In Memory of The Silver Palate's Sheila Lukins
"She introduced me and millions of others to capers and balsamic vinegar and crème fraîche."
Julia Moskin has a pretty good obituary about The Sliver Palate's Sheila Lukins in today's New York Times. What is your favorite Silver Palate recipe? Mine is her puréed broccoli with creme fraiche, which my wife just loves.
I can't say I knew Shelia well. I would see her at parties and restaurants and exchange small talk. But when we first met, I told her my wife and I still used the Silver Palate cookbooks on many occasions, especially when having company over for big meals like Thanksgiving. She seemed to appreciate that, though I'm sure she had heard it a million times from people.
I also spent way more money than a fledgling late-1970s New York City professional making $150 a week should have at the Silver Palate store. The food struck me as ridiculously expensive, but, man, was it good, so I gladly spent half my meager paycheck there on more than one occasion.
Sheila Lukins, along with Julie Rosso, her writing and business partner for the Silver Palate cookbooks, were sort of a precursor to Rachael Ray, though Sheila was a much more of a serious and accomplished cook. She introduced me and millions of others to capers and balsamic vinegar and crème fraîche. But like Rachael, she recognized the time constraints professional women are under as they try to cook for family and friends after working the whole day.
Shelia empowered working women in the same way Rachael does. She just did it in a more sophisticated way.
In honor of Sheila, I just might have to make chicken marbella one day this week. Though I don't really care for it, it's probably the most famous dish Sheila ever created. On second thought, I think I will make Sheila's broccoli soufflé instead.
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26 Comments:
Chicken Marbella was my standard Seder main course for many years.
Lippy at 8:50PM on 08/31/09
Can never remember if it was in the first or second SP CB, but the chicken salad with green beans is a summer standard with us, as well as the salmon mousse and the apple pie. Thanks for the fun, Sheila.
lemons at 9:00PM on 08/31/09
Recipes from that cookbook got me alot of tail in the 90's...
Truff at 9:04PM on 08/31/09
66 seems so young. Was she a smoker?
DaveFaris at 9:18PM on 08/31/09
She was not a smoker Dave, she died of brain cancer.
The Silver Palate cookbook was my first cookbook and I learned to cook from that book in the 90's. The gourmet takeout store on Columbus Ave. on the upper west side was also a fun place to go back then.
Chicken Marbella is my go to dish for the holidays.
She will be missed.
Yes Dave, 66 is way too young.
Stacey Snacks at 9:36PM on 08/31/09
i'll never forget the time i first saw the SILVER PALATE cookbook .... i was at someone's home for the weekend and i just sat on the couch and read the entire book from cover to cover.... i was a very rude guest.
the book, with it's little side panels full of whimsy and important information - the recipes .... all mesmerizing and enchanting. it really changed the way i looked at food.... inspiring and fun. what a gift from Sheila Lukins and Julie Russo.... RIP, Sheila....a life well lived.
pooch at 9:40PM on 08/31/09
Her recipes have seen my family through some of our happiest and saddest events. Ironically, I walked in from my aunt's funeral today where I served several of Sheila's dishes, including her mom's carrot cake and saw her obituary posted on facebook. It made a sad day much sadder.
CatBoy at 9:42PM on 08/31/09
I used my Silver Palate cookbook (the first one) until it fell apart. I learned to cook in south Georgia (under my grandmother's tutelage) with an an exceptional education in traditional southern cooking, but with extremely limited access to (what we considered then) exotic tastes and foods. I moved to Atlanta in the early eighties and started to learn how much more was out there. Then, when I received the original Silver Palate cookbook as a gift, I was completely blown away. It combined my burgeoning love of new foods with interesting, simple ways to prepare them. It totally changed my way of thinking about cooking.
I have since SO MUCH enjoyed her collaborations with Julie Rosso, and have bought every book. "The New Basics" is a bible for me.
Sheila Lukins will sorely be missed.
pharris123 at 9:45PM on 08/31/09
The chili recipe has served me well for years!!!
pksmash at 9:53PM on 08/31/09
The New Basics is my Joy Of Cooking.
Ali at 10:24PM on 08/31/09
I read her food column in Parade magazine all the time and ended up with great recipes! Sorry to hear about her death. Condolences to the fam and may she RIP.
jlewfoodie at 10:37PM on 08/31/09
i am on my third copy of The New Basics... I got my first one around 1993 or 94 when i was in college... it has been a great go to book for me.
One of my favorites of her recipes is the Carrot Cake found in new Basics... and also, Bobbie's Chicken.
Alm25 at 10:58PM on 08/31/09
i've made so many things out of the silver palate over the years. probably the chocolate truffle recipe is the one i've made the most. what a great cookbook that was. i used to read it like a novel.
cybercita at 11:34PM on 08/31/09
The Silver Palate was my first serious cookbook, and it made a novice feel like there was some hope. I'm sorry to hear of Sheila Lukins' death.
chachasnow at 1:03AM on 09/01/09
I'm so sorry the culinary world lost Sheila Lukins. She was the one of the twosome who published the books who actually knew how to cook. Julie Rosso really wasn't a cook by any means.
Given Lukins was such a foodie, I know she's rattling pots and pans up in Heaven with the likes of Julia and James.
therealchiffonade at 5:17AM on 09/01/09
I can remember how I felt as I first read The Silver Palette Good Times Cookbook. It made my mouth water. The veal loin with the lemon-caper mayonnaise has always been a favorite (but I often sub-out pork tenderloin, which is easier to find in Georgia). The Rainy Day Minestrone is a winter staple in our house. We have used this and the other books so much. I will be sure to revisit them this holiday weekend and make a toast to Sheila.
KarinCooks at 7:38AM on 09/01/09
The Silver Palate cookbooks were the first cookbooks I learned to cook from. I was hooked by the illustrations (which Sheila did), the friendly notes and quotations in the margins and the clarity of the recipes. I still turn to them all the time for Beef Carbonnade, Chocolate Mousse, Poppyseed Dressing, and variety of quickbreads, dips and cookies.
Junie at 9:08AM on 09/01/09
Chewy-Gooey Orange Chocolate Brownies with the SP Grand Marnier Fudge Sauce are fantastic. You can click on the Silver Palate link in the post and go to Dessert Sauces for the recipe.
KB in Toledo at 10:00AM on 09/01/09
So sad. As much as a big deal is made out of Julia Child (and rightly so), I remember cooking with my mom out of the Silver Palate cookbooks the most. I think they've had more influence on my interest in cooking than anything else. The SP gazpacho recipe is just amazing.
cam00023 at 12:31PM on 09/01/09
RIP Sheila. Loved your books, I use them still even though they are separated and stained. Your Salad Nicoise changed my life and snagged me a man.
Tallula Hamburger at 1:34PM on 09/01/09
Wow...I feel like I have lost a good friend. The Silver Palate Cookbook was my first "grown up" cookbook and it was put to good use...my copy is falling apart. Among the favorites..Chicken Marbella without a doubt, the Carrot Cake...what an amazing cake...and I never, ever make homemade pizza without using the dough recipe from New Basics...the lamb chops made with ginger and soy (altho, I must admit I use the recipe as an outline and use different ingredients--the cooking method makes perfect med. rare lamb chops every time)...RIP
jsd517 at 1:55PM on 09/01/09
my goof - Silver Palate on Columbus not Amsterdam
Monelle at 3:23PM on 09/01/09
Sheila, a truly influential cook, author, caterer and foodie will be much missed. I own all her cookbooks, and she has truly been a huge influence on the foodie aspect of my life. And in addition to her books, she was very generous as a caterer and cook. When I hosted a large birthday celebration back in the early 80's, my first party for 20+ in my teeny, tiny apartment, I went to the Silver Palate to order some of the dishes to supplement what I could do in my too small for a dishwasher kitchen. Sheila not only took a great interest in helping me with the menu, she was very generous with suggestions on preparation and serving, as well as with advice about the dishes I would prepare myself - including the "Easter Cheesecake" recipe I have been using from the first "Silver Palate Cookbook." I always appreciated her interest in my little event - a small order for her store, and that she took time not just to help me select a few dishes, but to make a very apprehensive, entry level hostess feel confident and assured.
Even if I had never met Sheila, I'd treasure all her cookbooks just the same. They are wonderful, imaginative, easy to follow, and delicious. She'll be missed.
MMinNYC at 4:56PM on 09/01/09
I remember going into this wonderful store in the late 70's. That extra touch with their clientele --- I was a fledgling chef in a hotel and Sheila was so encouraging. The expendible income from my paltry pay made its way onto their books.
But, what I learned! In that time, food was leaving a stodgy, formal image and was becoming fun, fresh, exciting; There they were, Lukins and Rosso, breaking ground and making this cuisine open to us all.
Ed, I love your writing and just now discovered you. Thank you for the tribute. I think in Sheila's honor, I will resurrect her carrot cake tonight!
J Yaeger at 1:12PM on 09/02/09
I use the "New Basics" as my go to cookbook. Gave one to both my kids when the went off to college and also to all my nieces at their bridal showers. She will be missed.
vacationmomma at 4:40PM on 09/20/09
In case of hurricane, grab the cookbook.Chicken Marbella, Brie wrapped in Phyllo and Chocolate Hazelnut cake. All have become my friends all time favorites.Rest in Peace Sheila. You paved the way for all the others.
ahs at 8:17PM on 11/07/09