During the honeymoon phase of my life as a self-trained cook, I looked forward each month to finding my copy of Gourmet in the mailbox, with its beautifully photographed cover, and its rich variety of ideas and recipes ready to challenge my growing culinary skills. Like Julia’s recipes, Gourmet’s were obviously well-tested and re-tested, because I can’t recall any real failures, and I certainly can recall creating some deliciously memorable dishes.  

 

Thanks to Gourmet, I even have a recipe for a unique steamed plum pudding that (mercifully) does not include suet in the list of ingredients - the making of which has established an annual family tradition. The guys go hiking in Big Sur, while I spend the day plumping raisins in sherry, chopping, grating, grinding, and mixing the rest of the ingredients, pouring it all into a buttered mold and dropping it into a kettle of gently simmering water until the men return at sundown to a delicious-smelling house, windows streaked with condensation. 

 

The November and December issues of Gourmet, were always fat and filled with new ideas to shake up the traditional holiday menus and table settings, and they were always the most eagerly anticipated issues of the year. I still have a notebook stuffed with recipes clipped from those editions. In more recent years, my husband has become quite an accomplished cook in his own right, and as a result, I usually don’t get to see my monthly copy of Gourmet until he has finished poring over it and dog-earring all the pages containing “must try” recipes. 

 

Thanks for the memories, Gourmet! Fortunately, the Library will continue have some back issues of the venerable magazine available for cooks and foodies, as well as a large assortment of Gourmet cook books, including the recently-released Gourmet Today by the magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Ruth Reichel.  Alas, all that’s left to do now is to put on my best oven mitt and wave goodbye to an old friend. I shall miss you, Gourmet!