50 Women Game-Changers (in Food): #8 Judith Jones - Zucchini Pancakes

In May '11, Gourmet posted a list of 50 Women Game-Changers (in Food) that runs the gamut from food writers to cookbook authors to television personalities to restauranteurs to chefs to food bloggers.  Some are a given.  Some are controversial.  Speaking the names of some brings fond childhood memories.  Speaking the names of others will make some readers cringe.  And of course, some of our favorites were not even included.  We food-lovers are a passionate bunch of people and whether we agree or disagree, every woman on this list has earned her place for a reason.  Being a woman who is passionate about food (cooking, eating, talking about, writing about, photographing), when I caught wind of Mary from One Perfect Bite's idea of cooking/blogging her way through each of these 50 women...one per week...I knew I wanted to join her.  Many of these women paved the way for us in culinary school, in the kitchen, in cookbooks, in food writing, and on television and I think it is a fabulous way to pay tribute to their efforts.  Some of the women on the list have been tops with me for years.  Some I have heard of (perhaps even seen, read, or cooked from) before.  And there are even a handful that I am not familiar with at all.  I excited to educate myself on each of these women game-changers and hope you look forward to reading along.  We are going in order from 1 to 50.

the "Gourmet" prompt...
8. Judith Jones- Without her there may have been no Julia (not to mention Hazan, Jaffrey, and so many more), because Jones was Child’s early, only champion, and lifelong editor. She also rescued Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl from the slush pile, but that’s another story.

While I'd toyed with picking up a copy of Jones' book The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food many times, I had yet to do it.  That is, until her name popped up as number eight on the list.  So, of course I'm skimming... because time absolutely flies by from one Friday to the next.  By the time we're finished with our crash-course of these 50 ladies, I'm going to have another 100 books (easy) added to my to-read list.  Sheeesh.  So, while I wish I had more background on Judith Jones to share with you, I found myself unprepared this week.  I will share with you some info from her website The Pleasures of Cooking for One-  "Judith Jones is Senior Editor and Vice President at Alfred A. Knopf. She joined the company in 1957 as an editor working primarily on translations of French writers such as Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre. She had worked before that for Doubleday, first in New York and then in Paris, where she was responsible for reading and recommending The Diary of Anne Frank. In addition to her literary authors, she has been particularly interested in developing a list of first-rate cookbook writers; her authors have included Julia Child (Judith published Julia’s first book and was her editor ever after), Lidia Bastianich, James Beard, Marion Cunningham, Rosie Daley, Marcella Hazan, Madhur Jaffrey, Edna Lewis, Scott Peacock, Joan Nathan, Jacques Pépin, Claudia Roden, and Nina Simonds. She is the coauthor with Evan Jones (her late husband) of two books: The Book of Bread: Knead It, Punch It, Bake It! (for children); and The Book of New New England Cookery. She also collaborated with Angus Cameron on The L.L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook. Recently, she has contributed to Vogue, Saveur, and Gourmet magazines. In 2006, she was awarded the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award."  Pretty darn game-changing if you ask me.  I have, however, had some enough time to page through her entire cookbook by the same name...and although I don't often cook for one, once the kiddos are back in school, I'll have at least five afternoons a week when I do.  So many fantastic ideas and recipes...another "want".

worth further exploration:  (website) The Pleasures of Cooking for One, (books) The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food by Judith Jones, The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones

Zucchini Pancakes

from The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones

zucchini, grated to make 1 cup

salt

1 egg

3 Tbs. all-purpose flour

1 scallion, finely chopped

a few chopped fresh parsley and/or basil leaves

1 slice prosciutto, torn into small pieces

2 slim strips red bell pepper, cut into small dice

light olive oil

squash blossoms to garnish, optional

Spread out the grated zucchini on a towel, and sprinkle salt generously over it.  After 5 minutes or so, pat dry to extract some of the juice.  Beat egg lightly in a bowl, and add the grated zucchini, flour, scallion, herbs, prosciutto, and pepper pieces.  Heat enough oil in a medium skillet to film generously, and when hot, plop half of the batter into the pan, flattening it slightly.  Repeat with remaining batter (you should get 2 pancakes).  When pancakes are brown on the bottom, turn and brown other side.  Remove to a warmed plate and fry the squash blossoms in a little butter, if you wish- this takes just a few seconds (and very, very little butter).  Toss them on top of the pancakes.

Judith Jones (1924-present)

"I couldn't lie.  Yes, I admitted, I adored garlic." ~in answer to her mother's questioning about her "wayward" path in The Tenth Muse

Who is cooking along with these 50 Women Game-Changers?

Mary- One Perfect Bite, Val- More Than Burnt Toast, Joanne- Eats Well With Others, Taryn- Have Kitchen Will Feed, Susan- The Spice Garden, Claudia- A Seasonal Cook in Turkey, Heather- girlichef, April- Abby Sweets , Miranda- Mangoes and Chutney, Jeanette- Jeanette's Healthy Living, Katie- Making Michael Pollan Proud, Kathy- Bakeaway with Me, Sue- The View from Great Island, Viola- The Life is Good Kitchen

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