The Julia Child Challenge - General Discussion

[YupItsMe]

On 4/5/2022 at 8:41 PM, Yeah No said:

I'm still loving this show too but when I saw Jacques Pepin flash on the screen in a clip from "Julia and Jacques Cooking from Home" I wished that he could be a part of it somehow since he and Julia had such a special relationship and he knows her food so well.  I'm figuring his age and Covid might have something to do with his absence.  Featuring him remotely would be a nice tribute, though.

Maybe he will be a judge on the final episode?

[mlp]

The judges made the right decision.  I was a bit surprised that Britt lasted as long as she did but I figured she'd be going as soon as she said "bread pudding."  I think I'll be happy with whoever wins now.  

I love Sherry Yard but her hair looked awful and she looked a good ten years older than the last time I saw her which wasn't very long ago.  She needs to go back to her previous style.

[MerBearHou]

I would have been so sad if Dustin had been voted off.  He is my favorite.  I love his warm, humble personality and he has so much talent.  

I don’t like trifles so I thought Jaine’s looked so unappetizing — just a pretty bunch of mush.  

Bill sure did figure things out tonight. 

Britt was absolutely lovely but it was her time to go.

[emmawoodhouse]

1 hour ago, YupItsMe said:

Maybe he will be a judge on the final episode?

I saw Brooke Williamson in the preview. The second judge wasn't shown, but I really doubt they were able to get Jacques.

[libgirl2]

7 hours ago, mlp said:

The judges made the right decision.  I was a bit surprised that Britt lasted as long as she did but I figured she'd be going as soon as she said "bread pudding."  I think I'll be happy with whoever wins now.  

I love Sherry Yard but her hair looked awful and she looked a good ten years older than the last time I saw her which wasn't very long ago.  She needs to go back to her previous style.

Bread pudding seems standard on these shows and it never seems to quite work out. Probably due to the fact that it needs more time to soak. I knew she was going to go. 

6 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

I would have been so sad if Dustin had been voted off.  He is my favorite.  I love his warm, humble personality and he has so much talent.  

I don’t like trifles so I thought Jaine’s looked so unappetizing — just a pretty bunch of mush.  

Bill sure did figure things out tonight. 

Britt was absolutely lovely but it was her time to go.

Dustin has been too consistently good, so I would have been shocked if he left. Britt has barely hung on a few times. 

The trifle looked messy but I am sure it was delicious. 

Bill's dessert looked amazing. I was really happy for him. 

Edited April 12, 2022 by libgirl2

[Leeds]

1 hour ago, libgirl2 said:

Bread pudding seems standard on these shows and it never seems to quite work out. Probably due to the fact that it needs more time to soak. I knew she was going to go. 

 

I was glad to see bread pudding go because it always seems to be the fallback dessert for cooks on competitive shows.  It's particularly bad on Chopped.

[libgirl2]

4 minutes ago, Leeds said:

I was glad to see bread pudding go because it always seems to be the fallback dessert for cooks on competitive shows.  It's particularly bad on Chopped.

I love a good bread pudding but yes, it is always the fallback dessert.

[dleighg]

8 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I remember how surprised I was when it oozed. 

I was surprised to learn that the inside of a French omelette should be that "gooey." Not sure how my (American)-omelette loving husband would like that.

[jrzy]

10 hours ago, mlp said:

The judges made the right decision.  I was a bit surprised that Britt lasted as long as she did but I figured she'd be going as soon as she said "bread pudding."  I think I'll be happy with whoever wins now.  

I love Sherry Yard but her hair looked awful and she looked a good ten years older than the last time I saw her which wasn't very long ago.  She needs to go back to her previous style.

Sherry lost too much weight too fast,  it didn't do her any favors, her hair needs an update for sure.  I do really like her though, she seems so genuine.  I thought Britt was a tad overconfident given that she was usually in the bottom.  I think the final 3 are the best of the bunch.  I won't be mad at any one of them winning. 

[Rammchick]

44 minutes ago, jrzy said:

Sherry lost too much weight too fast,  it didn't do her any favors, her hair needs an update for sure.  I do really like her though, she seems so genuine.  

I was going to say something similar.  The whole thing -- outfit, hair, makeup -- read washed out, although I was glad for her that she was able to keep the weight off.

[rlc]

A French omelette is about the eggs and the preparation. Blue cheese and that nasty looking sweet shrimp sauce had no business being anywhere near those eggs.

[libgirl2]

22 minutes ago, rlc said:

A French omelette is about the eggs and the preparation. Blue cheese and that nasty looking sweet shrimp sauce had no business being anywhere near those eggs.

I did think blue cheese was a fail. It just doesn't seem to go. The shrimp sauce was not supposed to be sweet but it turned out that way. I think that might have been better suited for a crepe. 

[YupItsMe]

I  will be happy with any of the finalists winning, but I would definitely watch Jaine’s show.

[Toothbrush]

16 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

I would have been so sad if Dustin had been voted off.  He is my favorite.  I love his warm, humble personality and he has so much talent.  

And those arms <fans self>
Happy about the top 3. Britt was a great competitor, but she is not up to the standard set by Jaine, Bill, & Dustin. Jaine is my pick to win but I’ll be satisfied with any of the three. 

[emmawoodhouse]

From the preview, it looks like the final challenge is a 3 course meal. I assume only one round.

[Grizzly]

I'm probably sitting at a table for 1 but I don't care for Jaine. Yes, she's talented. And being a chocoholic, her dessert is the only one I would have eaten. But the whole she's just like Julia thing seems to indicate this competition was over long ago. I'd much rather see Dustin (and his arms) or Bill win.

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, Grizzly said:

I'm probably sitting at a table for 1 but I don't care for Jaine. Yes, she's talented. And being a chocoholic, her dessert is the only one I would have eaten. But the whole she's just like Julia thing seems to indicate this competition was over long ago. I'd much rather see Dustin (and his arms) or Bill win.

No, you're not alone, I don't much care for Jaine either.  Although I do acknowledge that she is a good cook.  I have been feeling the same way - that she's the "designated winner" already and right away that rubs me the wrong way, but it's also just something about her that bugs me.  Like she plays up her shtick for the camera to make the judges like her or something.  I also love Dustin and would love to see him win.  If not him I'd be happy with Bill too.  

[libgirl2]

6 hours ago, Yeah No said:

No, you're not alone, I don't much care for Jaine either.  Although I do acknowledge that she is a good cook.  I have been feeling the same way - that she's the "designated winner" already and right away that rubs me the wrong way, but it's also just something about her that bugs me.  Like she plays up her shtick for the camera to make the judges like her or something.  I also love Dustin and would love to see him win.  If not him I'd be happy with Bill too.  

I don't see it that way at all and I said from the start she reminded my of Julia. I don't think she is designated though she is a favorite. I always felt Dustin was the front runner with her close behind.

It all comes down to Monday. I will be happy with any of them winning, though I am starting to lean towards Bill. I would be happy to see him win. 

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, libgirl2 said:

I don't see it that way at all and I said from the start she reminded my of Julia. I don't think she is designated though she is a favorite. I always felt Dustin was the front runner with her close behind.

I personally don't find anything about her reminiscent of Julia except her love of Julia's cooking and her talent for it, and IMO that could be said about any of the other contestants.  Anything else is based on a superficial impression and that in and of itself rubs me the wrong way because it's not in my opinion of any substance whatsoever, and is arguably irrelevant and inaccurate.  Why, because she is a home cook that's tall, a little kooky in her presentation and wears dresses?  Yeah, no, judges, please don't let that influence your vote.

Plus the fact that the judges have gushed over how much she reminds them of Julia as if that's of such cosmic significance is precisely what makes me think she's their personal favorite.  And in my opinion the judges shouldn't have any personal favorites and should be as unbiased as possible, otherwise it looks like an unfair competition.  I'm a little disappointed that this show has that aspect to it.  I have seen that phenomenon before in cooking competitions and it's always bugged me.   And whenever I've come to the board to see if I'm the only one that feels that way I find that I'm far from alone.  Oh, and in my experience the person the show gives the impression is the "designated winner" or "judges favorite" usually wins.  

[Bastet]

I got caught up last night, and it was nice to learn Elena and Bill developed such a bond and intend to remain friends outside of the show.  And while Britt was the clear choice to go home with the bread budding, I agree with the judges that, visually, that was one impressive dessert.

I thought everyone was eliminated in the correct order throughout, leaving the appropriate three cooks for the final competition.  Jaine has been the most consistent, but Dustin and Bill have also cooked delicious, interesting food, so depending on how things go for everyone in the final challenge, any one of the three could wind up with the best dishes of the day and rightfully be crowned the winner.

And as for that final competition, which I happily stayed up to watch since Discovery+ had already uploaded it:  Yay!

They just had to have Jacques Pepin call in for the finale, so I'm glad that happened.

It was Jaine's to lose after the first course, since her dish worked out as planned and the other two both had problems and had to pivot, leaving her with by far the best dish.  But that second part of the challenge was hard for home cooks, and I was not surprised they all had problems with those three courses and had to adjust on the fly.  Which they all did impressively, bringing Dustin and Bill very much back into contention.

It was clearly between Jaine and Dustin, and with how handily she won the croque monsieur course and her coming in a solid first in the beef bourguignon course, compared to Dustin a clear first in the duck course and them fairly close in the dessert course, she seemed to have come out on top.  I'm not surprised, and I'm quite pleased; she's a particularly ideal winner of something Julia-esque.  I smile just imagining how much she's going to delight in the experience of Paris and Le Cordon Bleu.

As I said, I was not surprised; I think Jaine first, Dustin second, and Bill third was the most likely way it was going to come out given how they'd all performed heading into the final cook, and I like that it indeed played out that way.  I enjoyed Dorie Greenspan's thoughts on the ways in which Julia would have loved each cook's meal: Bill's she would have recognized immediately, Dustin's would surprise her, and she would fall in love with the heart in Jaine's cooking, the way she brought French food into her home and combined it with the food she grew up on.

I was sad the format of the final three courses meant the cooks weren't going to sit down at Julia's table with the judges this time, so was happy to realize they would for the fourth course.  That's always my favorite part of the show.

I love how excited the judges were by the food, so thoroughly impressed at what non-professionals were producing.  It was nice when Michael Voltaggio said he was not surprised - having judged the first competition - these were the three in the finals, but that he was also sad some others weren't there, too, since he'd had such great food back in the beginning. 

This was such a delightful show, and I hope they'll do it again.  It really captured and honored the spirit of Julia, and what she aimed to do by teaching and encouraging home cooks, and never hiding her own mistakes.  And the format, serving family style so cooks and judges can sit down together and share the meal, really made a difference, as did so perfectly weaving in clips from Julia's shows.  Such great camaraderie, that I hope would be repeated in subsequent seasons, although they may never recapture the innocent magic of this one.

Edited April 19, 2022 by Bastet
removing spoiler tags for finale section

[libgirl2]

OMG, I am fangirling over a chef!! 

[Frost]

Yeah!!  Jaine won!  I'm so happy.  I would have been fine with any of them, because they were all so good, but I had a soft spot for Jaine.

[libgirl2]

6 minutes ago, Frost said:

Yeah!!  Jaine won!  I'm so happy.  I would have been fine with any of them, because they were all so good, but I had a soft spot for Jaine.

I was so proud of all 3 of them. Lovely ending..... I teared up. 

[mlp]

I was sorry to see this show come to an end.  It's been just lovely.  I would have been happy if any of the final three had won and I hope that good things come to Dustin and Bill as a result of appearing on the show.

[schnauzergirl]

In TVWeekly tonight's episode is described as the Finale of Season 1 and that gives me hope, for a Season 2 although thr realist in me knows that might never happen.

[libgirl2]

7 hours ago, schnauzergirl said:

In TVWeekly tonight's episode is described as the Finale of Season 1 and that gives me hope, for a Season 2 although thr realist in me knows that might never happen.

I hope we get another season. I really knew Bill lost with that first course, he had to have been perfect the rest of the way through, but I think his dessert just didn't have enough oomph.

[libgirl2]

And we got to see Jacques Pepin!!! 

[dleighg]

did anyone notice the photo of Dorrie with Julia? Julia's head looked like it was twice the size!

It was pretty clear that Jaine was going to win- seems that these days it's almost required to introduce non-Western flavor in order to win. Which is fine- but it just made the ending no surprise at all. I think no matter how well Bill's meal turned out, he was not going to win on that basis alone.

I was wondering how far away the judges table was from the kitchen. Could the chefs hear the discussion? 

[libgirl2]

1 minute ago, dleighg said:

did anyone notice the photo of Dorrie with Julia? Julia's head looked like it was twice the size!

It was pretty clear that Jaine was going to win- seems that these days it's almost required to introduce non-Western flavor in order to win. Which is fine- but it just made the ending no surprise at all. I think no matter how well Bill's meal turned out, he was not going to win on that basis alone.

I was wondering how far away the judges table was from the kitchen. Could the chefs hear the discussion? 

I really think it could have gone Dustin's way as well, it was just that beef dish wasn't what it should have been. If he would have turned that out the right way, I think he would have won, especially if Jaine slipped up in the final. 

 

[AZChristian]

And I am (superficially) wondering if Michael Voltaggio got dressed in a dark Goodwill store.

[Grizzly]

I loved the dress Brooke was wearing. Nice someone dressed up for the finale. Don't understand Antonia wearing her jacket indoors. The food all looked good. I didn't understand the two judges coming back to eat but not judge. Disappointed in the outcome but still enjoyed the whole season.

[rlc]

On 4/19/2022 at 9:17 AM, dleighg said:

 

It was pretty clear that Jaine was going to win- seems that these days it's almost required to introduce non-Western flavor in order to win. Which is fine- but it just made the ending no surprise at all. I think no matter how well Bill's meal turned out, he was not going to win on that basis alone.

By that logic, Dustin would have been the winner, so how is the ending no surprise at all? Brazil is located in South America.

[Yeah No]

On 4/19/2022 at 9:17 AM, dleighg said:

It was pretty clear that Jaine was going to win- seems that these days it's almost required to introduce non-Western flavor in order to win. Which is fine- but it just made the ending no surprise at all. I think no matter how well Bill's meal turned out, he was not going to win on that basis alone.

In total agreement with you, plus the judges gushing over Jaine since week one made it look predetermined, even if just because she appeared to be their personal favorite.  Even in this episode when Dorie came through the door she went right over to Jaine and greeted her affectionately, which it didn't look like she did for the others. 

I also wondered in some cases why Jaine's food didn't receive some criticism whereas the others' did.  Her duck dish didn't have enough duck in it.  The really reaching "positive" comment about how if you managed to get a piece of the crackling in each bite does not redeem that, IMO.  Her dessert was not what she had originally intended and a crepe having the same ingredients as a croquembouche is more like a last minute switch on the fly, not so much the "genius" take they were acting like it was.  If one of the others had made either of those two dishes it might not have been seen so positively. 

I still think she was getting bonus points for her personality, her ethnic twist, and whatever comparisons to Julia the judges saw in her, and it wasn't 100% about the food.  I think they thought she was the one most deserving of the prize, just because she seemed to live, sleep, breathe and eat Julia.  But I still don't think that should have anything to do with it.

Plus I pretty much knew she was the winner from week one.  Not saying she didn't deserve it, but any of the final three did, and for me it takes away from the entertainment of a cooking competition when it looks like someone has it in the bag from the start.

I was happy that the show did what I said should happen in an earlier week's post by zooming in Jacques Pepin.  I am very happy they did that.  If there is a next season I would like to see Sara Moulton as a guest judge for the finale.

Edited April 20, 2022 by Yeah No

[dleighg]

1 minute ago, rlc said:

By that logic, Dustin would have been the winner, so how is the ending no surprise at all? Brazil is located in South America

Seriously? I don't think South American food is considered "Western." And yeah, it came down to Dustin and Jaine, the two who didn't do "Western" food (which is generally understood as "European.")

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I also wondered in some cases why Jaine's food didn't receive some criticism whereas the others' did. 

yes, for example they complained about someone (I forget who) having made too large a first course dish -- while Jaine's looked just as large and hearty as anything else I saw.

[Yeah No]

3 minutes ago, dleighg said:

yes, for example they complained about someone (I forget who) having made too large a first course dish -- while Jaine's looked just as large and hearty as anything else I saw.

Yes, thanks for that example, that's what I'm talking about.  If I sat down and watched it again I'm sure I could come up with more.

And yes to "Western" cuisine usually referring to Western European in origin.

[Frost]

Jaine's win didn't seem pre-ordained to me.  I thought Fabrizio was an early favorite.  I also thought Elena would make it to the final.  I really delighted in all the cooks and regretted that someone had to go home almost every week...week 1 being a big exception because I had no problem with the "cover the fish head" guy leaving!  Anyway, I loved the entire season and I hope the only change for season 2 is a different mix of judges, just to keep things fresh.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, Frost said:

Jaine's win didn't seem pre-ordained to me.

I never said it was pre-ordained, just obvious given the editing, which is done after the fact.  Plus the editing couldn't hide the gushing the judges did over her for how much she reminded them of Julia among other things that they did no such gushing over any of the others.  It was obvious to me that she was their favorite.

[libgirl2]

2 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I never said it was pre-ordained, just obvious given the editing, which is done after the fact.  Plus the editing couldn't hide the gushing the judges did over her for how much she reminded them of Julia among other things that they did no such gushing over any of the others.  It was obvious to me that she was their favorite.

I felt that the judges knew it was between her and Dustin all along. Maybe her "Juliaism" pushed her along. If you want to see favorites, check out Spring Baking Championship.

Again, I liked her a lot, I like all of them. I am very satisfied with this season. No egos. 

Edited April 20, 2022 by libgirl2

[mlp]

5 hours ago, rlc said:

It was pretty clear that Jaine was going to win- seems that these days it's almost required to introduce non-Western flavor in order to win.

True but that shouldn't have applied on this show - if it did.   Julia Child might have enjoyed/approved of the introduction of other flavors but it isn't what she did.  She was all about French/western cooking.

[dleighg]

17 minutes ago, mlp said:

She was all about French/western cooking

I agree. But it seemed like the judges were intent on "making it your own." Which seemed to require bringing in your own personal "food history." And the easiest way to know it's your own personal take is if it is in a non-European direction, *especially* if you grew up in that non-European place. Tough luck if you actually grew up in the US (though Dustin tried to take things in an Asian direction). 

[Yeah No]

18 hours ago, mlp said:

True but that shouldn't have applied on this show - if it did.   Julia Child might have enjoyed/approved of the introduction of other flavors but it isn't what she did.  She was all about French/western cooking.

I agree.  But of course every cooking competition these days has to be all about making everything over into your style of cooking no matter what it is.  And the further away from Western European, the more they love it, it seems, which already feels a little prejudiced if you ask me.  While Julia was open to other cuisines and often featured ethnic cooks on her series with master chefs (like Madhur Jaffrey, for example), a show aimed at honoring her specific approach to cooking should be about that, not about making over anything into a fusion or completely different style of cooking.  Putting a new twist on a recipe is one thing but crossing over to another ethnic cuisine is another.  Just my opinion.

[Darian]

Dorie Greenspan wrote a piece on her episode. 

Behind the Scenes: I got to be a judge on Food Network's The Julia Child Challenge

It's very Jaíne-heavy, fyi. 

 

[Ms Blue Jay]

I really loved this show so much.  I would continue to watch it.

It's no fault of Jaine's but I totally think her win was pre-ordained.  I felt the same with the show Next Level Chef and I felt that the runner up had absolutely no chance no matter what 

Spoiler

he

did.  It's frustrating.

I absolutely adored Dustin.  He fascinated me.  Bill, eh, I could take or leave.

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 3/21/2022 at 10:23 PM, Cetacean said:

What a lovely show.  A competition but so very low key with no nastiness at all. 

I, too, love to see them all sitting down together at the end to dine together and offer their thoughts.  Interesting takes on classic recipes.

The extremely pleasant "tone" of it reminded me of another show I liked this or last year called "Baking It".  I recommend that show too.  The people in that episode thread seem to hate it though so I don't know!

I also love the show "Julia" (a biopic show about Julia Child) that is airing on HBO and watching both of these every week has been so nice.

Edited April 24, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 4/6/2022 at 3:55 PM, emmawoodhouse said:

I was surprised that some of them didn't know of Julia's history with the OSS. It's where she met Paul! 

I just figured any fan of Julia's would know this. 😀

I wonder if some of them were recruited, like in many reality shows.

[Rammchick]

Keep in mind that when Julia's show first appeared, no one else was doing any sort of "exotic" cooking on TV.  It got America's home cooks to become interested in flavors and techniques they were previously unfamiliar with.  

So isn't that pretty much the same thing as "cook your heritage food" on a show like this?  To me, I see a direct correlation.

[Frost]

Anyone hear if we'll get a Season 2?

 

[hookedontv]

I binged the show this past weekend and was sorry there weren't more episodes. I absolutely loved it. It was such a departure from many of the FN shows where there are crazy time limits, crazy ingredients, stupid twists, and very kitchy/crafty feeling (I'm looking directly at you, Molly Yeh and the Spring Baking Championship!)

This was a lovely show, as many have already mentioned. Very civilized. I hope there's another season. 

[dleighg]

2 minutes ago, hookedontv said:

Very civilized.

I loved the way they all sat down to eat, and the contestants were all very positive about their competitors' dishes, leaving any criticism to the actual judges (and even there, the judges made sure to find *something* nice to say in all cases).

[libgirl2]

1 hour ago, hookedontv said:

I binged the show this past weekend and was sorry there weren't more episodes. I absolutely loved it. It was such a departure from many of the FN shows where there are crazy time limits, crazy ingredients, stupid twists, and very kitchy/crafty feeling (I'm looking directly at you, Molly Yeh and the Spring Baking Championship!)

This was a lovely show, as many have already mentioned. Very civilized. I hope there's another season. 

That was it, lovely, civilized and just good food without tricks.  Ugh Molly and that mess.