Happy Birthday Mr. Jefferson- your slave/chef was awesome

Thanks to our Founding Father and his slave/chef James Hemmings (who earned his freedom in agreement with old Tommy to learn French cuisine and bring it back to Monticello), we got peanuts, creme brûlée, champagne, boef a la mode, ice cream, tomatoes, broccoli, and macaroni and cheese. Tonight we celebrate with Monticell's Baked Mac n' Cheese and Creme Brûlée for dessert.  I am trying to locate a chuck roast for beef a la mode (which is really a beef stew with red wine, similar one would suppose to Julia Child's Boef Bourguonne).  James Hemmings made his life as a chef moving on to Philly & Baltimore before taking his own life after a drunken evening. But he leaves behind a legacy that has become an integral part of American cooking!


This is Hercules, chef to George Washington at Mount Vernon.  No image of James Hemmings appears to exist.

Kitchen Equipment Notes of James Hemmings from Monticello.