A Letter From The Publisher: Nov. 25, 1966

TIME’s cover this week is a Thanksgiving tribute to good cooks everywhere—and particularly to the Lady with the Ladle, Julia Child. When the story went to press after five weeks of intensive reporting and writing, those who had worked on it wore a sleek and well-fed look. Some had enjoyed meals created by Julia herself, while others had sampled the work of gourmet cooks across the country, shown in our color pages.

Boston Bureau Chief Ruth Mehrtens spent five days in the Childs’ sunny kitchen interviewing Julia and occasionally lent a helping hand when there were peas to be shelled or a chicken to be stuffed. Ruth modestly admits that she is considered an excellent cook by her good friends (“and anyone who thinks I’m an excellent cook is a good friend”). Writer Marshall Burchard grew up in a food-conscious home in Boston; his father liked to re-create for his family meals he had eaten in European restaurants. While working on the cover, Burchard and his wife tried more than 50 recipes, many from Julia’s cookbook, and “raised our food budget 3,000%.”

Researcher Sue Raffety learned to cook with her mother, who ran a tearoom in Blackwell, Okla. For the cover, Sue spent 19 days interviewing food experts in Manhattan, sampling all the while. One day she was forced to eat three chefs-delight lunches within five hours. Editor Cranston Jones-ate and edited—but stayed out of the kitchen. He was content in the knowledge that his wife has had lessons at Paris’ Cordon Bleu.

Artist Boris Chaliapin went to Cambridge to paint the cover portrait, and according to Julia it was the “beginning of a life friendship.” After a sitting Boris would trade paintbrushes for Julia’s pots and pans, and concoct some of his favorite Russian recipes: shashlik and a peasant soup made with chicken giblets, dill pickles and brine.

TIME, it turns out, is full of chefs, from Newsmarker Bruce Chapin, who can turn out Julia’s supreme de volatile, to Editor Peter Martin, who mixes up popovers and curried eggs for Sunday breakfast. Researcher Betty Suyker, a longtime Child enthusiast who gets credit for first suggesting this week’s cover, is considered our best cook. Two years ago, she spent three weeks perfecting her culinary techniques at L’Ecole des Trois Gourmandes, the Paris school which Julia still helps to run.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, Medicine Writer Gilbert Cant may serve game birds in sour cream and black currant sauce, Religion Writer John Elson plans to experiment with braised lamb Bordeaux, and Researcher Madeleine Richards with a prized veal Orloff. Whatever you are cooking up for the holidays, we wish you ban appétit.