Louisette Bertholle

Louisette Bertholle (26 October 1905 – 26 November 1999) was a French cooking teacher and author, best known as one of the three authors (with Julia Child and Simone Beck) of the bestselling cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking.[1]

Louisette Bertholle
Born(1905-10-26)26 October 1905
Died26 November 1999(1999-11-26) (aged 94)
NationalityFrench
Occupationchef and author
Notable work
Mastering the Art of French Cooking

History

She was born Louisette Remion on 26 October 1905. Sometime after 1928, she married Paul Bertholle, a businessman.

After World War II, Louisette Bertholle, who had the idea of writing a French cookbook for American cooks, met Simone Beck via the Le Cercle des Gourmettes culinary club and the two began to develop the concept further, collecting recipes and testing them. Their initial attempts at writing were unsuccessful, however their idea was rekindled in 1949 when they met Julia Child. In 1951, the three women founded their own cooking school, L'Ecole des Trois Gourmandes (The School of the Three Food Lovers). It was created to give French cooking lessons to American women living in Paris where the three friends proudly wore aprons adorn with their school's logo. Years later, Child pinned the patch to her blouse during cooking demonstrations and her television series, The French Chef.[2] Bertholle and Beck successfully published the short cookbook What's Cooking in France in 1952.[3]

By 1960 Bertholle's life had changed significantly: her marriage was failing, she was having financial difficulties and was already over 50. However, she was able to reinvent herself and restart her career via her participation with Child and Beck.[1] The three women had initially signed a contract to publish Mastering the Art of French Cooking with Houghton Mifflin. The publishing company ultimately rejected the submitted manuscript, believing it was too much like an encyclopedia.[4][5] When it was finally published in 1961 by Alfred A. Knopf, the 734-page book was a best-seller and received critical acclaim.[6][7]

Bertholle later remarried, to the Comte Henry Bandit de Nalèche, becoming the Comtesse de Nalèche in the process.[8] She published additional books in France, and wrote a daily recipe for France-Soir until age 84.

She is played by American actress Helen Carey in the 2009 film Julie & Julia.

Bibliography
  • What's Cooking in France (1952, coauthor with Simone Beck)
  • Mastering the Art of French Cooking (1961, coauthor with Julia Child and Simone Beck)
  • Secrets of the Great French Restaurants (1974)
  • Une Grande Cuisine Pour Tous (1976)
  • French Cuisine For All (1980)

References
  1. Trafford, Abigail (March 2, 2010). "Julia Child's co-author succeeded in the kitchen but also in second half of life". Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 24, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  2. "Patch, L'Ecole Des Trois Gourmandes". National Museum of American History. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  3. Smith, Andrew (1 May 2007). The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-19-530796-2.
  4. McFadden, Robert D. (2 August 2017). "Judith Jones, Editor of Literature and Culinary Delight, Dies at 93". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 20 August 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  5. Mia Stainsby (5 August 2009). "Julie, Julia and Judith: The editor behind the culinary legend". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  6. "Meryl Streep channels Julia Child in 'Julie & Julia'". The Oklahoman. Associated Press. 15 July 2009. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  7. Kam Williams (13 August 2009). "Meryl Streep channels Julia Child in bifurcated bio-pic". The Leader. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  8. Child, Julia (12 March 2009). My Life in France. Gerald Duckworth & Co. pp. 6, 115–117. ISBN 978-0715639924.
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