One of my dearest friends is in town this week from Kansas City with her seven-year-old daughter. When she mentioned they wanted to do some site-seeing downtown, I asked — OK, begged — her if she’d be willing to include the National Museum of American History on the list. The good sports that she and her daughter are, we all went today to the Museum. As soon as we walked in the doors it was all I could do to not run to the Julia Child kitchen.
Bon Appetit! Julia Child's Kitchen at the Smithsonian
If you have not seen the Bon Appetit exhibit, I highly commend it to you. To literally peer into Julia Child’s famed kitchen is a thrill. One of the things that always impresses me with the kitchen are the pots and pans. Paul Child, Julia’s husband, traced each of Julia’s pots onto a pegboard wall in their kitchen so that each pot could easily be returned to its rightful home.
And, oh, the gadgets! I love Julia’s kitchen gadgets. The self-proclaimed gadget freak, Julia had quite the collection. I was particularly impressed with the “boil over disk” — a tool that I had never heard of — that prevents pots from boiling over. Clever! Some of Julia’s favorites kitchen gadgets are discussed in a Food & Wine magazine article which is worth checking out.
The sheer feat of getting Child’s kitchen to the museum to establish an exhibit was incredible. The Smithsonian chronicled the painstakingly detailed process in a website.
What's Cooking? Julia Child's Kitchen at the Smithsonian
For DC Area locals, we are so fortunate that the Museum is just around the corner. In honor of Julia Child and the release of Julie & Julia, I encourage you to plan a trip to the American History Museum and visit the exhibit. It would make for a great excuse to pack a picnic (check out this post for inspiration) to enjoy on the Mall.
If you are not able to make it to the museum this weekend, consider going on Saturday, August 29, when author Laura Shapiro will be there to sign her new book, Julia Child: A Life.
When: Saturday, August 29, 2009, 2 – 4 PM
Location: American History Museum, Outside Mall Museum Store, 2nd Floor
Cost: Books available for sale in Museum Store
For more Julia-inspired blog posts, check out Day One and Day Two of the series, and stay tuned for more posts this week!
