, it was no surprise that I was introduced to Madeleine Kamman through her PBS tv series which ran from 1984 to 1991. At the time, I was also watching Pierre Franey and Earl Peyroux – the latter of whom I was turned on to by my partner in crime at work, the inimitable Barbara Halaburda. We shared many millions of laughs in those days and we still talk about Earl’s Pork Chops with Apples recipe that I continue to make to this day. But, I digress.
One of the things that attached me to Madeleine Kamman was her uncanny physical resemblance to my paternal Grandmother who was indeed a formidable cook and baker. (I have written about this here before, back in 2013 – https://kitchen-inspirational.com/2013/03/07/the-great-madeleine-kamman-episodic-wonder-on-my-palate-and-plate/) In re-reading Madeleine Kamman’s obituary today, I got to wondering about a couple of things.
Of course, one of the things that struck me in the obituary was the comment from the notorious Paul Bocuse about women’s place being in bed. While he may have been a brilliant chef, he totally missed the boat in my eyes as he chose to diminish and overlook the talent of women. Too bad for him is all I’ll say here.
Anyway, the other thing that struck me about Madeleine Kamman’s obituary –https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/20/obituaries/madeleine-kamman-87-celebrated-french-chef-is-dead.html
was the story about her struggle and determination to succeed, which of course I was immensely impressed with. Alone in her kitchen in Philadelphia, far away from her native France, she conceived and crafted a career and presence for herself. How many other women have done this? – so many that we know about but undoubtedly so many more that we know nothing about. And so, I got to thinking about how many very talented cooks there must be out there in the universe that are virtually anonymous and we will never hear or know about and yet their intuitive palates and creative abilities and contributions abound. For every recipe that we get to see and try, there must be billions or zillions that we do not. This wows me.
Anonymity or no? What makes the difference?
And so, as I continue my own “travels” around this world and in my own mind, considering the plight of women in cultures near and far, I tend to get more than a little rankled. It remains hard for me to consider the place that so many women accept for themselves as I ingest the degree to which cultural conditioning limits their positions – so many for whom this is not even in their consciousness. Even today when I see articles celebrating women driving in Saudia Arabia I become incensed. And then, I try to consider if not accept that all the world is a journey that has in its actual pockets of civilization, many starts and stops along the way. I stop to consider all of the cultures that contributed so very much to this earth that most people today don’t even acknowledge – the Far East, Africa, Persia to note just a few. America’s Eurocentricity seems to stand out way too far in perspective, I think to myself. Anyway, this all fits into my thought patterns as I consider the relative contributions of women cooks around the world, in their time and mine. In my mind they are all so noted.
And so, in spite my adamant dismay of all those who may never be known, I add Madeleine Kamman to my list of prominent forces in the women’s world of achievement. She gets a place in my list of examples of strivers and markers. She solidifies as a piece of my own jigsaw puzzle.
As I say goodbye to another notable chef and achiever, I’ll honor her much as I do my own dear Mother and my Grandmother alike, as teachers, mentors, examples, inspirers. Unlike Madeleine Kamman who took her place in the professional world, they, each a very accomplished cook and baker in their own right, may have been anonymous in the world of cooking to most, but their proclivities struck the match that lit the fire in my own hearth. And in another day, in another piece of the jigsaw puzzle, I pause to consider that while contribution is, notably relative, it is seldom inconsequential.
