When I issued my dinner invitation, I said, “Wear Your Lipstick,” and they did. L to R, Steve Chase, Donna Grauer, Donna Chase and the birthday boy, Bernie Grauer.
Since October, 2010, when French Fridays was launched, we Doristas have danced around Dorie Greenspan’s French table. While our jigs were virtual, the 300 recipes she created and we made were delightfully genuine. Now, after 4 1/2 years, it’s kinda shocking to realize I’ve successfully muddled through Around My French Table, more than 300 recipes from my home to yours cookbook.
Marie-Hélène’s Apple Cake by Dorie Greenspan was chosen to be included in Food52’s Genius Recipes cookbook.
To mark this journey’s end, we are all choosing our most treasured recipe. For me, that’s easy. I salute Marie-Hélène’s Apple Cake. Admittedly, when I bring this dessert to the table, no one is impressed. This rather plain Jane, single-layer cake has no WOW factor…until you take the first bite. As one dinner guest exclaimed recently, “This is the real deal.”
The apple cake batter, in its springform pan, home before it visits the oven.
It gets better. Last April, FOOD52, an award-winning community-based cooking site, published a cookbook, Genius Recipes, 100 Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook. That’s a heavyweight moniker for any cookbook but it’s become a New York Times bestseller. Here’s the kicker. Marie-Hélène’s Apple Cake by Ms. Greenspan is one of the 17 chosen desserts. I rest my case.
THE BOOK
The completion of this 4 1/2-year effort called for a celebratory dinner. Since friend Bernie Grauer’s birthday dovetailed with this completion, I planned a small party. “It’s a Genius Dinner,” I told my friends. “Wear your lipstick,” I requested.
Here’s the menu with links to the recipes, all taken from FOOD52’s Genius Recipes, 100 Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook:
Romaine Hearts with Caesar Salad Dressing from Frankies Spuntiono, an idiosyncratic Italian restaurant owned by chefs Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo;
Gratin of Zucchini, Rice & Onions with Cheese from the beloved and admired Julia Child;
Brisket of Beef from Nach Waxman , founding partner of Kitchen Arts & Letters, a cookbook store in Manhattan;
Marie-Hélène’s Apple Cake from the wonderfully talented Dorie Greenspan.
The beef brisket is ready for the oven, to cook, and cook, and cook some more.
What I can say about this evening is it was bittersweet and delicious and hilarious. From the bottom of my heart, thank you, Grauers and Chases, for making it so.
Doesn’t every milestone beg to be remembered? My artist friend, Ellie Gould, who was just elected president of the Arizona Watercolor Society, did just that. This week I received two gorgeous watercolors of the AMFT cookbook cover and yours truly in a chef’s coat. Already at the framer. Merci mille fois, Ellie.
Chicken In A Pot is the cookbook cover of Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan. Watercolor by Ellie Gould.
It is with a heavy but grateful heart that I wrap up this French Fridays experience. Dorie and my Dorista colleagues unwittingly helped me rebuild my life. At a time when my only goal was to survive each day, this blog thing and French Fridays came along. Writing and cooking, what could be better? Crazy as it may seem, having to create a post every week insisted upon organization and structure. Michael and I were in a decade-long battle without an end game, no light at the end of any tunnel. For me, completing a post each week was a goal, an accomplishment and fun.
Some of the French Fridays gals who attended the 2013 International Food Bloggers Conference in Seattle.
As I’ve said often, during the past four years this French Fridays gang has become more than a virtual community for me. Whether it was rallying around Dorie, the perfect mix of cooks with a common interest, a fortunate accident of serendipity or just my perception, I cannot say. The French Fridays group has been magic. What lies ahead in each of our virtual worlds, no one knows. In the real world, however, I’ve made wonderful friends and those relationships will continue.
We all love Dorie and I think that she loves us back. International Food Bloggers Conference 2013
Let me end with an appreciative nod to an unheralded group of supporters who always “wear their lipstick.” All my French Fridays colleagues have spouses, partners, kids or extended families living nearby who need to be fed and nourished every day. Since I am single, my reality is whether I put a meal on the table or not makes no difference. Wanting to join French Fridays but not wanting to waste the food I make every week, I’ve relied on others.
It was great fortune that my Henderson, Nevada neighbors were foodies. Lawyer Michele Morgando, also a judge, also a graduate of the Culinary School at The Art Institute of Las Vegas, was (and, still is) my tutor. Ray Dillon and Dominick Prudenti, such great friends to the Hirschs, once owned a successful deli in New York. Adriana Scrima, Sicilian by birth, cooks with an Old World flair. Fresh. Local. Homemade. Many Nevada friends jumped in to help when I began my blog. Failure was not an option. I miss you all.
It all began in Henderson, Nevada with L to R: Adriana, Dominick, Ray, Bobby (Adriana’s husband) and Michele.
In closing, it’s no coincidence that the three ladies pictured below were featured in my last posts. When I moved back to Aspen, Coeur à la Crème was the first French Fridays recipe choice. Holy Moley. Donna Grauer offered, as she has many times, to help. A dinner gathering, with contributions by Charlotte McLain and Donna Chase, followed. This sparked a realization that maybe food blogging could create the social life I desired here. “Wear your Lipstick,” became my watchword. Thanks, friends.
Charlotte and the Donna Deux, February 2013
Coeur à la Crème, my first French Fridays with Dorie post from Aspen. February 2013
“People who love to eat are always the best people.” Julia Childs
Celebrating French Fridays with Dorie, a watercolor by Ellie Gould
What a fun celebration you had Mary and what a healing four years. It looks like it was a perfect way to culminate!
Mary, your blog is wonderful. I look forward to it every week and many times save and try the recipes. Even when I don’t try the recipes I love reading about your adventures with food and friends. I hope, hope, hope you’ll find an excuse to keep it going(?)
We go back more years than I can remember. Hmmm, I think Buck and I were in 6th grade when your family came home again to Manchester. You figure it out, I can’t!
Love and Hugs to you, my not old but seasoned friend.
Thank you, Mary, and be assured I am going to continue this blog thing. I love doing it so I am glad you like reading it. Besides, I want to be sure you keep Jim in pork roasts. When we came to Manchester you and Buck were in 5th grade, I was in 2nd grade and Tom was in first grade. We go back sixty years (hush my mouth) and, if you recall, our families along with the Potters, spent every holiday together. BTW, the artist who did the two watercolors is the gal I’d like you to meet when you’re in Arizona next winter. You and Ellie would really enjoy each other.
I love that your friends brought their sense of humor to your dinner party. It was nice reading about your journey since I missed the early years. Your whole meal looks delicious and I need to look up that book Genius Recipes. Look forward to staying in touch.
Mary, what a valentine to all of your friends. Appropos that you had your valentine dessert picture.
FOR THE RECORD, DonnaC had the big idea to wear the wax lips. Meanwhile she is now haunted by the internet cookies that assume she is a pervert for googling that. But it is ALL FUN.
BTW, you make the BEST cakes and my hips are showing it.
Hugs, Rocks
Mary, you’ve had quite the journey! 😉 Thanks for sharing it with all of us and I love your wax lips, hehe! 🙂
So honoured to have shared this journey alongside you, Mary. So sad there’s one more week only 🙁 But yes, that apple cake? It’s the absolute real deal.
Mary, brava! What a fun time for you and your friends!!! I made the apple cake, too (I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw a lot of those today). BTW, I just emailed Lift One to see if they have any openings the first week of August. I hope you’ll be in town and fingers crossed we have a condo. xoxo
What an amazing journey! Thank you for letting me come along for a virtual ride. You have made big, important and scary decisions in the past four years but obviously, you made the right ones. Love you and miss you my friend. XOXO
When I saw your genius menu I was a little confused seeing Dorie’s apple cake on it. When I looked it up in the cookbook I really wasn’t surprised that it had been included. It truly is a genius recipe… what a dinner. You go girl.
Oh, Mary! You’ve got me crying already and I was trying to save that up for next week. What an incredibly sweet and heartfelt post. You beautifully put into words what many of us are feeling.
Also, I may have to add that Food52 book to my wishlist. I have what I think is their original book and I absolutely love it. How nice to hear that Dorie’s dessert is considered a “genious” recipe by such a wide community, but it certainly comes as no surprise to me becuase it topped my list too.
Mary, you make everything a celebration, don’t ever stop. This journey was “something else” for all of us,
and I don’t think we will ever forget it.
Mary, love the photos, love this post. Marie-Helene’s apple cake is appearing in a lot of people’s play it again posts. I can’t remember much about this cake anymore, but maybe I should also make it again. My problem was nicely stated by Liz – being a blogger, and in my case, a baking blogger, you rarely make anything twice because the next post is always front of mind. But goodies deserve being repeated!
OK, Mary, I have just read your post for the second time, and it had me tearing up again! Geez!
OK, so I have to get the book. I follow the blog, and I’ve read so many great reviews. I’m going online to that other site directly after this. 🙂
I love the watercolors! I have to ask my mom if she knows Ellie. She is a watercolorist and was a member of the same society until they split and created the Northern Arizona Watercolor Society a number of years ago (long trip to the valley for a lot of people). You may remember a fb post of my mom with a painting that she actually got an award for in the Spring Show. Those watercolors by your friend are lovely! What a great memory, and a special gift.
And of course – your dinner party, and choice of the apple cake. It could have landed on any list of mine. Such a fun evening. And of course, it’s just this particular book that’s ended, not the journey. I’m honored to have been able to share some of it with you! Have a wonderful weekend my friend!
Great post. Food is for sharing. Where it not for sharing food I don’t think I would not have developed any social skills or confidence at all. I love hearing how you have used your talents to keep your life full of wonderful people. Never say goodbye to that.
Hi Mary, wow! what an accomplishment. Looks like there were many, many wonderful times. Have a great week!
This is a beautiful post, Mary, and a beautiful tribute to French Fridays with Dorie, Around My French Table, Dorie, friends, food and YOU. You did this! You made a life for yourself that looks wonderful from where I sit. Not only that, but you took on the shared responsibility of keeping us going! I know you have the trials and tribulations we humans all face daily but you at least make it look effortless. You inspire me and motivate me and maybe when/if I grow up I can be a little like you! And your friends? Did you go out looking for photographic people to invite to dinner? It kinda looks like you did:) I love what you do Mary and the way you do it!!
You are a genius to create a Genius dinner! Don’t you love that book. Every recipe is better than the next.
I love this post. At this point, I can’t really remember life without Doristas. It will be interesting not to have a weekly “date” with everyone, but the friendships will certainly endure. I am certainly grateful that we partnered on seeing this through to completion. I feel so fortunate to have you as my friend.
You’ve captured so much of what has made French Fridays such a joy to be a part of – the community it built online, but also the way our friends and family became part of the journey, too. I’m so glad you decided to join the group and to take such a leading, caring role. I love that your friend has given you two paintings in celebration.
Dear Mary, now it is done…the work is completed and it seems time to move on but not before a few lovely comments, dear friend! As I mentioned to Betsy, if it had not been for the two of you, we would certainly not be where we are in this cooking adventure and things would probably have turned out quite differently…you guided us safely through the last couple of years and made sure the Doristas were kept alive happily.Thank you for that!
And it has been one of the most wonderful things that has happened to me in the last couple of years to get to “know” you and having “met” you – I love visiting your blog and following you along wherever all your cooking/baking/party/travelling adventures have led you and keep leading you! I will always follow your blog and I am proud that we continue to cook alongside with a lot of other lovely and talented bloggers in The Cottage Cooking Club!
Your friends are always such good sports – all your love and enthusiasm for a good home cooked meal must have made them very happy and grateful guests at your house, I am sure!
Your blog posts are always such a joy to read, your pictures are always so delightful to look at and you are an inspiration to me, my friend, indeed you are!
Thank you for being there and for being part of my life!
Many hugs and kisses,
Andrea & Co.
Oh, Miss Mary. It has truly been a delight getting to know you.
Thank you for joining Betsy in steering the ship. Thank you for your love of all things Smokey the Bear and nature. Thank you for fearlessly dragging your friends and family into the fray. Thank you for showing us how to keep living life, even when circumstances are pulling in the opposite direction. Thank you for being graceful and just an all-out ball of fire.
Looking forward to seeing you in October and for seeing where your lack of brakes takes you next.
XOXO
I loved looking at these photos. The food, the friends, the watercolors, what a joy. Thank you so much for allowing us all a window into your life. What a great dinner party. The Food 52 cookbook moves even higher up my wish list.