Everybody loves Jamie, Gordon, Emeril and Mario, but food isn’t a boys club by any means. While the cult of the celebrity chef has its fair share of males, the contributions of women to American food are undeniably important in shaping our food culture and community. Last week Gourmet listed their top 50 women in food, from Julia Child leading the list to Julie Powell rounding it off. The list is informed from an American perspective but includes important foreign imports like Clotilde Dusoulier, Madhur Jaffrey and Harumi Kurihara.
I’m glad to see some of my favorites there, like Amanda Hesser at number 22, the New York Times food writer, founder of food and community blog Food52 and editor of the Essential New York Times Cook Book. At number 2 is the great Alice Waters, who is instrumental in the local food movement and creator of the Edible Schoolyard, as well as the force behind the legendary Chez Panisse. Other ladies who made the list include Martha Stewart, Nigella Lawson, Irma S. Rombauer and Paula Deen.
Do you think they missed anyone? I think BUST columnist Isa Chandra Moskowitz should be included for her adored vegan cookbooks, the Post Punk Kitchen and founding animal rights group Apron Activists. Another missing lady is Michelle Obama for her “Let’s Move” campaign to make school food healthier and reduce childhood obesity to five percent by 2030. Who else?
