In the last couple years, my husband and I have seen so many fiction movies about chefs that now Netflix recommends any film related to food.
Not all films about chefs are equally good, though. High in our pantheon are Babette’s Feast, Today’s Special, and The Lunchbox. I’ll refrain from mentioning a couple recent ones that had too many Hollywood memes.
An article in the NY Times this week tells a real-life chef story that seems to imitate fiction. Jeff Gordinier interviews a pastry chef from the Bronx who has just landed a job at a restaurant in Copenhagen that some folks call the “best in the world.” The reporter, hoping to discover the source of chef Malcolm Livingston’s talent, travels with him to meet a great aunt.
“The person who had the answer, it turned out, was Aunt Alice. Aunt Alice is Alice Pulley, an 83-year-old deacon at Friendly Baptist Church and the sister of Mr. Livingston’s paternal grandmother. …
“Mr. Livingston nodded toward the kitchen as memories of poundcake and pecan pie poured forth. ‘This whole counter — she would have a little cake display,’ he said. When he was 5 or 6, he and his playground comrades became passionate advocates for Ms. Pulley’s baking. …
“Her signature dish, and the one that would wind up being pivotal in Mr. Livingston’s life, was a banana pudding filled with alternating layers of sliced bananas and Nilla wafers. She made the custard itself with eggs and milk, instead of relying on a powder from the supermarket, and she achieved the texture she wanted by way of flour, instead of cornstarch.
“ ‘I’m telling you, that banana pudding, really, it’s life-changing,’ Mr. Livingston said.” More here.
Photo: Katie Orlinsky for The New York Times
Malcolm Livingston II, recently hired to work in “the world’s best restaurant,” with his Aunt Alice Pulley, an inspiration.
Suzanne's Mom's Blog 
Yay for another cool story that shakes up my world views in an inspiring manner. Today I definitely need some inspiration — and a reminder that there are many other countries and cultures beyond these (seemingly less and less) United States. Thank you!
In the great scheme of things, the relationship between a boy and his aunt may be more powerful than governments.
And *finally* I came back to read this story–and it was every bit as excellent as I thought it would be. Now if only NPR and not NYT was the origin of the story–NPR would have supplied the recipe!
I know. I thought it was odd that they gave a cookie recipe instead, but I guess the point was to feature a recipe of the nephew. I guess you would make the banana pudding with the Nilla wafer recipe but use flour instead of cornstarch?