It was the early ’80s when I first met Jacques. I was creating the New Haven (CT) Register’s first cooking contest and 
contacted him — our local food celebrity — to judge it with me. He graciously accepted.
That was long ago — before his dozen popular cooking series on public television, which included The Complete Pépin, Jacques Pépin: Fast Food My Way, and Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home with Julia Child; before his cookbooks La Technique and La Méthode were inducted into the Cookbook Hall of Fame, before he was inducted into the Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America and before he received the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jacques hasn’t slowed down. In fact, this fall he’ll begin filming his next cooking series, Jacques Pépin: Heart and Soul, scheduled to air fall 2015 along with a companion cookbook, in time for his 80th birthday.
Which specific food product, ingredient or gadget would you never give up? A (1) rubber spatula, which keeps my pots and bowls clean, making my wife happy; (2) A vegetable peeler, which is essential for peeling and slicing vegetables; (3) eggs, which I can make use of for many meals, from breakfast to lunch to dinner.
What do you like to serve when you entertain? I prefer to serve simple foods: a large pot of soup, a big roast, things that people can help themselves to, like different big salads and cheese.
If you got to choose what you ate… describe your “last meal?” This would be a very long, long, long, long, long….. meal that would include the best bread and best butter, eggs, hot dogs, caviar, squab and lots of wine and champagne.
What food is your secret guilty pleasure? I experience no guilt about food; I eat everything with pleasure.
What is your go-to, neighborhood restaurant, and why? My favorite local restaurant is Bar Bouchée in Madison CT. I love the food, the wine, and the ambiance.
What is one food product most people don’t know about, but should…? Kohlrabi: It’s good in salads and sautéed for serving as a garnish for meat and fish.
Describe your worst kitchen disaster and how (if possible) you saved it. The “art of cooking” is the art of compensation and recovery. When you overcook a chocolate roulade, cut the salvageable pieces into strips, stack them and make them into another cake.
Who was your most influential mentor? I would say my mother and Craig Claiborne.
– bonnie
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